Today’s climate has recently seen almost a quarter of UK workers seeking a career change. This so-called ‘Great Resignation’ in the UK has affected the job market at a rate we have not seen since 2009. In America, in November 2021 alone, the labour market witnessed 4.5 million Americans leave their jobs, further illustrating that this is becoming a global problem. The 'Great Resignation' has given people the confidence to search for new opportunities as they seek more purpose, benefits, flexibility and progression in their lives.
Pre-pandemic, dating back to the 1960s, employer branding is something businesses have adopted to attract and retain talent. A LinkedIn study reported that 75% of candidates consider an employer’s brand a key factor in their decision to apply for roles. Therefore, now more than ever, building a strong employer brand is essential to ensuring the long term future of your business.
Discover our 6 ways to improve your employer brand below and progress your business today.
1. Know Your Employer Brand
How well do you and your people know your employer brand? It does sound like a relatively straightforward question, and you may think you and everyone in your company understand it pretty well. First, however, take a step back and think about this question as being the first step to progressing your business.
The first step to knowing your employer brand is to define your message - a tone of voice that truly speaks for your brand is crucial. You have to ensure this voice is consistent throughout your messaging and content to set your targeted talent and candidate's personas expectations.
Now more than ever, people take a great interest in who they work for and how their employer is affecting the world. People today want purpose and a reason to believe in the company they work for. You should establish or rethink your core values and overall mission to support this. Give people a reason to believe in your vision to attract and retain your talent.
Throughout our messaging at Amoria Bond, we emphasise our purpose of progressing the lives of our candidates, clients and colleagues. We also pride ourselves on our CSR commitments, which is why our employer brand has been so successful.
2. Cultivate a Company Culture
You should consider your people to be your greatest asset. They are the ones who help bring success to your business. So, when improving your employer brand, you need to give your current and future employees a sense of fulfilment and belonging. There is no better way to do this than by maintaining a great working culture.
If you haven't done so already, establishing a benefits and rewards system such as remote working flexibility or financial rewards is a great start. Additionally, it also helps to set out a clear career progression plan. This will give your talent an incentive to stay loyal to your brand and is a great way to attract people to your business as it clearly outlines how your people can develop within the organisation.
At Amoria Bond, our award-winning training and development program has given people a reason to believe in our brand and themselves. We have helped progress the lives of many of our people through the culture we have built, with more than 58 employees achieving promotions in the last 12 months.
Diversity and inclusion are crucial aspects of attracting candidates to brands and should spearhead your business going forward, but you must be genuine with this approach. At Amoria Bond, we believe everyone deserves an equal opportunity, and ultimately D&I is at the heart of our overarching purpose.
3. Connect Through Content
Content is a critical element of a great employer branding strategy and should be a real focus of your business as you advance. 52% of candidates turn to the information on a company's website and social channels to learn more about the employer brand. Your content will speak volumes, be it social or through your website, perhaps via your internal career page.
Engage your team and potential candidates by sharing your stories with your audience. These could be talent spotlights that champion your employee's advocacy or case studies to highlight your people's great work.
Furthermore, add depth to your content by incorporating multimedia elements, like video, photography and podcasts. For example, we've had a great response to our Progressing Lives Everywhere Podcast, an example of how content can grow an employer brand and build a loyal audience.
As with any content, ensure it matches your brand's tone of voice, and don't be afraid of including a human touch through personal storytelling and testimonials.
4. Utilise Social Media
80% of job seekers look for opportunities on social media, scoping out businesses' online presence to better understand the company's culture and beliefs. Ultimately, social media is a valuable tool to attract talent to your business and help develop your employer brand.
Be it LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or other platforms where your target audience lives, social media allows you to control your brand narrative. This ties into the content you will produce, so be consistent and share your stories, testimonial reviews, and internal updates on your accounts.
Encourage direct engagement with your team and audience in the related comments sections and messaging features. For example, your recruitment team can interact with potential employees via LinkedIn, a brilliant way to show off great candidate experiences and increase brand advocacy.
We are always active on social media, and we see it as an essential tool for building a strong brand whilst also supporting our internal recruitment process.
5. Be Authentic & Transparent
You know your candidates' intelligence and how they are good at sniffing out disingenuous brands. It may sound obvious, and you're likely doing this already, but ensure your company is authentic and transparent with everything you do. This approach will do wonders for your employer brand.
Whether it's through your content, social media interactions, or even face-to-face meetings, give people a reason to believe in your brand and trust in you.
Reviews and surveys are a great way of emphasising this transparency and proving your authenticity to candidates and potential clients. In addition, hold yourself accountable for committing to your core values, vision and culture. We keep this at the forefront of our minds at Amoria Bond and it’s helped us tremendously.
6. Keep Progressing Your Employer Brand
Now's the time to get excited about unlocking your brand's potential. But once you've considered and adapted the above to your business strategy, don't stop there.
Seek feedback from your employees and your target audience. Measure your success based on your chosen metrics and reposition or remarket the direction of your business based on this. Keep improving your employer brand and adapt your employee value proposition to the landscape of your industry.
Remember, the employer branding process is never dormant, and the top brands are always looking at ways to improve their internal processes. So, yes, celebrate your successes but also learn from your experiences and always look to keep evolving.
How Amoria Bond Can Support You
At Amoria Bond, our specialist recruitment professionals partner with industry leaders in the global Technology and Advanced Engineering sectors.
Our team of experts can support your business in attracting the top talent specific to your needs, providing advice on how you can improve your employer brand.
So, get in touch with our teams today to receive hiring advice of the highest level to help you source the best people for the most niche roles in the global market.
