Employer Branding : Benefits, best practices & examples

It's the buzzword on the corporate world's lips: employer branding. Everyone is talking about it. But only a few are acing it. What is an employer brand, and how can you capitalise on it to get a winning edge in the war for talent?

Here's a simple definition to pique your interest.

WHAT IS AN EMPLOYER BRAND?

Employer brand is the reputation an organisation builds to be the employer of choice. The process of creating this reputation and popularity is called employer branding. And, it's your roadmap to recruiting and retaining talent. 

It seems easy, right? You promote yourself as a company that everybody wants to work with, and it's done. Well, not really.

A lot goes into building an employer brand. We will get to that later. First, let's dive deeper and understand why the HR world can't underestimate employer branding.

EMPLOYER BRANDING – WHAT DOES IT DO TO A COMPANY?

Your brand is more than just superb customer service, product quality, offers, launches, media interactions, or the stunning website you have. You can't overlook the impact you make on your employees – existing and potential. 

When 75% of job seekers consider an employer's brand even before applying for a job, it's no fluff.

If done right, employer branding becomes a crucial part of your employee experience and, ultimately, business productivity. 

This is how employer branding aligns with your company's goals and delivers long-term benefits:

1) It decreases the cost per hire

50% That's how much you can reduce your cost per hire with a strong employer brand.

When you build your employer brand, you make a long-term investment - no spending money on advertising and marketing campaigns specifically for creating brand awareness to attract future employees. By boosting your social media presence with a strong employer brand, you share your values and culture with the world at large.  

And with consistent efforts, your employer brand will attract natural talent without investing heavily in the recruitment cycle.

2) It gives you access to the top talent

Traditionally, companies had to work hard to attract the best talent. But with a strong employer brand, you can turn the tables. When your positive work culture becomes visible online, you can rest assured that the ones you need are keeping an eye on your brand – giving you access to more candidates who are keen on joining your company.

3) Brand matters more than money

Every employee seeks some monetary-love in their salary account. But, to some, a good brand matters more than money. More and more candidates are accepting lower pays in companies that have a positive reputation. This, ultimately, translates into increased savings. So, create a feel-good company, and you are sure to control your company's HR spending.

4) It influences your corporate brand

Your corporate brand is different from your employer brand. Agree. But both dramatically influence each other. Customers are less likely to deal with companies having bad employer reputation, and candidates are less likely to apply for companies with poor corporate image. 

When you invest in employer branding, it creates a ripple effect in improving your reputation and corporate brand, bringing more customers and profits in the long-run. 

Strong Employer Brand = Engaged + Enthusiastic Employees 

"Where do you work?" 

The answer to this question is often accompanied by a good deal of pride or a complete lack of it. And the answer pretty much explains the emphasis a company puts on its employer branding. 

Employees working with a company that has a strong employer brand are often more engaged and enthusiastic. That's because a fantastic employer brand not just improves public perception about the business but also of those working for it.

EMPLOYER BRANDING – BEST PRACTICES WITH REAL-WORLD EXAMPLES 

Ready to turn your employer brand around and improve your reputation, profits, and employee engagement? 

Most HR leaders understand the importance of employer branding. The sad part is: they don't always know what to do about it. 

That's why, when companies reach out to us at Wiggli for their employer branding goals, we guide them from scratch. Because let's be honest here: the idea of investing in promoting your company as a perfect employer can be a bit vague. Apart from focusing on corporate social responsibility (CSR) to improve your brand's perception, there's a lot that needs to be done to create a better social image than your competitors.

To help you get started, here are five remarkable ways to build a positive and influential employer brand, along with some inspo-worthy examples:

• Create Insightful Video Content

Nothing beats videos in portraying a brand's authenticity. After all, unveiling what goes inside your company before someone even pays a visit says a lot about the level of transparency you are committed to. And that's essential for today's no-artifice-please talent pool. 

Create videos that go beyond the cookie-cutter corporate videos, and you'll have the key to grabbing the attention of the top talent out there. 

A perfect example of an employer branding video is the "Google interns' first week" video launched in 2013. The video was an excellent portrayal of how it feels to be on Google's Mountain View campus for the first time. And it continues to strike a note with the potential applicants even today.

• Deliver More Through Your Careers Pages

Various touchpoints influence a candidate's decision to apply for a job. While your website's "careers" page is one of them, it's vital to understand that candidates seek more than those stale careers pages when getting to know a business. 

Explain your company's structure and provide clear information about your objectives and values through these pages that form a significant part of the candidates' journey.

Cisco is the best example of careers page employer branding done right. By highlighting their employees' stories and clearly explaining the available benefits and perks along with answering the FAQs, they provide all the career essentials than merely listing the current job opportunities. 

• Improve Your Employees' Work-Life Balance

There are two types of companies: those who talk of maintaining work-life balance and those who help their employees do that. To create a strong employer brand, try to be in the second category. And when you're at it, take some inspiration from Twitter's permanent work-from-home approach. 

By helping its employees leverage extensive flexibility to work from wherever they want, the company has set a benchmark for attracting and retaining talent based on flexibility, autonomy, and work-life balance.

One could say that it was a long-time coming; the present times just made it inevitable.

• Use Feedback To Win Over Top Talent

When aiming to create a fantastic company that looks good from the outside, focus within the organisation too. Pay attention to employee feedback – both offline and online. And always respond without turning on your defensive mode. 

Begin by thanking the reviewer for their feedback and give personalised responses. Above all, be courteous while replying to negative reviews. Plus, think creatively about how best can you maximize your positive reputation. 

For example, employer review sites like Glassdoor allow you to make the most of your positive reviews by featuring them on your profile. And that's often the first thing potential job seekers notice when researching a company.

Take a look at how computer software giant Adobe uses this feature on their Glassdoor profile.

And once you have paid heed to the feedback you received, don't forget to implement what you promise. 

Remember to walk the talk. It can make a radical difference in your employer brand.

• Utilise Employee-Generated Social Media Content 

It's a no-brainer that social media makes for a great job search platform.

A look at the stats reveals that over 79% of applicants use social media to search for jobs. 

And that's huge.

So, how to attract the top talent when everyone is active on social media and trying to create a unique employer brand? With employee-generated content. 

Social media lets your candidates interact directly with your brand – giving them a window to your organisation. And nothing works better in attracting talent than leveraging existing employees as brand advocates.

Take Microsoft, for example.

In the rapidly growing tech industry, it becomes difficult to win the race for talent – no matter whether you're an industry giant. This was a challenge that Microsoft conquered brilliantly by repositioning its legacy brand with "Microsoft Life".

The company's Microsoft Life blog features employees' stories about how Microsoft helped them bring a change, and its Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram handles regularly offer sneak peeks into the lives of Microsoft employees, attracting top talent from around the world.

YOUR NEXT STEPS

Building a strong employer brand is like foraying into a wild path. With so much to do, you might get lost. Begin right by focusing on what matters the most, and align your business' goals with your employee success. 

Involve your CEO along with the HR and marketing teams to shape the right narrative. Because like almost everything else in the world of business, employer branding is a team effort.

And we're here to help you get ahead of the game. At Wiggli, we bring all the insights needed for the HR world to work smarter and better. 

Find out how we can assist you with your employer branding goals and be all set to tap the power of the right talent through a top-tier employer brand.