Examples of great employer brands

Teams with clear, authentic employer brand strategies gain a competitive edge. Strong employer branding attracts motivated candidates, retains employees and builds an engaged customer base.

Candidates and consumers look for companies that stand for more than just their product. They want to see positive company culture and similar values.

According to Glassdoor, 53% of job seekers research company information after reviewing open roles. Consumers increasingly support brands that align with their values, too, with 70% preferring to buy from places that have DEI initiatives.

Employer branding is more than marketing your company’s culture. It begins with a genuine desire to put people first and build a meaningful employee experience.

Employer branding starts with employee experience

Building a successful employer brand requires more than pizza parties or catchy slogans. Effective employer branding shows how an organization conducts business, engages with customers and supports employees at every level.

“An employer value proposition (EVP) was really important for us to understand and get our heads around,” said Sonya Tolson, Global Chief People Officer at McLarens. She spoke on ITA Group’s “Love your people” podcast about the aligned relationship between EVP and employer branding.

EVP goes beyond bonuses or salary. It includes benefits, rewards and culture. Your EVP reflects the overall employee experience, starting with a sense of purpose and community for employees.

“We knew that if we could crack the code on the value that we offer as an employer, then we could not only attract that top talent, but also realize better outcomes in terms of employee engagement and retention.”

​​Related: [Love your people podcast] Crafting an authentic employer brand​​​

5 employer branding examples and tactics

Employer branding has the potential to attract job seekers, customers and even investors. However, when that message feels inauthentic, it can cost organizations investments, sales and market perception. That’s why a brand’s employee experience matters.

When brands highlight employee stories and values, whether that’s volunteer days, celebrations or wins, they celebrate their people.

We sourced some of our favorite real-world employer branding examples from organizations across industries to inspire your team and to better showcase your people. 

1. Create standout employee experience programming

Employee programming should align to your core values and people’s needs. For example, fully remote or large teams can use ITA Group’s Cooleaf engagement platform to create a centralized community, allowing everyone to participate in recognition and engagement regardless of location.

Celebrating achievements and milestones brings values to life and recognizes employees. For Adobe’s 40th anniversary, ITA Group helped recognize the workforce across 28 countries through 49 in-person events. These celebrations embodied creativity, inclusion and innovation, creating meaningful experiences for all employees.

• Why it improves employer branding: Memorable employee experiences create authentic moments that can be shared through social media, employer branding campaigns and media coverage.
• How to do it: Learn what your team needs. Gather employee feedback via surveys, groups or interviews, then use it to shape your strategy. Big events foster connection, but daily recognition and engagement matter too. 

2. Improve candidate experience

L’Oréal is a great example of how you can improve your employer branding through the hiring process. The global beauty brand goes beyond job listings. Instead, they have a career hub that communicates its mission, meaningful employee engagement metrics and employee stories from different departments.

The brand creates content for potential candidates too. Blog posts feature topics like “how to improve your LinkedIn profile,” while TikTok videos feature real employees offering interview advice. It’s an extension of the brand’s “Entrepreneurial Spirit,” a value that encourages teams to consider alternative, nuanced ways to achieve an end result.

Similarly, on ITA Group’s career page, we include employee testimonial videos and photos from teams abroad or during volunteer days. We also highlight engagement metrics from our employee surveys because we take culture seriously and want to inspire candidates who align with that mindset.

• Why it improves employer branding: Showcasing real employee testimonials and application resources shows that companies take the candidate experience seriously and value their people, no matter where they are in the process.
• How to do it: Go beyond job listings on your website. Share the values and stories important to your team. Use blog posts, video testimonials or social media posts to talk about any step of the employee journey.

3. Build a community around your brand

Brand community isn’t just a marketing trend. Loyal customers engage because of the product but also because of how the brand activates those core values.

Athletic companies like the apparel brand Lululemon align their values of wellness and inclusion by celebrating community through local wellness events and spotlighting wellness leaders on Lululemon’s YouTube channel.

SaaS platforms like Canva regularly showcase ambassadors and creators on social media and through partnerships. The community gets sneak peeks, invites to design events and learns Canva tips and tricks. Employees gain a deeper understanding of their customers and bring back valuable insights to improve the product.

