Attracting talent is not just about offering candidates interesting jobs. Having a great employer brand can be equally important according to one expert.
Simon Hughes is the Founder of the video interviewing software company Jobatar. He says that if you don’t have a good employer brand, then “you will not gain access to the best of your talent pool.”
He tells Recruitment Grapevine: “Poor branding turns candidates and customers off.”
And he is not alone. In September, Capita Resourcing’s new Workforce Horizons report revealed that companies looking to recruit millennials need to focus on both flexible working and employer branding.
Hughes offers three tips on what companies looking to create a strong employer brand can do. Check out the list below and tell us what you think in the comments.
Get social
If you want to attract great talent, particularly from the generation born in the 90s, then you need to join online social media communities.
Hughes explains: “Millennial candidates in particular are judgemental. They will do a thorough background check on any company they are applying to, searching Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter – even Instagram.
“Having an excellent and ‘on brand’ social presence can be the difference between catching the attention of a candidate and being overlooked.”
He continues that it is not just enough to be on social media platforms. In order to improve your brand you have to have the right content.
Hughes says: “Too bland and they can be a turn-off. Too many pictures of middle-aged people in grey suits and the brand story becomes one of a 1990s corporation. A social platform must act as a window for a business and its company culture.”
If you are looking for more tips on how to attract talent via social media, check out our story on how to attract talent on social media.
Save the candidate some time
If you want to attract the right talent and get an excellent employer brand, then you have to invest in the right recruitment technology.
“We live in an impatient society, where the quicker and easier a thing can be done, the better,” Hughes says. “This goes someway to explaining why modern recruitment tools – video in particular – are becoming so popular. Not only do they save candidates time, money and effort, but they provide a unique opportunity for the employer to communicate their brand – and the candidate, their personality.
“Of course it also makes a company appear that it is one of innovation and is prepared to try new methods – something that is extremely appealing to candidates looking for exciting companies to work for."
Get mobile
If you want to attract talent, then you have to mobile optimise your career site. Hughes argues that not only will this ensure that candidates can find you with their smartphones, but that it will boost your employer brand as well.
He explains: “Like social media, candidates will associate a good mobile platform with a modern, professional company. Anything less is unacceptable and will push prospective employees towards your mobile-enabled competitors.
“If a person finds your business while browsing on mobile and the platform doesn’t work, they won’t return or give you a second chance on a desktop. On the other hand, some 90% of people move between screens when carrying out tasks, so a page that is optimised for functionality and consistency, as well as navigation, whether on mobile, tablets or laptops, is halfway to winning.
Daniel Briggs