Employer branding is often misunderstood and confused with corporate branding. To dispel misconceptions, it's important to recognize that while corporate and employer brands are related, they cater to different audiences and have distinct objectives, messaging, and channels.
Your employer brand is crucial for engaging, attracting, hiring, and retaining the right talent. Just as a consumer brand drives customer awareness and loyalty, your employer brand shapes the perception of potential and current employees.
Our Symphony Talent employer brand experts recently shared proven strategies to strengthen and revitalize your employer brand, including some best-in-class examples.
Watch the full, on-demand session:
Key takeaways:
Revitalizing or strengthening your employer brand involves understanding and effectively implementing the following:
- Evaluate alignment: Assess whether your employer brand accurately reflects your organization's identity today. Consider if you're attracting candidates who align with your values and if your messaging resonates with talent.
- Dive into candidate journey mapping: Visualize the candidate's journey from awareness to retention. Analyze if your messaging remains consistent and credible across all touchpoints, including job descriptions, social media, and employee interactions.
- Understand your internal and external reputation: Recognize that your employees are ambassadors. Focus on managing your reputation internally to empower your employees to share positive stories externally.
- Define your EVP and organization’s differentiation: Your Employer Value Proposition (EVP) amplifies what you uniquely offer as an employer and what you expect in return. Ensuring your EVP is relevant, credible, aspirational, and differentiated from competitors is critical.
- Audit channels and content: Regularly audit your communication channels to ensure they're current, relevant, and aligned with your brand. Pay attention to both visual elements and written content, ensuring they authentically represent your organization. More tips on content include:
- Embrace creativity and boldness: Don't shy away from creative, bold approaches. Differentiate your messaging and design from competitors to stand out in a sea of sameness. Consider presenting competitor messaging to your team to emphasize the need for differentiation.
- Focus on specificity: Instead of generic content, provide specific, authentic stories highlighting what truly sets your organization apart. Listen to recent hires and employees to understand why they chose your company.
- Align purpose and values: Purpose is important but not the only factor. Ensure your messaging speaks to candidates’ aspirations, values, and goals, showcasing how they can contribute to your organization’s purpose.
- Leverage visual content: Utilize video and imagery to bring your employer brand to life. Show authentic, relatable moments from your workplace to resonate with potential talent.
- Constantly evolve and audit: Your employer brand is a living thing. Regularly audit your brand to ensure it aligns with changes in your organization, industry, and candidate expectations.
By focusing on authenticity, differentiation, and consistent messaging across all touchpoints, you can revitalize and strengthen your employer brand, ultimately driving better candidate experiences and improved talent acquisition outcomes.
Want to dig deeper into actionable steps to strengthen your employer brand? Let’s talk!
