Read on to find out WHAT is an employer brand, WHY it’s essential for recruitment – and more importantly, HOW we can help you develop an employer brand that will deliver great candidates.

When it comes to branding, you’re more likely to think about your company logo, brand, messaging and customer perception. Just as important as these brand assets, is your employer brand. The way companies recruit candidates has changed, and the introduction of social media and technology means candidates can easily search and find information about your company. In fact, according to LinkedIn if there is no information about an employer’s reputation online, 73% of job seekers are less likely to apply.

This means you no longer have the luxury of choosing talent – talent chooses you.

Candidates form an opinion of your company based on the first touchpoint they have with your brand. If that first experience doesn’t convince them that your organisation is a great place to work, you have lost the first battle in the war for talent.  

Read on to find out What is an employer brand, Why it’s essential for recruitment – and more importantly, How we can help you develop an employer brand that will deliver great candidates.

What is an Employer Brand?

An employer brand is a set of qualities and values that differentiates your company from another, or better still, your competitors. Having a positive employer brand will help attract candidates, create a talent pool and can improve your employee retention.  Essentially employer brand answers the question, what is it like to work for this company?  

What are the key elements of your employer brand?

Company Values:

Your company values are the beliefs upon which your business bases its behaviour. Company values support the company vison, help shape the culture and form the company identity. The company values are the principles that your business uses to manage its internal affairs as well as its relationship with customers.

Website/ careers pages:

Having an engaging careers page gives you an opportunity to present your brand, recruitment opportunities and all the great reasons a candidate would want to work with you. Candidate behaviours and their job search preferences have changed.  Recruiterly recently reported that careers pages now account for 94.1% more hires than they did 4 years ago.

Employment Value Proposition:

An Employee Value Proposition is a set of values that your company, as an employer, offers to your current employees and to attract new hires. When developing your EVP, don’t just focus on the traditional benefits like salary and bonuses. Candidates increasingly are focused on flexibility and a career with purpose. In fact, a recent Ernst & Young global survey of 9,700 young workers found that more flexibility beat out just about all other job features.

Why is it important for recruitment?

Just as important as the “what” of employer branding, is the "why". A strong employer brand will influence whether candidates decide to apply for, or even accept a role. 

A strong employer brand strategy will help develop your talent pool, improve your brand perception and save you money in recruitment.

Talent Pool: A talent pool is a shortlist or database of candidates that have expressed an interest in working for your company. These candidates are not currently being considered for a role within your company. A Talent pool helps improve the quality of hires and speed up the recruitment process. Having a talent pool means when a job opens within your company your hiring team already have a list of possible candidates to fill the role immediately, saving you time and money!

Brand perception: Having an employer brand helps improve your perception both online and social media. Make sure the first impression your candidates have of your business is a positive one! The impact of employer branding can trickle down to other areas of the business. Customers want to work with companies where employees are treated fairly and like their job, and workplace.

Save money in recruitment and retention

In business, everything comes down to cost. Developing your employer brand can save you money. LinkedIn data shows that employers with strong employment brands see a 43% decrease in cost per hire. An organisation with a strong employer brand, especially one that resinates with current employees, will also have a significantly lower turnover rate.  Candidates are more likely to research your company when they’ve heard something that makes them want to work there. By growing your brand, you’ll spend less money creating awareness for your company, and more time reviewing applications.

How do I develop my Employer Brand

Now you understand how important your employer brand is you’re probably thinking – I’m only one person, how do I get all of this done? Well, you can establish your employer brand, define your company values and message, create your careers page, develop your recruitment strategy and messaging. Or, you can call in the experts.

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