Creating an employer brand

The businesses that attract the best talent all have one thing in common – a great employer brand.

All businesses have an employer brand – it’s what your employees, customers, suppliers, peers and potential employees say about your business. A strong employer brand can help your business to compete for the best talent and can even have a positive impact on your firm’s overall brand reputation in the market.

Define who you are first

Before you can begin to create your employer brand you need to decide what you want that brand to be. Start by considering what the most appealing things are about your firm. Why do good people want to work in your firm? What do you stand for and who are your customers? For example, do your employees get to work in an entrepreneurial environment, that encourages flexible working and allows them to work with international clients?

Identify your target market

What type of people do you want to hire into your business? Do you want to hire energetic, tech savvy millennials or solid, experienced, dependable generation X? If you’re trying to attract a completely new breed of employees (who are quite different to your current staff) then your actual company culture, vision and values may need some work – especially if they are at odds with the type of people that you are hoping to attract.

Build a strong company culture

You need to build your firm’s culture around your company values and hire people who fit with those values. Encourage your staff to think outside the box, to try new things and to innovate. Engage your people in building a great place to work. Ask them for their ideas and empower them to implement those ideas.

Publicise your culture

If you create a firm and a culture that your staff are proud of, they will tell people about it. The more participation from your employees, the stronger your employer brand will be. You can help them to publicise your firm’s culture by creating posts on social media sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook. If your staff are proud of the firm that they work for, they will like and share these posts.

Celebrate what makes your firm unique

Whether it’s a casual dress policy or office sporting events on a Friday, take time to have a bit of fun in your firm. Maybe you have the best people or you work as a team to help a local charity or community group. Whatever it is that brings your team together in a positive way and makes your company unique should be celebrated. The more you do so, the more engaged your people will be and the more they will tell everyone about the great firm that they work for.