The success of any business is largely driven by its ability to seek out and retain the best talent. However, that’s not likely to happen if your company’s reputation as an employer is not up to scratch.
When it comes to recruitment and human resources, you’ll probably hear the term ‘employer branding’ being bandied around a lot. Whereas a brand normally refers the image your company portrays to its customers, employer branding is all about the image you portray to potential employees. It’s your company’s public image in the eyes of those planning to make their next career move.
In much the same way as companies need to establish a unique value proposition to would-be customers as an integral part of their branding strategy, recruitment teams need to create an employee value proposition designed to attract the best talent. In fact, your reputation as an employer is every bit as important as your reputation as a brand. Online reputation management spans both these critical disciplines.
Retaining Top Talent through Employer Branding
People work for money, and remuneration is usually the primary concern applicants have when searching for new jobs. However, as any respectable employer knows, there’s much more to job satisfaction than financial compensation alone. A common problem that many smaller businesses face is that they find themselves losing talent to more generous payers, simply because they can’t match their salaries.
With a strong employer brand, you can make the career opportunities offered by your company far more attractive. Aside from salary levels alone, many potential employees are just as interested in being able to enjoy a high level of workplace satisfaction. After all, most of us would rather work for less but enjoy job satisfaction rather than work for a high wage at the expense of a decent quality of life.
Even though factors such as remuneration, annual leave, and health insurance might be the first things on the minds of job applicants, it’s even more important after hiring to continue providing a decent level of job satisfaction. After all, no business wants to lose talented employees due to poor working conditions and, worse still, have them leave a bad review on Glassdoor.
Many companies make the mistake of thinking that employer branding stops at the end of the recruitment process. However, given the fact that anyone can now leave feedback about their employers (including anonymous feedback) online, employer branding is very much an ongoing process. By meeting and surpassing expectations, you’ll be able to transform your employees into brand ambassadors, both in the eyes of your customers and potential employees.
How Employer Branding Reduces Costs
In the case of regular branding, a company with a great reputation markets itself to a degree. When you have an impeccable product or service on offer that’s received favorably by its target audience, your customers become loyal brand ambassadors who effectively end up doing some of your advertising for you, without costing you a dime. The same applies to employment branding, whereby a positive, far-reaching reputation as an employer generally translates into reduced recruitment costs.
An employer with a good reputation advertises itself. For example, many people seeking work start with an online job search, the aforementioned Glassdoor being among the most popular job search engines. Like many job search sites, Glassdoor allows current and past employees to leave anonymous ratings and reviews, which people will consider in the decision-making process. In other words, if your company has a five-star rating as an employer, you’ll be in a much better position to attract the best talent all while spending minimal time and money in the process.
Just as consumers talk about both their favorite and most hated products, so do people talk about good and bad employers. A great employer brand, reinforced by a strong online portfolio of great reviews, will lead to an increase in referrals, greater job satisfaction, and better talent retention. On the flip side, word spreads just as quickly if your company developers a bad image in the eyes of would-be employees. That’s why the reputation of your company as an employer is paramount to success.
Are you looking for a way to build an employer brand that will set your business up for long-term success? At Reputation Resolutions, we provide the expertise and tools you need to attract the best talent and recover from past mistakes. Call (855)239-5322 or contact us today to discuss how we can help repair, build, and promote your employer brand.