Branding is at the forefront for most companies these days, especially with regard to consumers. However, branding for potential employees is often overlooked. The image your company presents to applicants can make a difference when it comes to securing the best talent available. Here are five common mistakes made by employers when it comes to employment branding.
1. Believing Recruiters Alone Create the Brand
An all-too-common misconception among employers is that their recruiters carry sole responsibility for the employment brand. Every employee is a company ambassador. Every person who works for a particular organization is a representation of the brand.
The whole company should be involved in recruiting efforts. Encourage current employees to share positive experiences on social media and review sites. Develop an atmosphere of positivity for all your workers, not just your recruiters.
2. Failing to Plan for the Long Term
Building an employment brand requires more than just a one-time effort. Employers must plan for the long term in establishing their brands. It’s simple enough for employers to create a page, post job openings and make a video, but the mistake is not recognizing that the company’s brand is a constantly evolving image. Employers must work hard to demonstrate how important their employees are to them and how certain company values exist throughout the organization.
3. Making Candidates Clear Unnecessary Hurdles
Good help is hard to find. There’s no reason to make it more difficult than it has to be to bring in talent. It’s a big mistake to approach recruiting and hiring with an attitude that makes it harder for people to apply.
Unemployment rates are low, below 4 percent nationally, and talented individuals may have dozens of options when it comes to choosing who they want to work for. Employers shouldn’t make prospective hires work harder to apply. This is one area where recruiting software can give you a competitive advantage. An applicant tracking system that makes the application process simple and straightforward allows you to contact the most qualified candidates.
4. Being Inauthentic
Prospective hires want to know about the companies they’re joining. The popularity of sites like Comparably and Glassdoor demonstrates that candidates are learning what they can about companies before they consider signing on. One thing that will kill interest is not being authentic.
False promises might be enough to get good people in the door, but they’ll ultimately backfire. Represent yourself accurately, or you’ll end up with unhappy employees and high turnover, which can cost you terribly in the long term.
5. Forgetting Current Employees
Your current employees are already experts on the employment experience at your company. You should know what they’re saying. Opening lines of communication for current employees not only provides a window into their day-to-day work life but also allows for them to vent without doing it publicly. Employees who feel like they’re being listened to are more likely to stay with your company and brag about what a great place it is to work at.
Bringing hiring protocols and technology up to date can give you an edge over competitors. ATS tracking system software makes the hiring process more efficient and frees up time for hiring managers and human resources personnel. Make sure your company has access to crucial recruiting measures and avoid the mistakes highlighted above.
