10 Ways to Spot An Employer Branding Ninja

10 Ways to Spot An Employer Branding Ninja

Published on: November 9. 2016

With the ever-changing needs of today's workforce, people managers face new challenges in order to attract, engage and retain their talent. From establishing a human capital strategy to organising team buildings to counseling employees, people managers wear many hats. Now that the employer brand is becoming strategically more important, being an employer branding ninja is an emerging hat we need to wear to get our game on.

While there are prescribed steps to building a perception that is both attractive and consistent, it is really still up to you to carve out what it means to be a great place of work.

Click to Tweet

In my employer branding work at TalentView, I've asked HR leaders to share their thoughts on how to spot effective employer brand leaders. Wherever you are in your journey, use these weapons to achieve zen and further build your employer brand.

1. They have the CEO on their side

A Forbes study has listed that finding talent now sits as one of the top challenges of CEOs globally. Positioning your brand in a way that people remember and prefer takes time, budget and most importantly, buy-in. Without the support of your CEO and the rest of the leadership team, it will be very difficult to implement and sustain activities that will make your company a great place to work for the long term.

2. They know they need technology

Employer brand leaders know that by using technologies such as assessments, applicant tracking and gamification, they gain an advantage to shorten processes, become more efficient and also gather data for future decisions. Everything manual means everything's a mess. The power of technology can free you to focus on the strategic aspects of your role.

3. They are not afraid to ask for help

With the many hats HR leaders need to wear, help is always most welcome. To build a strong employer brand takes skill and technique in people management, marketing, advertising, copywriting, graphic design and ingenious storytelling! Collaboration is key to telling a good story and making sure this story comes to life when an applicant becomes an employee.

4. They focus on the employee experience

In his article on Becoming Irresistible, Josh Bersin noted that people leaders need to expand their definition of employee engagement. Beyond providing growth opportunities, engaging employees is also about looking at how to build trust with managers and creating an exciting work environment. In other words, it's all about the employee experience. Take the perspective of the employee when proposing new ways to engage your workforce and you will create your very own brand advocates even before you know it.

5. They use social media to promote their image as an employer

More than being present on social media sites, employer brand leaders spark interesting conversations that are meaningful to their candidates and employees. They recognize that social is not a channel, it is a behavior. People want to connect and share views and ideas they are passionate about. Promoting your products, customer service and work environment on social media engages people to join the discussion and learn more about your organization as a place of work.

6. They use social media to promote their own professional image

Employer brand leaders know that they need to get into the mindset of their target talents to be effective. Maintaining your professional accounts on LinkedIn (and Facebook, if it fits) means that you know what they're going through and you can start thinking like an applicant or an employee. This is not a waste of your time, but rather, a way to understand how to push out unique and attractive content. More importantly, building your professional image on social media helps to build trust and is a good first step to start every relationship, whether with a candidate or an employee.

7. They learn from their failures instead of nitpicking

Employer brand leaders know that getting their message out is a game of trial and error. Some programs and campaigns will work while others will fail. That does not mean they get stuck in a state of analysis paralysis but rather, they make the necessary adjustments needed to get their programs working better. It is good to be reminded of the words of Thomas Edison when he finally created the light bulb, "I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps."

8. They make decisions based on metrics

Do you think about your Net Promoter Score (NPS), engagement metrics and conversion rates from job offer to acceptance? All these play a part in deciding your next course of action. Employer brand leaders know that decisions without data are hard to justify in the board room and so they set the stage for data gathering in the early phases of their campaigns. Further, any programs that are not supported by metrics involve greater risk and can do more harm than good in promoting your employer brand.

9. They adjust their tone based on who they're talking to

Employer brand leaders know that a one-size-fits-all message often translates into one-size-fits-none. By zooming in on key messages that are attractive to specific talent segments (e.g. graduates, engineers), you can increase interest in your brand, sparking more meaningful conversations. Relationships matter and adjusting your tone to specific talent segments will surely help to get the relationship off to a good start.

10. They gather real-world insight

Have you taken the time to look at what your competitors are doing? Or even better, what successful employer brands are doing? Take time to smell the flowers and appreciate when a brand is making a mark with their audience. Learn from it and find ways to adapt what they've done into your employer brand strategy. By doing so, you'll be on your way to mastering the art and science of employer branding.