You’ll know from reading my colleague Candice’s blog last week, why increasing your employer brand right now is important. You can aim to not only attract and retain talent, but also motivate your current workforce for the long run.
Supporting your team right now with a healthy and positive focus on employer brand strategies is the right thing to do. And because “this too shall pass”, when it does, what your team needs is an employer that’s a leader and bouncing back quickly. It will bring security and a much needed boost for all.
Here are our top 5 tips of actionable employer brand initiatives you can put in place right now!
Record some video content
Hey, we’ve got used to seeing our beautiful faces on endless video calls in the last few weeks haven’t we? Did you know Zoom even has a beauty feature? I’ve given all the excuses in the book as to why I couldn’t possibly record any video… but the time is now.
Create some video as part of your onboarding process, such as a welcome from the CEO, and use this over the next year as part of your automated onboarding experience for new joiners. Or record your next blog as a vlog, and show anyone who’s scrolling your website a friendly face.
Video works best when it’s natural and captures the feeling of being spoken to directly – so don’t worry about a perfect corporate vid. Grab your hand phone and start recording.
Get authentic online
Most of the time, the ’you’ that employees really want to know, is the authentic you. And when I say ‘you’, I mean either yourself if you are acting on behalf of your company, or your brand’s voice when it expresses itself online. Brene Brown knows that people who show up as their authentic selves form deeper and more loyal connections. This is the same for brands too.
When it comes to your employer brand, what’s it saying? Check LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram, as well your website careers/join us page. Are there images of the office, the team and activities you’ve taken part in together? If I researched you today, could I find out what it was like to be a member of staff at your company? And what would it feel like? Put some authentic content up and let people in.
Get social
Given we are all currently spending more time with our pets than our colleagues, we’ve realised work provides us with a social routine that is easy to miss when it’s stripped away. Weekly training online can be a great time for colleagues to connect; a Monday morning WIP meeting keeps teams across each other’s week; picking up the phone to ask a quick question feels kind of retro, but that 90 second conversation emulates the moment in the office when you quickly walk over to someone’s desk.
Wednesday lunch club? Friday drinks? Maybe just a photo competition for the best pet secretary?
Keeping your office social vibe going is hugely important for your existing team, and don’t forget to post some of it online for those who are considering you in the future.
Employer brand for hiring
You don’t just want to seem like an awesome place to work – you want to be one. For that you need to hire the most fitting talent for your culture. If there’s a lull in deliverable work right now, spend that time building a recruitment process that guarantees you the right talent, for the right job, at the right time.
We suggest creating an end-to-end process that covers the whole recruitment journey, from the moment a job becomes live, until that person is finishing their probation. Look at every touchpoint along the way (the job advert, the interview process, the offer letter, the onboarding experience) and make sure it is all representing your employer brand at its best.
The best thing about this exercise is that once it’s done well, hundreds of people will come into contact with the process you created and have a good experience with your employer brand.
Empower your team
The last thing to say is that employer branding isn’t a one wo/man job. All employees should be empowered to represent the brand – in person, online, during recruitment, or when interacting with their own colleagues. Encourage your employees to share updates, talk about the company, and provide your team with content to share. Reward those that do it well with social recognition to set a culture and tone.
Companies with empowered teams who openly share positive stories about the brands they work for will always win in the Employer Brand stakes. And those with a strong brand will be the ones that weather the storm and bounce back quickly.
Let’s admit it, we are all hanging out for life to return to normal. When it does, let’s make ‘normal’ feel truly brilliant.
Need some help building your employer brand? Get in touch with us here.