Branding has become an integral element in our daily lives. From deciding which brand of soft drink to purchase, to which restaurant to visit or sports shoes to buy, branding plays an influential role in our decision making. With the power of branding so persuasive, it is no surprise it also plays a role in which company we choose to work for.
When an engineer considers future employers, a certain firm instantaneously comes to mind. When a teacher looks for work, certain schools set the standard. When an accountant seeks a move, certain firms are approached before others. This is the power of employment branding and is a major differentiator in the recruitment marketplace.
But it's clearly not about the "logo". Our survey demonstrates that what most of us perceive as important, i.e. the "look and feel" is not what we should be primarily focused on. Rather, the message needs to be more complete - the culture, values and environment are of much greater interest to potential employees.
Perhaps even more significantly, it is also about more subtle marketing. What other employees, trusted friends and associates SAY about a company is far more powerful than what appears in the ad. This is why it is so critical that the experience for employees is right in the first place - which has a double positive in that it increases retention as well as creating the right mindset for them to promote the company to others.
This subtle marketing has far reaching effects - those organisations who have reduced or severed their relationships with recruitment firms have found to their detriment that they no longer have those firms acting as their "ambassadors" - influencing strong candidates to consider careers with those employers.
In the war for talent, HR professionals are not being equipped with one of the most important weapons in the recruitment armoury – employer branding.