6. EMPLOYER BRANDING STRATEGY IN RECRUITING
“Your brand is what other people say
about you when you’re
not in the room”
Jeff Bezos
What is Employer Branding?
Your employer brand is the appearance your company displays to the outside world as a potential employer. It’s the brand image your organization has to the external world and candidates. Employer branding is successful in all places where job hunters are. The impression it leaves is crucial for turning a passive job seeker into an active candidate. This strategy can be a win-win situation for both Employer and candidates at the same time. Attracting the right person for the position is essential.
The Ways to Promote your Employer Branding
These are the formats of employer branding used by
organizations. They use a diverse media and a range of content for employer branding.
 |
| (Verlinden, 2024) Range of Content that could be used for Employer Branding |
What is Employer Branding Strategy?
Employer branding strategy is
defining your uniqueness as an organization and bring the potential of attracting
the ideal candidates you wish to create an interest on.
Employer branding plays a key role in talent acquisition because it can help you get clear on what your unique
proposition is and what your organization stands for, and then determine your
ideal candidate. Once you know this, you can then shape your recruitment
efforts and offering to help attract these candidates through your doors. (Jay,
n.d.)
Why is it necessary to have an Employer
Branding Strategy?
Employer branding has become an effective way
to benefit the company in many areas. Given below are the reasons why.
· When there is a stronger
employer branding strategy it reduces the turnover and there will be a higher employee
retention rate.
· The unique employer
branding attracts talented professionals without additional costs or efforts. As there is a War for Talent out there Employer Branding can help to attract the right candidate. (Engine Group, 2014)
· A compelling employer
branding supports in the process of recruiting thereby reducing saving money
for hiring.
· A strong employer brand
helps to achieve a good reputation. This attracts the top talents, thus helping
the business grow rapidly.
· The clearer the
employer branding strategy is, the more an organization is able to communicate about
their values, vision and social responsibility via the websites, the social
media platforms and in their marketing campaigns. This will create a diverse
workplace by attracting diverse talent.
· A strong employer will continue
to gain more loyal candidates.
The Process of developing an Employer Branding Strategy
The image below shows the 14 steps to develop an employer branding strategy.
 |
| (Jay, n.d.) How to Develop an Employer Branding Strategy |
Few Examples of the Best Employer Branding Strategies
Electronic Arts (EA) is an American
video game company famous for popular games such as FIFA, The Sims, and
Battlefield.
About EA’s Employer
Branding
EA’s careers
site gives job seekers a solid picture of what it’s like to
work at the company and what they prioritize.
Starting with:
We exist to inspire the
world to play.
We are a global team of
creators, storytellers, technologists, experience originators, innovators and
so much more. We believe amazing games and experiences start with teams as
diverse as the players and communities we serve. If you’re ready to change the
game, you’ve come to the right place.
Candidates can see EA’s
commitment to inclusion and diversity, together with concrete examples of
actions they have taken to support this within and outside the organization.
These include Juneteenth and International Women’s Day celebrations and actions
against racial injustice. By this, EA is showing that they really walk the
walk.
What’s more, they detail
their virtual hiring process to set and manage candidate expectations. The
page’s design is also on-brand, featuring many images from EA’s games.
EA
builds their employer brand by sharing employee stories, too. Not only do they
have an InsideEA Youtube channel, they also
use Linkedin to spotlight employees
worldwide.
 |
| Image 1 |
2. Marriot
International
Marriott International has
30 renowned hotel brands in 131 countries around the world.
About Marriotts’s
Employer Branding
Marriott has identified
three core pillars of their EVP, which represents an employee journey in their
organization:
·
Begin
·
Belong
·
Become
Their ultimate message
is “Be you”.
Marriott Careers. (2023) Meet Marriott’s new People Brand, Be.
The company’s various
social media channels show countless examples of what Marriott does to live up
to its promise.
On Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn, there is, for instance, a lot of content on what the
company does to support and improve their associates’ wellbeing, as well as
their efforts on diversity and inclusion. They make use of different forms of
media and storytelling techniques.
Marriott
really does a great job at keeping its word and deserves a place among the top
employer branding examples.
3. Teach for America
An
educational non-profit, Teach for America places teachers in low-income
schools. Their mission is to “enlist, develop, and mobilize as many as possible
of our nation’s most promising future leaders to grow and strengthen the
movement for educational equity and excellence”.
