If you’re serious about hiring the best candidates for your business, you should value your employer image as highly as your reputation among clients and customers. Our tips will help you boost your employer brand while attracting top talent.
Why your employer brand matters
72% of recruiting leaders worldwide agree that the employer brand has a significant impact on hiring. So, to get the brightest and best through your door, you should aim to create a brand culture that speaks to the needs of your potential hires. Read on to learn how.
Do you know where your business is heading and can you clearly articulate this to potential recruits? To attract the best talent, you need to get them excited about coming on board.
What are the principles that guide your organisation? Perhaps you’re all about being transparent and customer-focused, or maybe craftsmanship is what matters. Either way, communicate your values to help engage with your talent pool.
People often assume that company culture is about having a cool office space, but there’s a lot more to it than that. You need to go deeper and build an environment that taps into the wants and needs of potential hires. This could include creating a culture of trust and mutual respect, which allows staff more autonomy and flexibility.
It’s important to hire people who gel with your culture. This isn’t necessarily someone you want to have a beer with, but who exhibits the right behaviours. Just one bad egg can create a stink, particularly if they end up being involved in recruitment.
To learn more about your organisation, candidates are highly likely to visit your website and social channels. Make sure they’re up-to-date and give a good impression. You could include customer/client testimonials – and don’t be shy about blowing your own trumpet.
According to LinkedIn, candidates are three times more likely to trust your staff to tell it like it is. That’s why it can be a good idea to turn your team members into brand ambassadors and encourage them to share work successes on their social profiles.
You don’t have to wait until you have a vacancy to engage with talent. Instead, you should consider nurturing relationships ahead of time. This gives you the opportunity to communicate your employee value proposition – or the ‘what’s in it for me?’ – in a less formal setting. It also shows you care about building winning teams.
Candidates will see the recruitment process as a reflection of what it’s like to work at your company. Make talent management a priority – let applicants know what to expect and ensure hiring managers are well prepared. Any hiccups can easily translate into negative reviews and damage your future hiring ability.
Are your hiring techniques fit for purpose in a modern, connected world? If not, it may be time to adopt a more innovative approach. There are a number of up-and-coming techniques you could try to boost candidate engagement.
When actively hiring, companies often overlook the value of timely, structured feedback after each screening round. Good candidates tend to appreciate this, as it enables them to optimise their performance. It’s also a useful way to address questions or concerns.
When competing for top talent, don’t underestimate the importance of how you’re perceived as an employer, especially in high-demand markets such as tech. Of course, building an enviable reputation is no easy task. But as a deciding factor in whether a candidate joins your business or goes to a competitor, it’s clearly worth the effort.
