Written by Scott Hunter, Creative Director

According to LinkedIn, half of candidates will not consider working for a company with a bad employer brand, no matter how high the salary.

LinkedIn global recruitment trends also show that 80% of talent and HR managers around the world agree that a great brand makes it easier to recruit top talent.

The numbers speak for themselves, but what exactly is an employer brand and how do you build your own?

First, let’s start with the basics – a brand is not a logo, product or service. Got it? OK, let’s move on…

A brand is a reputation, a culture and a purpose. It’s the instinctive thought you create in the mind of your audience. For example, think Apple and you instantly think ‘innovation/lifestyle’, think BrewDog and you think ‘craft/revolution’.

Achieving this valuable brand ‘gut reaction’ allows employers to clearly differentiate, engage and compete. If a company can demonstrate the value it brings to people, it will build trust, and both attract and retain the best talent.

Quick brand check – can your company answer the following?

• What do you do?
• Why is it great?
• Who is it for?
• What is your purpose?
• What do you value?

If you can’t answer the above, it’s time to stop and address the bigger picture before moving ahead with an employer brand strategy. As brand experts, we, Hampton, are more than happy to help you here. If you’re not clear on your positioning in the marketplace, you can’t realistically expect to stand out to customers.

Named #1 World’s Best Workplace by Fortune in 2017, SalesForce is consistently ranked as one of the world’s top employers.

From day one, culture was a focus. SalesForce was founded around the concept of Ohana, which means 'family' in Hawaiian. The Ohana culture runs through the entire business and brand – creating a feeling of family for both customers and employees. This is a key differentiator.

The SalesForce value proposition is clear to both an internal and external recruitment audience: meaningful work and the ability to get it done, with good people in a good environment, and being fairly recognised and rewarded for it.

The employer brand springs to life across multiple touchpoints: career site, social, video, employer review sites (e.g. Glassdoor), awards and candidate experiences all align to a unique and rewarding culture.

Great employer branding is all about authenticity, culture and reputation. It’s about connecting positively with your people and building a loyal tribe.

In a competitive recruitment world where the best people are presented with multiple career options, an attractive employer brand positioning can be a valuable tool that allows you to compete and stand out.

Employer branding fast facts:

• A focused culture, adopted at boardroom level, will attract and grow the best talent
• On LinkedIn, stronger employer brand companies increased their rate of hire by 20%
• The best advocates are your current employees (it’s not what you say, it’s what they say)
• A company should have an aligned brand positioning first before adopting an employer brand strategy (you need to know who you are first, before you can persuade anyone to join you)