About Teach for America’s
Employer Branding
As a
mission-driven non-profit organization, it’s no wonder that plenty of
candidates also believe in the cause. However, Teach for America doesn’t let
that stop them from infiltrating socials with great examples of employer
branding.
Most
specifically, their Instagram shows what a day in the
life of a Teach for America employee is like. They also share relevant content
that is true to their work and connects with a younger generation.
 |
| Image 2 |
On their career site, Teach for America boasts impressive stats to further showcase what kind of impact candidates could make if selected.
 |
| Image 3 |
Teach for America is one of our favorite examples of employer branding due to their unique presence on social media. Their message is clear, consistent, and meets their target audience where they are. Not to mention, a lot of it is employee-generated. Showing so many proud employees is another great sign that they deliver what they offer.
4. Netflix
Netflix is one of the
world’s most well-known streaming services, offering various award-winning TV
shows, movies, documentaries, and more.
About Teach for America’s
Employer Branding
As a
global company, it’s safe to say almost everyone has heard of them at one point
or another. Where their external commercial brand ends, their employer brand
begins, and it has the potential to reach many prospective candidates.
The
branding is straightforward and clear.
Netflix’s
careers page starts with the simple heading:
A
great workplace combines exceptional colleagues and hard problems.
From
there, their careers page is quite extensive. Leading into a thorough page
about culture, company history, as well employee stories. Netflix also makes
use of multiple social media platforms, such as Instagram, where they highlight employee stories as well as
internal campaigns.
 |
| Image 4 |
What’s more, the company has been running the WeAreNetflix Podcast, where employees share their experiences working at the organization.
5. Tony’s Chocolonely
Tony’s Chocolonely is
a Dutch company producing and selling fair trade
chocolate.
About Tony’s Employer
Branding
Tony’s does a great job at spreading its
mission and values every chance they get. A great example is their chocolate
and even the wrapper it comes in. A Tony’s chocolate bar isn’t divided into a
number of equally big pieces of chocolate to remind people that profits in the
chocolate industry aren’t fairly distributed either.
The
inside of the paper wrapper that the chocolate comes in states Tony’s
Chocolonely’s mission of a world that only has 100% slave-free chocolate and
how they plan on getting there.
 |
| Image 5 |
With such a strong commercial presence, Tony’s employer branding follows through seamlessly. Now present globally, their LinkedIn and career site focus on amplifying their mission, and candidates who share their passion are naturally drawn to them.
All the above examples with the images (1-5) and the video were cited in Verlinden, (2024).
Conclusion
Defining your cooperate brand is essential in the modern era of Recruitment. Have a blend of what you share with the passive candidates.
Targeting the candidates where they are is easier to reach the target audience.
Having a consistency in employer branding will help you build and grow and
become recognized as a competitive brand. This will also help build the trust
and gain loyal candidates as a branded organization. The employee retention and
turnover will eventually be higher when the employer branding is compelling.
References
Engine Group. (2014) Attracting Top Talent with a Strong
Employer Brand [video]. 19 December. Available at:https://youtu.be/A0a8HFz7OEU?si=pfOp0FQhjPm1Trfc
[Accessed on 31st
March 2024].
Jay, S. (no date) How to Develop an Employer Branding
Strategy in 14 Steps [blog]. Available at: https://www.aihr.com/blog/employer-branding-strategy/
[Accessed on 31st
March 2024].
Jay, S. (no date) How to Develop an Employee Branding Strategy [image]. Available at: https://www.aihr.com/wp-content/uploads/how-to-develop-employee-branding-strategy.png [Accessed on 31st March 2024].
Marriott Careers. (2023) Meet Marriott’s new People Brand, Be. [video] 4 April. Available at: https://youtu.be/JcL1vFoGKns?si=9I60rDcRmZ4gGYlO [Accessed on 31st March 2024].
Verlinden, N. (2024) 13 Great Employer Branding Examples to Inspire you in 2024 [blog]. Available at: https://www.aihr.com/blog/employer-branding-examples/ [Accessed on 31st March 2024].
