When we think of branding, we tend to think about logos, brand messaging, and how prospects and customers perceive our company. Your company’s brand and reputation are major decision factors for all aspects of business growth.
Employer branding is your reputation as an employer and the value that you offer to your employees. Positive employer branding helps to attract and retain quality employees, who are crucial to the success of the business. However, employer branding can be neglected or even forgotten particularly in times when the company is not actively recruiting and is focused on other aspects of the business.
Technology, healthcare, pharma, and finance are attracting millennial employees while industries such as industrial, oil and gas, telecommunications and manufacturing are having a more difficult time. There is a stigma around these industries - they are not “cool” place to work. However, that is about to change with Industry 4.0 – the digitization of manufacturing. Automation, IoT, robotics, data science, and artificial intelligence is transforming these industries.
As boomers age out, the existing jobs are not being filled fast enough. For these industries, it is time for an image overhaul and an employer brand refresh.
Employer Branding is More Important than Ever
With the unemployment rate hovering between 3.5-4.0%, employer branding is more important than ever. Consider these stats.
- 80% of talent acquisition managers believe that employer branding has a significant impact on the ability to hire great talent. (LinkedIn)
- 96% of companies believe employer brand and reputation can positively or negatively impact revenue, yet less than half (44%) monitor that impact. (CareerArc)
- 64% of consumers have stopped purchasing a brand after hearing news of that company’s poor employee treatment. (CareerArc)
- 9 out of 10 candidates would apply for a job when it’s from an employer brand that’s actively maintained. (Workable)
- 50% of candidates say they wouldn’t work for a company with a bad reputation – even for a pay increase. (Shortlister)
According to CareerArc, millennials are less likely to apply to a company after reading poor employer reviews, are more open to switching jobs after witnessing poor employer practices, and more likely to share their opinions of employers on review sites and social media compared to Gen-Xers and baby boomers.
Keep Your Employer Brand in Tip Top Shape with These 6 Strategies
- Get employees involved in social sharing – Your employees could be your best assets for recruiting. Develop an Employee Advocacy program to make it easy for employees to share company news and content on their own networks. Depending on budgets and program parameters, your employees could earn “perks” for becoming an active advocate.
- Be Proactive on Career Sites - Proactively monitor career sites for new reviews. If negative reviews contain nonfactual information, then correct it. For example, if an employee or ex-employee claims that you don’t have a work-at-home policy – and you don’t – then there is not much you can you or say about it. If you do have a work-at-home policy then make sure you reply that you do have a policy and point to an online resource that talks about it. If you do not have it at the time but you later institute one, then go back to the negative reviews that mention it and reply that the company recognized the issue and developed a work-at-home policy. This way you demonstrate that you listen and evolve to the needs of your employees.
- Develop Content for Potential Employees – Potential employees want to hear from current employees. A series of blog posts of videos featuring current employees on what they like your companies is a great way to give new employees an idea of the culture.
- Be Active and Engaging on Social Media – Social media platforms such as LinkedIn are the first place most job candidates look at when researching new opportunities. Simultaneously, recruiters are searching to find the best candidates on the same platform. Make sure your brand is active by proactively and programmatically, sharing information on company events, charity initiatives, interesting employees, awards, and training workshops so that your brand looks fresh and inviting.
- Raise Your Brand Visibility in the Press – Employees want to be associated with companies that people know about and talk about. Raise your visibility in the press with trend stories, new business wins, and profiles about interesting people in your company.
- Win Awards – Everyone wants to be associated with a winner. Apply for awards such as The Best Place to Work to raise your profile.
You may be interested in these posts.
Industry 4.0 is a Game Changer for Marketing
Manufacturing and Inbound Marketing – The New Power Couple
