Do you believe in love at first sight? No worries, neither do we. But there’s no harm in making a strong first impression on potential employees, and eventually let them fall in love with your company. The key words? A strong employment brand. Whether you realize it or not, every company has an employment brand. It is the perception your employees and prospective hires have of what it’s like to work at your company.
The war for talent
Companies often fail to attract and retain the ideal employee. It is a common mistake to let the employment brand be shaped by word-of-mouth of former employees, or by media coverage of the company. In this way, your employment brand tends to be more vague and is hard to be controlled.
By giving a clear statement to potential and existing employees, a company can create its image as an employer in their minds. For example, the Google employment branding is one of the best in the world. The company is known for its excellent approach to employees and building a strong employer value position. Google is at the forefront of its markets, and that success is due in great part to the ability to hire and keep the right people. Google invests a lot of time, money and attention into their employment brand.
4 inspiring ideas
But how can you create a strong employment brand? How can you make potential employees fall in love with your company, and make current employees love it even more? Let’s sum up some ideas to inspire you, your company and your employees.
Everyone knows the power of social media. So let’s make a social media page, for and by the employees of your company. It’s a great opportunity for potential employees to get a sneak peek of how their possible workspace would look like. But watch out for clichés such as the use of stock photos of happy employees. The key is to make it personal and authentic. Let employees live the brand!
- Company events can be a great tool to bond the team and show people that you care. A fun extra? It is the perfect way to spread the company image among potential employees.
- Be open and clear. Tell people where you stand for and what goals you want to reach. What is a potential hire signing up for? What’s the mission and the vision you all share?
- Highlight what makes you truly unique. What distinguishes your company from other businesses? Are you the expert in your field, do you have a top-notch customer service or does your product or service inspire people to think outside the box?
Benefits of showing off
In a way, generating a strong employment brand is showing off why your company is the best place to work. Showing off often goes against our nature, but it can position you as an ‘employer of choice’, and even makes you stand out from your competition. People in search of employment are often looking for a workplace which offers the best benefits that address their needs. Important reminder: it is not the salary which is the most important factor when deciding where to work!
Furthermore, a strong employment brand can even increase revenues and profit margins and it leads to a higher level of customer satisfaction. These benefits are tied in having the ‘right fit’ employees at your company and having employees who are committed to the success of your business.
Impermo’s strong employment branding
We supported the Belgian brand Impermo in the creation of a strong employment brand.
- By generating splendid visuals and video’s about Impermo’s Client Heroes and Warehouse Warriors, prospect employees get a clear view of how the job and their colleagues look like. What’s more, employees feel appreciated when their job is portrayed in a correct and appalling way.
- We highlighted the 5 key values of Impermo in order to inform prospect hires what Impermo stands for.
- The Impermo Academy came to life to support the careers of the company’s employees. Hence, prospect hires and current employees are given the chance to grow.