Good article about how branding can effect recruitment process. Article gives you the international examples how brand can build up their strategy in recruitment. present global contest brand develop their recruitment strategy in social media front as that will be the cost effective medium and to reach the audience in large scale.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your thoughts on my article, Sudesh. Yes, this is a cost effective strategy and helps adjacently for the social media recruiting strategy to be implemented to be implemented.
DeleteGood Content. Similar to brand advertising, the return on investment from employer branding efforts can be hard to measure. Many companies struggle with ways to measure the money saved or earned from efforts such as creating a culture video, having a better career site, or developing talent pipelines.
ReplyDeleteThe simplest ways of measuring a return on employer branding investment are:
1. Increased awareness that leads to more applicants, and tracking how these applicants translate to hires
2. Increased conversion rates of interested applicants after implementing employer branding tactics
3. Decreases in time to fill, and the progress this allows a business to make
4. Decreases in third party recruiter spend
Appreciate your insightful comment, Chethani. Yes, Chethani measuring the effectiveness an Employer Branding Strategy could have to a business is difficult to be measured. The methods you have mentioned here could make it easier for the measurement of this strategy.
DeleteVery informative and insightful article on employer branding on recruitments.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your valuable comment, Arundathi. Employer Branding plays a major role in the process of recruitment.
DeleteGreat Article, I adored it! When workers believe their contributions matter, they are more inclined to put in extra effort and contribute to the company's success.
ReplyDeleteAppreciate your comment, Dilshad. Yes, when the employees feel that they are valued too, they get motivated, thereby have a positive impact on the performance of the employees and the success of the company at the same time. Employer Branding plays a vital role to make the employees feel valued.
DeleteSo true! brand image is the most important thing in an organization and it has to be the major external world highlight. I like this Blog. This more about the company views
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, Amesha. Brand image should be a positive one in order to attract the best talent. This strategy plays a vital role in many aspects from recruiting to productivity.
DeleteNice article. Judith, can you explain the disadvantages for employees will face if they follow good employer brand?
ReplyDeleteThanks for your valuable comment, Chamara. I will disagree with this because it cannot be possible. If the employer Branding is good, there will be no such disadvantages.
DeleteTalent Works International, (2024) .... no employer in their right mind will promote the negative aspects of their employer brand as it’s a sure-fire way to deter tech candidates from applying for your job. Instead, employer branding in the tech space is all about celebrating what makes your business unique as an employer, showing you’re innovations, company culture and what you can offer your team members that your closest competition cannot.
On the other hand, this type of scenario may occur, for example: a company has had a good Employer Branding initially when a particular employee joined years ago, but as time goes the Employer Branding has a negative image and the employer takes no action to build it again, then an employee may face many problems and even come to the extreme of quitting the Employer.
ReplyDeleteEmployer branding is a fascinating aspect of recruitment strategy and I personally believe its the key factor of Talent acquisition and retention. Its wonderful that you have shared few actual examples of using Employer Branding Strategies. It's intriguing to see how companies like Electronic Arts, Marriott, and Netflix effectively communicate their values and culture to attract top talent.
Appreciate your comment, Shan. Yes, the examples I have mentioned in this article are only a few. There are many other examples out there if you research. It's really impressive how these Employers use Employer Branding Strategy for talent acquisition and recruiting.
DeleteYes agreed By implementing a well-defined employer branding strategy, organizations can attract top talent, improve employee retention, and enhance their overall reputation as an employer of choice in the competitive job market. Nevertheless , the brands we see around us have not just appeared from nowhere, they have evolved and continuously improved over time. Brands that consistently deliver over time become a powerful part of our everyday life and are the ones that achieve success. Brands are more than just the logos we see on products, buildings, vehicles, and advertising – brands make promises and they stick to deliver these promises. So ultimately, it’s a truly personal experience which represents all of the impressions and expectations that an individual has of a product, a service or company. In that point of view developing an employee branding strategy can be depends on their promises and achievements. Overall, I see this as a great insightful article. Thank you
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your valuable insights on this article, Wasula. Yes, employer branding strategy for recruiting depends on the brand image the employer is able to maintain throughout the years. Very helpful feedback.
DeleteInsightful article on employer branding strategies Judith! Your article beautifully outlines the importance of defining and promoting an employer brand, along with providing concrete examples of companies excelling in this area. It's evident that a strong employer brand not only attracts top talent but also fosters employee loyalty and engagement.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, Minoshi. Your feedback is very useful. Yes, Employer Branding plays an important role in gaining loyalty and employee engagement.
