“If you don’t build an employer brand you won’t have one. Therefore, it won’t impact the way that you hire.”
“Employer brands are created in meeting rooms, if those meetings never take place it means it never exists.”
The above are both myths. Employer branding is referred to as the way your company is reconginzed by candidates as a place of employment. You do have one, even if you deliberately built one or not. It exists because the employees that work for your company have publicly crafted one and have shared how you treat your staff.
That doesn’t mean that it is a bad reflection on you. You could have an organization that is great to work for. It just means you have no control over what way you narrate the perception of your company.
Take Control
Think about it you get a couple of disgruntled employees who set about derailing the positive image you have built of your workplace. By not narrating actively that your workplace has a positive image, you are giving those employees the power to create a negative narrative about you in people’s mind.
Meaning you run the risk of never been able to recover that positive image. Taking ownership of your companies employer brand will allow you to fill in those gaps with messages and information about what it really is like to work for you.
Transferring Ownership
Now that it’s understood that you actually do have an employer brand. It’s time to take ownership back before it’s too late.
It’s important at this stage to remember that if you are going to take on the challenge of building your employer brand that this isn’t just a one-off thing.
Like product branding, it isn’t just one flashy marketing campaign splash and that’s it your done. It requires continual attention, dedication and time. Making sure that the message you are broadcasting to jobseekers is kept fresh otherwise, it will just die out!
Aquiring A Budget
There are certain parts of employer branding that can be done for free. But like any marketing project, it requires a budget in order to create a strong employer brand. So how do you go about acquiring a budget and getting the leaders on board?
- Outline the need for it
- Present them with a plan – platform required, team members required, timeline etc.
- Justify the spend
- Prove results – findings, case studies
Leaders want to know what to expect if they invest. Yes, it’s all result-based. You will need to be able to tell a story and demonstrate how a budget will make an effective impact on your recruitment marketing.
For more about building your employer brand download – 10 steps to building a strong employer brand
