Is Employer Brand More Important Than Brand?

Is it more important for employers to build a powerful employer brand than a successful consumer brand? Many experts say that this is absolutely the case. This article will look at some powerful insights into exactly why right now is the best time to focus on the employer brand above all else.

Employer Branding Is a Competitive Necessity

Right now, job seekers are in the very fortunate position of being able to be very selective. Yes, they still have to sell themselves to employers, but now employers have to work to impress job seekers as well. At least that’s what companies will do if they want to attract the best talent during the great resignation. 

Prospective employees want to know about company culture, salary, benefits, professional development, values, and so much more. Successful employer branding communicates all of these things. 

With a successful employer branding effort, a company can stand out from its competitors. That’s imperative when there isn’t enough talent available to fill every open position.

Job Prospects Look to Employer Branding for Insights

Job candidates look to your employer branding to help them learn more about your company and what it’s like to work for you. However, just like consumer branding, there’s a lot of natural skepticism to address. 

Successful branding isn’t about creating and repeating selling points. There has to be credibility and consistency. It can help to take the same approach that you do with consumer branding. This means:

Maintaining a Consistent Voice and Visuals

Good branding leads to wider recognition. You recognize brands that are familiar to you because their branding content and visuals remain the same over time. Apply this to your employer branding as well. Use the same tone in your employer content, and consider using themed job posts so that your listings are instantly recognizable.

Ensuring the Culture You Promote in Your Branding is Accurate

Brands don’t do themselves any favors when they promote a cultural message that doesn’t reflect reality. Unfortunately, this isn’t something brands necessarily do to intentionally mislead job seekers. Instead, it comes from a lack of awareness of the discrepancy between the culture they think they have and the one they actually do.

One tool that many companies use is cultural analytics. This process collects data on various culture points from verified employees and organic participants. Hiring teams can then use this information to gain awareness of the culture they have created and make changes to that or market accordingly.

Earning Positive Endorsements From 3rd Parties

Consider how you make a major purchase. Unless you have an established relationship with a brand and truly trust their word, you’re going to conduct your own research. 

That’s what prospective employees are going to do as well. Part of your branding must include reaching out to candidates, current employees, and even former employees for their positive feedback, reviews, and insights.

What’s the value of this? There’s a credibility that a third-party endorsement creates that has more gravitas than anything a potential employer can say about itself. That’s why brands must engage in outreach to earn reviews, awards, and positive mentions on social media.

This need for authenticity is also a good reason to use employees as brand advocates. When workers share positive stories of their experiences at work on social media, they can reach a wide audience in a very organic manner.

Candidate Experience Mimics Customer Experience

Good employer branding helps companies hire talented, engaged workers. The most successful businesses create a candidate experience that aligns with their customer branding and keeps qualified candidates interested and informed during the hiring process.

Ultimately, the customer brand and customer experience benefit as well. That’s the outcome of a company attracting and hiring employees who feel a sense of motivation and ownership and have been steeped in brand essentials from the beginning.

Customers Care about Employer Branding

The fact that companies are feeling pressure to improve their hiring efforts and employer brand is reason enough to prioritize employer branding. However, that isn’t the only reason. There is a direct correlation between employer and consumer brand as well.

Have you ever refused to patronize a business because you’ve heard negative things about their work culture? If not, you probably know someone who has. 

That’s because consumers care about the values that a company projects. This concern includes how the company treats its employees, their work conditions, and how fairly employees are compensated.

Good employer branding doesn’t just communicate that important information to potential employees. It also gets that information out to customers who will make their purchasing decisions accordingly.

What Should Employer Brand Reflect in the Future?

In the future, employer branding will use technology extensively. Data will drive the decision-making process, content creation, and recruiting efforts. Brands will use tools to gather information on reputation and sentiment. This approach will prove to be absolutely invaluable in building and improving the employer brand.

In terms of employer branding, the most successful businesses will be those that are keenly aware of the changing needs, values, and concerns of the modern workforce. They will be able to pivot their branding efforts to reflect that.

Two examples of this response to change are remote work and paid family leave. While these were once considered to be “icing on the cake” perks, now workers are demanding these benefits as true dealbreakers in employment negotiations. 

Companies that can offer these basic benefits as part of their compensation package are at an advantage. Of course, they also have to incorporate this information into their branding content.