What happens when you DON’T manage your employer brand

You know the importance of a proactive employer brand. But what happens when you DON’T manage your EB? 

It’s not enough to simply recognise your organisation as a brand that markets to talent. If recruitment is marketing, you need to take active control of what your employer brand stands for and how it communicates.

If you don’t?

The consequences for your talent strategy could be dire. Let’s take a look at what a poorly managed employer brand might mean for your organisation. 

What is employer brand, and why is it so important?

In a modern talent market, 86% of potential employees will research your brand before they apply for a job. 

Your employer brand is a living, breathing concept that encapsulates who you are as an employer, what you can offer employees - and how you make them feel.

When it comes to talent attraction, a well-managed employer brand can help you stand out from the crowd and showcase your value. It can help your organisation earn its reputation as a great place to work.

All of this means that a positive, respected employer brand is critical for all stages of your talent strategy, from attraction to engagement to retention.  

When you DON’T manage your employer brand

When you fail to manage your employer brand effectively, you could tarnish your reputation and give top talent a reason to turn down an opportunity at your organisation. 

A poor employer brand could snowball into a poor candidate or employee experience. Instead of showcasing the good your organisation can do for its team, your brand could begin to attract negative reviews. 

When your employer brand is ineffective, fewer people will apply to join your team. When you don’t actively manage your employer brand, it could mean that potential employees don’t even give your hiring materials a second glance.

Research shows that 71% of employees research an organisation’s employer brand before applying for a role. Even if you find talent who don’t do their research in advance, a poor or inauthentic employer brand could cost you candidates who research before or after an interview. This is especially true if your brand content and reviews don’t align with your hiring narrative.

Here is a review example published on Glassdoor. We’ve removed identifying details for confidentiality reasons.

Employee review:

1 star

Does not recommend

Negative outlook

No opinion of CEO

I worked at [Company] full-time for more than a year.

Pros: 

Very few, but the associates that stick around are a pleasure to work with and sociable.

Cons: 

Low hourly pay, micromanaged work environment and attendance policy, high turnover. The struggling performance as a company oftentimes causes drastic changes that don’t take employees into consideration. 

Advice to management: 

Address the micromanagement occurring, and offer a competitive pay to keep hard-working employees from leaving. 

As a leader, you wouldn’t like to receive a review like this! It illustrates inherent problems with company culture, employee experience and an overarching employer brand. A review like this could easily make someone reconsider applying for a role with you. 

When you DO manage your employer brand

Fortunately, you have the power to reclaim your reputation and communicate an appealing, attractive employer brand to represent your organisation. 

A positive, proactive employer brand can help you find and attract the right people to your team by giving them more reasons to choose you.

With a well-managed employer brand, you can avoid negative employee reviews and instead draw focus to the good you offer. 

Taking one step further, studies show that 96% of companies believe a positive employer brand can even drive a revenue boost!

Need employer brand support?

Looking for more insights about talent attraction and engagement? Check out our employer resources.