What if you could strengthen your employer brand through your teams?
“Candidates are three times more likely to trust your employees than the company itself to understand the true work environment.” Does this statement surprise you? It’s understandable: leaders aiming to enhance the attractiveness of their employer brand often rely on generic communication campaigns instead of highlighting the core aspects of their Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
However, in today’s challenging context where qualified talent is increasingly scarce, neglecting internal collective perception can be a significant strategic mistake. Nowadays, talents primarily seek transparency. And who better to speak about your organization than those who experience it daily?
Here are the key steps to build a solid employer brand through your employees.
An employer brand is not created, it is revealed.
A well-structured HR marketing action plan is essential.
Your employer brand reflects the image that future candidates perceive of your organization. It is based both on external perception and internal experience.
To attract top talent, it is crucial to stand out by showcasing your attractiveness. However, let’s remember this important point: whether intentional or not, every company has an employer brand. Contrary to popular belief, it is not created in isolation from employees; it authentically mirrors them.
In recent years, many attractive initiatives have emerged: additional paid leave, covering public transport costs, implementing remote work policies…
While social benefits and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) initiatives greatly contribute to strengthening a solid employer brand, they are not always enough to establish an exceptional corporate culture.
So, how can you successfully build an impactful and sustainable employer brand?
Step 1: Define Clear and Achievable Objectives.
There are various reasons why an organization might want to develop or improve its employer brand.
These may include:
- Attracting more qualified candidates who meet the company’s expectations,
- Increasing visibility and reputation as an employer of choice,
- Strengthening trust-based relationships with employees to improve satisfaction and foster internal synergy,
- Boosting engagement on social media.
Whatever your goals may be, clearly identifying them from the outset is essential. Depending on the desired outcome, the strategies to implement will differ.
Step 2: Involve Those Who Know Your Organization Best—Your Employees. Impliquer ceux qui connaissent le mieux votre organisation : vos employés.
For an employer brand to be strong, it must accurately reflect how employees perceive it. They should be fully involved in its development from the beginning.
The keyword: involvement.
This can involve setting up regular discussions to understand employees’ expectations regarding the organization. Key topics to address during these discussions include:
- Which aspects of your corporate culture are most valued by your teams?
- Which values are important to them, and do they align with these values?
- How do they feel in the company? Is the environment healthy? Are their needs acknowledged and respected?
- What weaknesses need improvement?
- Are career advancement opportunities clearly communicated?
- Would they recommend your company to their friends? Why or why not?
Employees who experience the company daily are best positioned to provide relevant insights. Analyzing this feedback will help gradually build a coherent and sustainable employer brand.
Step 3: Eliminate Any Gap Between Words and Actions.
Telling future candidates that you are an employer of choice isn’t enough to attract them. To believe you, they will seek confirmation from those who already trust you—your current employees.
This is why your employer brand must be authentic and genuinely lived. According to a Randstad study96% of employees surveyed stated that alignment between their personal values and corporate culture is a key factor in their job satisfaction.
Never overlook this: promoting strong values that are not upheld internally can create a significant disconnect. This gap could, at best, render your efforts ineffective or, at worst, drive employees to leave, taking your credibility with them.
By embodying your employer brand through concrete and sincere actions, you will strengthen the trust of your employees. Before expanding your teams, it is crucial to foster the satisfaction, engagement, and loyalty of those already invested in your vision and contributing daily to your success.
HR marketing is more than a slogan; it’s a promise.
Your priority: maintain an impeccable digital reputation.
With a well-defined positioning and an employer brand genuinely embraced by your teams, you are on the right path.
However, once this foundation is established, your employer brand must be made visible and attractive to your target audience. The goal: maximize your impact and effectively achieve your recruitment objectives.
According to Stepstone data, 95% of future talents research a company before applying for a position. This highlights the critical need to manage your online reputation.
How to proceed?
1. Invest in professional social media..
Today, future talents primarily search for opportunities on social networks, especially on LinkedIn. This is why many companies have created a corporate LinkedIn account to showcase their activities and share updates.
However, since this strategy has become widespread, competition has intensified.
So, how can you stand out effectively?
By adopting the same approach as when building your employer brand: give your employees a voice.
2. Invest in your employees.
Have you considered encouraging your employees to share company-related topics on their own social media?
Such an initiative would reflect the trust placed by the employer and allow employees to become true opinion leaders, effectively sharing positive messages aligned with the organization.
Beyond enhancing team satisfaction, this approach significantly expands communication reach and boosts your impact potential.
By sharing job openings, career growth opportunities, social benefits, team moments, or major company news, your employees fully represent your employer brand. They extend these messages to personal networks, reaching audiences beyond your official accounts.
This proactive sharing not only significantly increases the visibility of your HR marketing but also attracts candidates who resonate with your company culture.
The result: greater outreach and more efficient recruitment.
Yet, some companies may hesitate to adopt this strategy.
How can you ensure that employees share positive messages and protect your brand reputation?
The success of this strategy relies on two key factors: selection and guidance. Choosing the right spokespeople for your organization cannot be improvised.
But who are the best ambassadors for your employer brand ?
Representing your company online is a skill that must be learned and developed.
The key to successful communication is the ability to deliver the right messages to the right people at the right time. This requires specific skills that are not always innate.
Before trying to identify a good communicator, start by analyzing your most urgent recruitment needs.
Which departments urgently need additional workforce support?
Once this has been determined, it is crucial to identify the employees best suited to represent the organization on social media.
These team members, true reflections of your company, will become ambassadors of your brand. Therefore, the selection process must be handled carefully.
Start by reviewing their LinkedIn profiles to assess:
- Their use of the platform (profile quality, frequency of posts, writing skills),
- The size and engagement of their network: strong and active connections are essential criteria,
- Their role within the company: prioritize employees in leadership positions with proven expertise.
After evaluating the technical skills of these future ambassadors, it is essential to understand what motivates them.
Why is this step crucial? To ensure that their personal values are in perfect alignment with the core pillars of your employer brand. A good ambassador is, above all, an excellent representative of your brand image.
During casting interviews, ask targeted questions about their motivation to become ambassadors for your company. This approach will help you identify those who are genuinely committed to the role, creating a win-win situation without pressure.
The ideal number of ambassadors depends on the effectiveness of a small, focused group. Selecting between 4 and 6 employees encourages synergy, both within the group and with your company page’s posts.
Once these profiles are selected, it is essential to provide effective support. Becoming an ambassador cannot be improvised. Success depends on your ability to guide them appropriately.
To do this, implement a structured ambassador program over several months, with clear steps and dedicated resources.
Each ambassador must align their areas of expertise and strengths with your communication needs to amplify your company’s visibility. This requires an in-depth analysis of their platform usage, positioning, personal goals, and audiences. Once the strategy is set, you must create an impactful and coherent content plan for each team member.
By activating the right levers and following a well-defined methodology, your employees will quickly become your strongest allies in elevating your brand image and helping you stand out from your competitors.
Aware of the complexity of this project, we offer full support to help you structure your employee ambassador program.
Key Takeaways:
The strength of your employer brand is now a vital lever to stand out and attract the best talent in your industry. To be truly effective, it must faithfully reflect the employees who make up your organization. This not only fosters the well-being of your current teams but also offers future talents authentic benchmarks they can relate to. This is why your employer brand must be embodied with transparency and consistency.
Once established, it must be visible to your target audience. Sharing your company updates and job offers on your corporate social media is an excellent way to spark the interest of talents. However, to further amplify your message and strengthen your reputation, it is strategic to involve employees as ambassadors who will share this content on their personal networks.
