Why Your Employees Are the Foundation of a Strong Employer Brand

Employer branding is not just a cosmetic exercise, and those who treat it as such end up facing the fallout arising from disparity in their pblic image and ‘on-ground’ reality at their workplace. Employer branding is a holistic exercise that involves taking a nuanced but clear look at the culture and actively implementing strategies that actually make a difference.

And who’s better placed than your employees to organically build your employer brand in the market?

Employees are your most credible storytellers

You may maintain a fabulous public image of your company using all tools at your disposal but when it comes to job-seeking, candidates often rely on gauging the situation in your office through 'horse’s mouth'. Easy networking these days means that candidates talk with your current employees to gain an idea of the work-related situation.

In this respect, your current employees are trusted far more than say CEO or HR teams of the company. Nothing improves your image in the market than employees who have good things to say about your company, the work culture, the opportunities and so on. 

Employee experience IS your brand

Sum total of what employees go through every day at work is an essential underpinning of your employer brand. The lived experience holds greater weight than flashy brochures and impeccable social media strategies.

When employee experience (which includes working conditions, culture, upskilling, opportunities and much more) is negative, no amount of cosmetic work can salvage your company’s public image.

Employees amplify (or undermine) your message

Imagine your employees to be human broadcast channels. They not only talk to their family and friends but also talk with their social media followers.

We all have seen how a single LinkedIn post by a disgruntled employee about his workplace starts a whole conversation that lasts for many days.

Employer branding is done ‘inside out’ not the other way around

No external branding effort can fully undo the damage done due to weak internal culture. Word leaks out anyway. Employees create a perception outside the organization organically. Good or bad.

Employees generate most engaging branding content

Think of a team that has gelled so well they make an Instagram reel fit to be published through your company’s official channels. Point conveyed.

So how to focus on your employees from an employer branding perspective and how Let’z Talk can help?

Let’z Talk has a tailored approach when it comes to employer branding because no two workplaces are alike.

Let’z Talk’s ‘Workplace Well-being Diagnosis’ is a comprehensive look at your company’s environment, culture and practices. This leads to evaluation of a workplace’s health and happiness.

We collaborate with the company to enable it to make a strong employer branding identity and Employee Wellbeing Value Proposition (EWVP).

The result? Your company attracts talent in a better way  all the while retaining the current. Clear communication within the organisation helps. And trust us, this is MUCH more than just a mass-sent email.

We look to address problems in leadership messaging where seniors talk one way and employees hear something else. This seemingly small thing is the root of many avoidable snags.

Let’z Talk has a lot to tell you. Click here to initiate a dialogue with us.

FAQs

• . Is employer branding about good-looking social media posts?

  No. If the real workplace doesn’t match the image, people figure it out very quickly — and that gap can hurt more than help.

• Why do employees matter in employer branding?

  Employees of a company matter in employer branding because potential candidates who apply to work at the company trust what current employees have to say far more that what the company says through official channels. A single honest chat with a current employee can prove to be crucial factor in shaping company image in prospective employees’ minds.

• Does employee experience really shape the employer brand?

  Absolutely. The prevalent work culture, support, growth opportunities have foundational importance in establishing an employer brand.

• Can external branding fix a weak internal culture?

  Not really. If things aren’t fine at the workplace, external efforts often fall short as over-time employees can detect disparity in social image of the company and the internal culture.

• How can Let’z Talk help with employer branding?

  Let’z Talk takes efforts to understand your workplace deeply and fixes gaps in culture, communication and leadership messaging. It has more unique services to offer.