A question. Are you aware of what employer branding is and more importantly, do you know the positive impact it can have on the success of your business?

When we refer to the term company branding or consumer branding, this can include everything from the logo, company uniform and visual identity used in all corporate literature to what your customer think and feel about your company. A company’s branding makes them familiar to their customers and their service or product can be easily recognised by its appearance and reputation. For example, Coca-Cola or McDonalds. We know exactly what these organisations do and the products they sell. These global brands are consistently the same in taste, look and reputation across the world.

86% of workers would not apply or continue to work for an employer with a bad reputation with its employees or members of the public – Hubspot 2019

Companies work extremely hard to build trust and a strong reputation with their consumers, however without their internal customers, could they achieve such greatness? This is where employer branding is a vital strategy in any organisation’s whole brand journey.

Employer branding can be defined as “a useful tool to help organisations differentiate what they offer in the labour market, and recruit, retain and engage the people they need to succeed” CIPD, Oct 2018. From this definition, it is clear to see that the two types of branding are indeed very different.

A company that is practicing a good employer branding strategy will be consistently working with their teams, to ensure they are engaged, motivated and that they are on board with the company story. So, let’s break down some of the elements of employer branding and explore how it can impact a business. 

Attracting top talent (and holding on to them)

Well educated, motivated and engaged talent will not be attracted to an organisation that does not promote a first-class employer brand. Job seekers will yes, be searching for a suitable remuneration package, but ‘86% of workers would not apply or continue to work for an employer with a bad reputation with its employees or members of the public’ HubSpot 2019. Putting it plainly, if an organisation wishes to grow its team with the right people, they need to make it the best place to work and be seen to work.

Company culture

Adopting a great company culture is a process that cannot be forced by the C suite, it must be cultivated by happy employees both past of present. These individuals will feel that their opinion is valued and any actions that require attention will be taken seriously both positive and negative. HR matters such as job flexibility, training, personal development and remote working will fall under a good company culture. There really is no place to hide for organisations that do not adopt a good company culture with dedicated sites such as Glassdoor offering a platform for people to share their experiences and being able to rate companies for all to see.

Bottom line

The bottom line, a familiar term used to describe the financial impact of decisions made in a business. A sound employer brand can help the bottom line stay healthy by increasing staff morale, reducing staff turnover, reducing placement fees and encouraging a positive outcome. ‘According to LinkedIn, companies that invest in employer branding experience a 50% cost-per-hire reduction’. Honeypot 2018. With cost savings like these, creating a great work environment will not only save you money but it will save your competitors from snatching your top talent.

The story

All companies, from start-ups to multinationals will have a business story. Homing in on this and ensuring it succinctly describes the company values, culture and how it values its employees can be a big part of your employer branding strategy. A good way to include your teams in this journey would be for them to do a ‘talking heads’ video about their experiences for example. Employees need to feel connected and trusted to voice their opinion about the company they work for and this is where the art of storytelling will help to cement this feeling.  

Employer branding is recognised as an essential part of a company’s overall branding strategy. It is now a must do not a nice to do. All of the above areas are easily implemented if you have the right direction and tools.

The physical process of planning this can perhaps seem unreachable. As a collective of experts, Digital Focus Creative are able to walk companies through the planning stage through to execution of the employer brand. Why not give our team a call to discuss how our experience can create or improve your employer brand.