Part 2: Promoting your Employer Brand

The “Employer Brand” article – part one of this article – showed us why the employer brand concept is essential to an organization. To remain competitive, an organization must be able to attract the best talent in a market that is becoming increasingly competitive. Your employer brand allows you to set yourself apart from the competition and to become a top choice for job seekers. In this second part of the article, we will focus mainly on how to promote your employer brand, and what tools can help you demonstrate your organizational citizenship, which makes working enjoyable in your organization.

Optimize HR Presence on Social Media

Social networks are becoming more widespread, if not key, among and for companies seeking to broaden their horizons. Largely employed in the personal sphere, these networks are nowadays used professionally, especially by recruiters and HR services.
An essential part of the process of attracting candidates is to check whether their online image is positive. Similarly, candidates are quick to consult their networks and resources to assess you as future employers. According to a StepStone survey, 95% of candidates gather information about a company before applying for the position in question. In addition, one third are ready to refuse a job if the company’s online presence is negative. Here are some tips to help you connect with your target audience on social media. The strategy goes beyond just promoting your products and services and allows you to generate accessible and attractive content for all users, but especially for potential employees considering joining your organization:

Identify Your Ideal Employee

You are, of course, seeking the best possible candidate. However, social media use may vary according to each user. Therefore, it is essential that you identify the characteristics of your ideal candidate, research the platform(s) they use, and understand their habits. An employer brand targets job candidates above all. Nowadays, these candidates, especially the ones belonging to Generation Y, are more sensitive to the social commitment of companies: “it is real-life information, rooted in the social reality, authentic and direct, and that is extremely valuable” (ParlonsRH.com, 2016). To respond to this reality, companies examine the available tools and mark their online presence by suggesting video testimony, blogs, or a Facebook page to encourage direct exchange.

Examine and Understand the Available Tools

The new generation of candidates is digitally savvy and spends hours on social media every day. You do not have to use all of the social media networks, but rather, in this case, you should study the available tools that can support your message and target audience, and then establish a strategy that will showcase the strength of your brand. Here are some platforms that your potential employees may use:

• LinkedIn;
• Facebook;
• Twitter;
• Blogs (individual or company-run);
• Web site—Career.

Consequently, it is essential to establish your corporate identity (products/services), which is related to your HR identity (jobs/careers). Once your strategy has been established, you must set your goals and decide whether you want, for example, to increase the visibility of your brand or to target ideal candidates based on your needs.

Develop Strategies for Each Platform

Each platform has unique tricks and characteristics that you will need to consider in order to ensure success. For example, LinkedIn is a platform for major networks and industries. It provides practical information about the company, including its history and expectations as to their candidates’ profiles.

Furthermore, creating a Facebook page brings about a more “fun” attitude, achieved by engaging in casual conversations with your subscribers. Twitter, on its end, involves an amalgam of various types of communication, from event promotion to job listings. The goal is to provide a positive and engaging candidate experience. What you can do is to adopt a multi-layered social media strategy to reinforce your employer brand. By creating new and fresh social networking ideas, you will overtake job advertising sites. Aim to gain new subscribers to build a pool of ideal potential employees.

Measure Your Success and Evolve in the Digital World

An effective brand image is increasingly considered a result of effective online communication. According to blogger Joao Araujo, the continuous development of engaging content and sustained messaging while choosing the appropriate platforms is what bridges the gap between employers and talent. In a world where talent is becoming more difficult to target, social media represents an excellent method to disseminate the employer brand. In fact, these platforms enable you to invite the targeted talent group into your company environment, and put your employees first. Recruitment through social media is only part of the overall strategy for a company’s image. Nonetheless, getting to know your candidates creates stronger and longer-lasting relationships in a professional environment.

This is why we, at EPSI, are continuing to provide you with the necessary tools to learn more about your candidates to recruit the perfect match for your company’s needs. Contact us to use, for example, our personality test to identify the candidate that best reflects your company profile.