Employer Branding Tips from a Woman Founder in Hiring Software

This article has been contributed by Darshna Solanki, Co-Founder, Recooty.

Quality of hire will be a challenge for us. That was my first thought when I started hiring for my business in 2018. 

However, today, when I am actively hiring for my growing business, I realize it's not so challenging. The reason behind this shift? 

Employee Branding. 

Employee branding is a representation of your company as an employer to people outside and inside your organization. This representation isn't limited to your career page and job posting but includes all efforts you put in conveying your organization's culture. 

Today, employee branding is so important that 59% of leaders worldwide invest in it. 

Because 9 out of 10 times, an employee will join your organization based on how good your company is to work with. 

Build a company or brand that people don't just want to work for, but one they are proud to be part of. 

I have seen many businesses with winning teams trying to build a culture that makes employees feel the same. But building employer branding isn't as easy as it looks. 

After closely analyzing the hiring practices of our clients, I have come across a few strategies that may ease this process. 

Let's get started. 

Internal Employer Branding 

The first set of advice is about creating positive employer branding inside your organization. Employee voices are 3x more credible than the CEO's when talking about working conditions in a company. 

Listen if you want to get listened 

As a business leader, you make decisions important for your company but may disappoint employees. Recently, we introduced new policies in our company. While few employees were okay with it, some had disagreements. In such instances, leaders usually have 2 options:

1. Become rigid and not consider the employee's point of view, or,
2. have one-to-one sessions where they can mutually come to a decision. 

While the first may feel appropriate, it creates a negative experience for your employees, as they are your biggest ambassadors. Studies have found candidates trust employee voices 3 times more than official company messaging.

So, we went with the second option and had an open discussion. The results were shocking: disagreements were solved, and we created a better policy everyone in the team was okay with. It helped us create a positive employee experience, which they will share with others, creating a positive brand for us. 

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Give them the opportunity to grow 

9 out of 10 times, a hiring manager struggles to find a skilled candidate. This shows the scarcity of quality hires today. 

When a skilled candidate joins your company, they expect to grow and learn. If not offered, it creates a negative experience. This becomes more important if you are a startup, as the candidate is forgoing stability for immediate impact or tremendous growth. 

Make sure your team is continuously learning new things and growing. This doesn't need huge investing—it can be as small as offering work outside their job description. 

You can offer subscriptions to certification courses relevant to their field. At Recooty, we take teams to profile-relevant meetups for opportunities to grow and network. This has helped us in employer branding and maintaining a good retention rate. 

External Employer Branding 

What you offer within the organization reflects outside. Here are strategies to enhance your employer's branding for outsiders: 

Candidate experience is uncompromisable 

What process do you follow to hire a candidate? Most companies post a job, schedule interviews, and select one. However, they often miss the steps that impact the candidate's experience. 

For example, acknowledging candidates after applications or informing them about interview outcomes. Candidates notified of their outcome are 3.5x more likely to reapply to a different position with the same company. 

This can be time-consuming when hiring in masses. You can set up automated emails in your hiring software. AI becomes important here; the more automated your hiring process, the less average time you will have to hire. AI can handle tasks like job description recognition, posting, candidate sorting, and automated replies. With automation, your recruiting team can focus on providing a positive candidate experience rather than repetitive tasks. 

The career page is non-negotiable

One important way to convey your beliefs and culture as an employer is through your careers page. Show what working with you feels like and give job seekers an experience of your culture. It helps convey the benefits and perks your employees receive. Tell the story about what your employer brand is. 

Share your beliefs on social media 

What's common between L'Oreal and Starbucks? They show the world how to work with them through social media. They post about their team, offices, and culture, creating a positive impact on employer branding. Social media isn't only for promoting your product brand but also your employer brand. At Recooty, founders share views on company culture, recruitment, and employee well-being. This helps job seekers understand what people who lead the company believe. 

These tips turned out to be super effective in building the team I have today. Remember, every company has its story. Employer branding should be iterative - you can't fix 2-5 options to promote your brand; it should change as your business needs. 

No matter what strategies you adopt, maintain positive employee branding. Trust me, the impact will be immeasurable for your business success.

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