Employer branding is on everyone’s lips at the moment. Why? Is it a fad or is the future? It most definitely not a fad, employer branding is not new. For instance, when Walt Disney first started his studio he was paying 50% less than his competitors, but he was able to attract the best. It wasn’t because of the money, but rather the opportunity to work with Disney. My question to you – what are your great selling points?

Employer branding is about your reputation as an employer. So it is less about your corporate brand and more about attracting, engaging and retaining the right people. Don’t get me wrong though, your corporate brand and your employer brand must be completely aligned to each other. From day one when you look at your brand as a whole, you will define what is important to you and it is from here you will start to build your employer brand whether you know it or not.

My advice though, is to know it. Know it and develop an employer brand strategy. Decide what your employer value proposition is. This means ensuring that you have key attributes and communication themes that are attractive, credible, sustainable, and that allow for differentiation in the long term. Decide your target audience. Who do you want working in your business? Who do you want on your team?  When you know this, you then you have to communicate to them. They need to know your brand exists.

Branding is no longer about communicating to your customers, it is about about communicating to all your stakeholders. And a key group within your stakeholders are your employees. They are your brand. And they will add to your brand if they are the right person. If you have the right team and they are happy then not only will your business gain but so will they. This can only have a positive impact on your customers and clients.

I want to stress employer branding is not about tricking people into believing you are amazing employer. It is about taking the opportunity to tell people what is so good about your company. Tell people what is different about working with your brand. Tell people why they should come and work with you. But you need to know the answers to these before you have a clear employer brand strategy. When that happens not only will you attract the best people for your business, they will be happy, they will stay and they will tell other great people that they should work with you too. They will become your brand advocates.

So think about your employer brand strategy. Where would you like it to be? What resources do you need to put in place to get you there? Engage your current employees. And one small tip – think back to when you started your business and the type of company you wanted to build – this might help with defining what you always wanted.

Live your brand,

Gillian