• Why it improves employer branding: Community can be built through engaging, inspiring activations that go beyond your products or services. When we live out our core values, we create a deep emotional connection and reaffirm our commitment to our customers and employees.
• How to do it: Lululemon activated the value of wellness with local workouts and ambassadors. Ask yourself how your core values show up in the real world, beyond business. 

4. Embrace consistency for company culture, leadership and beyond

Well-intentioned resources can help guide employer branding. However, clear, consistent communication needs to tie back to the company’s culture and values.

“[We had] all these different things that we really felt passionate about,” said Holly Novak, VP & Chief People Officer at Jack Henry & Associates. She was a guest on a recent episode of ITA Group’s “Love your people” podcast.

The team had a leadership framework, philosophy and culture pillars. “We realized the need to have consistent language that we can all just point to,” she said. “This is how we lead our people. This is how we serve our clients."

This challenge launched a new initiative for Jack Henry: cross-functional groups called Swarm Teams. These teams meet for a six-week period at a time to solve a cultural problem. This agile setup allows employees to own a solution and gain new perspectives from team members in different departments.

• Why it improves employer branding: A strong careers page and brand community are nice, but the internal culture needs to match it. Employees who genuinely connect with company values and one another have a stronger understanding of the brand and its mission.
• How to do it: Review resources, either through surveys or your own Swarm Team. Employee sentiment and perspective should lead engagement programming, leadership communication and recognition initiatives. It helps your team see what’s most important and how you can share those values effectively.

5. Spotlight employees regularly

HubSpot strengthens its employer brand by sharing team members’ stories and expertise on social media. The company’s LinkedIn regularly showcases employees highlighting new campaigns or product features.

Showcasing employees’ expertise benefits customers and job seekers. Featuring employees in videos highlights their skills, advancing them and the brand.

HubSpot also runs a separate Instagram, @hubspotlife, for behind-the-scenes stories and employee recognition. This dedicated account features photos and videos of engagement activities, awards, and quarterly employee recognitions. 

• Why it improves employer branding: Publicly recognizing and celebrating employees shows that your organization understands the power and value of its people and how it supports its mission.
• How to do it: Share employee stories on social media, publish event recaps on blogs, host fireside chats and encourage recognition using platforms like ITA Group’s Cooleaf engagement platform. 

Marketing principles to improve employer branding

Comprehensive employer branding uses the 4P framework: People, purpose, place and product. The 4Ps help you communicate your EVP effectively.

Employer branding principle: People 

Don’t only seek input from investors or leaders. Use employees’ perspectives as your employer branding compass. What do they value at your company? How does your organization make them feel?

Collect data to guide your strategy. Use pulse surveys or gather input from employees at all levels. This uncovers what matters most to your team and informs new benefits, such as childcare or mentorship. 

Employer branding principle: Purpose

Your organization’s purpose anchors your business. It tells consumers why to buy from you, guides managers’ priorities and unites teams with shared values. Assess where and how often you communicate your purpose. Is it on your site? During onboarding?

Help teams embrace your organization’s purpose through core values. Regularly highlight employee recognitions that demonstrate your purpose. Display core values in central spaces. 

Employer branding principle: Place 

Understand where employees connect to better communicate core values and design engaging programming. Teams, especially remote employees, rely on channels like Slack or Microsoft Teams. Key events, such as CEO-led town halls, are prime opportunities to engage staff. 

Use the channels where employees receive information. Reach mobile or deskless teams with messaging apps. Send e-newsletters or post in busy areas. Add culture and core values to annual in-person agendas. 

Employer branding principle: Product 

What distinguishes your employee experience? How you support employees and celebrate achievements sets your brand apart. Define what makes your employee experience unique. Highlight growth, recognition, flexibility, employee engagement and events. 

Take photos of those volunteer days and large events. Share benefits, like an education stipend and employee video testimonials. Consistently communicate your employee’s experience with current and prospective employees to reinforce your message.

Create an authentic employer brand with ITA Group

The strongest employer brands are built from the inside out. How your employees interact and how they feel about their roles and the organization indicate your company culture, whether it’s positive, strong or even disjointed. Employees embody your brand, whether that’s through the service you provide or the products you develop.

Initiatives such as recognition, community-building events and employee surveys foster meaningful engagement and strengthen your employer brand.

If you’re looking for ways to improve your employer branding, download ITA Group’s step-by-step guide on aligning employer brand with your company culture.