8 Hacks to Build your Employer Brand (4 min)

To sell any product or a service, branding is crucial. In fact, it is so crucial that people often confuse the brand name with its product name (Maggi). Humans often see brands as something which represents themselves, they associate their identity with those brands, and take pride in it. That is why companies invest a lot of time in branding after a product is manufactured. Similarly, employees take pride in the company they work for when they are aware of the strong brand value.

In literal terms, “Employer Branding is the process of promoting a company, or an organisation, as the employer of choice to a desired target group. One which a company needs and wants to attract, recruit and retain.”  A product’s branding includes Logo, Packaging, Typography, Quality, price, and customer service. Whereas, a company’s branding mainly constitutes of beliefs, services, team members, culture, and more. It won’t be wrong to say that a company’s brand is like a menu that the organisation offers to its potential candidates or employees, and the employees choose a company according to their taste.

The thumb of rule which a company follows in today’s world is to attain and retain talent. And for that particular reason they indulge in branding their name.

Here are a few simple ways of how a company can attract talent by building a strong brand name:

1. Company’s Website- The first thing a candidate does after receiving an interview call from a company is go through its website. In other words, a website is a window through which the candidate gets a peek of the company’s culture. So, a company has to make sure that the candidate’s view is worth his/her time.
   1. A good website should have; A clear definition of who you are, a responsive web design, interactive blogs or articles, and missions and values.
2. A Detailed Job Description- Unfortunately, most companies ignore this aspect when they hire employees, generally to avoid extra work. Some even hire without a job description, and many a times lose over a potential candidate, as they fail to build the requires sense of professionalism and trust.
   1. Hiring without a JD is like conducting an exam without a syllabus. Hence candidates arrive in a state of confusion to give the interview. An effective JD should precisely mention the work profile, perks, benefits, and facilities.
3. Culture of the Company- A company’s culture is what takes it forward on the path of success. Without an amicable culture a company may manage to attain talent, but it may fail to retain it. Thus, it’s important to maintain a culture which is for the employees. Culture includes a healthy employer-employee relationship, an open environment, diversity, comfortable workspaces, etc.
   1. (To read more on company’s culture, click here)
4. Auditing the Employer brand- You probably already know exactly where your product or service stands in the marketplace, but you may not be as aware of how your company is viewed in the market or how it’s perceived by your current employees. Conduct research both internally and externally with applicant surveys, internet and social media searches, and/or firms that conduct reputation monitoring.
5. Employer Review Websites- Featuring as an employer with positive reviews from employees or candidates can go a long way in building credibility for the employer. Apart from reviewia.co there are other employer review websites, Glassdoor.com being the most popular one but then there are others such as kununu.com , ambitionbox.com etc. A smart employer branding strategy should include employer presence on such platforms to actively engage with the users and also come across as a company which embraces feedback.
6. CSR Activities- 55% of the consumers are willing to pay more for products from socially responsible companies. Apart from higher sales, a company gets positive publicity from the consumers, and employees working for such companies have greater satisfaction, and also act as brand ambassadors for the company. It’s a win-win situation for companies who undertake CSR activities.
7. Build engagement among current employees- To become a trusted employer, look no further than your own workforce. For finding out what it’s like to work for your company, employees are 3x more likely to be trusted by leads than your CEO. Your employees also shape your company’s culture, live your values, achieve your objectives, and manifest your company’s mission. Without their participation, your employer brand would be nothing.
8. Nail the onboarding process - The first 90 days of employment are critical to turning a new team member into a productive employee. Your company can make a deep and lasting first impression by offering a smooth onboarding process. Arm new hires with the tools, introductions, and orientations they need to hit the ground running and start thriving in their new roles.

Employer Branding is not a choice, but a necessity. Companies with positive employer brands can get up to twice as many applications as companies with negative brands. To sum up, branding is equivalent to a company’s reputation, you make it or break it but continuously choosing to invest in it or not.