The importance of a strong employment branding message

Photo courtesy of Flickr and user  Alachua County

Photo courtesy of Flickr and user Alachua County

In its 2015 Global Job Seeker Trends LinkedIn surveyed more than 10,000 people who switched jobs between December 2014 and March 2015. The biggest attraction for a new position, it found, wasn’t a hike in pay so much as it was a better career opportunity. Also, LinkedIn noted that talent brand actually matters: “People’s biggest obstacle to changing jobs is not knowing what it’s really like to work somewhere. You have the power to fix that by ramping up your recruitment marketing and showcasing your employer branding.”

What is employment branding, and how can we do it better?

In the past, employment branding was the line in the “help wanted” print advertisement that said, “excellent place to work”. That sentence alone meant (and means) absolutely nothing to most folks. People had to rely on their own ideas about the company’s reputation or they had to hunt for other phrases like “competitive salary” or “career path” and then try to figure out if working at that company sounded promising or not. The ads clearly lacked a specific “What’s in it for me” hook.

Today, employment branding lives at the intersection of H.R., the marketing division, and your technology department. Challenge these team members to work together to create a truly influential and effective employment branding message by creating a series of culture videos. You can gain miles of traction on the competition by filming an inside view of retail, factory or office space. Add a welcoming dialogue to usher countless candidates through your front door.

In the film, consider including a few testimonials from employees who feel they have found a career path (versus job) with your firm. Introducing the hiring managers is a step several firms forget, yet it may be the reason someone submits a resume, and it extends your brand as an excellent place to work. And what’s your strongest hiring hook? Flex-time? Adoption benefits? What would you want to be certain to mention in those clips? Also, feature short videos of company events and rewards programs to illustrate that the business is fun as well as serious.

Once you have the YouTube video (or Vine or Snapchat photos ready), consider posting them on LinkedIn, your FB page, etc. and certainly embedding them on a separate site on your website tabbed “career opportunities”, where you post open positions and highlight employee contributions to the company. Every opportunity to acknowledge employees will not only help with recruitment, but with retention as well.

It’s a whole new world, and familiarizing yourself with today’s technology – and integrating it into every department’s mission — will help you leverage your company’s ability to find and acquire the best talent. Creating a culture channel is one way to do that across departments.

About Jody Glynn Patrick

Jody is President of Glynn Patrick & Associates, which provides management consulting, executive coaching and strategic planning services. She is Publisher Emeritus of In Business magazine, which she published for 17 years. Selected as the “U.S. Business Journalist of the Year” in 2007 in Washington, DC, by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Jody has been a business reporter, editor, radio talk show host , and has won other state and national journalism awards. At the same time, she has helped corporate clients grow their businesses -- the basis for her practical coaching advice here. She also was the 2005 Athena Award recipient for her leadership role in mentoring other professional women. Jody will be talking with you weekly on TDS’ blog to share her insights and tips from the C-Suite perspective. Follow on G+.

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