DeleteThe importance of corporate branding in contemporary recruitment methods is emphasized in this blog. It correctly emphasizes how crucial it is to create and preserve a consistent company identity that appeals to both passive and active prospects. Reaching and engaging the proper talent pool can be accomplished effectively by using a variety of communication channels to target prospects and maintaining messaging consistency. Furthermore, the focus on fostering loyalty and trust via strong employer branding is a powerful indicator of the long-term advantages of funding this area of talent acquisition. All things considered, it's a well-written article that emphasizes the value of corporate branding in luring and keeping great personnel.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the insightful comment, Neashara. Appreciate your insights about implementing the employer branding strategy. Yes, employer branding is a powerful indicator of the long-term advantage of funding talent acquisition. A strong employer branding can foster loyalty and trust towards the company and employees can help achieve the long-term goals in the meantime.
DeleteThis comprehensive guide explores the essence and significance of employer branding strategies, supported by insightful examples from leading companies like Electronic Arts, Marriott, and Netflix. By showcasing how these organizations craft and communicate their unique employer brands, the article underscores the importance of consistency, authenticity, and targeted messaging in attracting and retaining top talent.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ruwan, for the valuable comment. Your feedback on the article is highly appreciated.
DeleteA well-designed employer brand can go a long way toward retaining employees and reducing recruitment costs. Building a strong employer brand that aligns with your employees’ personal values can help you attract more qualified candidates and build a strong workforce for the future.
ReplyDelete(Anderson,2022)
Yes, a strong employer brand attracts qualified candidates and help to build a strong workforce in turn. Thank you for sharing your valuable insights, Thilini!
DeleteEmployer branding is an important part of attracting top talent, and this blog post does a great job of underlining its importance in recruitment. It's intriguing to hear about the many techniques that firms may take to improve their employer brand, such as promoting company culture and highlighting employee testimonies. How do you believe employer branding initiatives differ across industries, and what critical criteria should businesses consider when designing their own branding strategies?
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely yes, Hasith! Employer branding initiatives can vary significantly across different industries. This variation can be due to several factors, including the nature of the work, industry morals, employee prospects, and the competitive nature of businesses. For example, in the technology sector, employer branding often focuses on innovation, pioneering projects, and opportunities for individual growth and learning. Tech companies might highlight their flexible work environments, modern office spaces, and the opportunity to work with the latest technologies as part of their branding efforts.
DeleteHowever, the finance industry may underscore stability, growth opportunities, and the reputation of the company. Employer branding in finance might also focus on the company's market position, its role in global economics, and the professional development programs it offers.
Please refer to the image included in this article that gives a clear idea about the process of developing an employer branding strategy. (Jay, n.d.) How to Develop an Employer Branding Strategy.
Thank you for your valuable feedback.
Yes Judith! Employer brand is one of the most important factors pertaining to any kind of businesses today. Employees are more like to work in the organizations which are having a reputed brand names. For employees aspect, it makes advantages on career developments and recognitions.
ReplyDeleteYes, a strong employer branding can foster loyalty and trust of employees towards the company and employees can help achieve the long-term goals in the meantime. It definitely a major importance in career advancement and recognition as well. Thank you for sharing your valuable thoughts on my article, Himaru!
DeleteEmployer Branding, pivotal in contemporary recruitment, molds a company's external identity and entices top talent. Drawing parallels with the "Brand Equity" theory proposed by Aaker, employer branding establishes a company's reputation among potential candidates, akin to how brand equity denotes a brand's value to consumers. Notable examples like Google and Apple exemplify how consistent branding, innovative workplace cultures, and employee-centric initiatives contribute to their allure as employers. This theory underscores the significance of employer branding in fostering a positive perception among job seekers, ultimately influencing their decisions to join and stay with an Organization.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your valuable insights on this article, Shannon. Certainly! Employer branding strategy for recruiting depends on the brand image that the employer is able to maintain throughout the years. Your citations about the "Brand Equity" theory, provides a great understanding about the how the employer branding establishes a company's reputation among the potential candidates. Thank you for mentioning.
Delete