It’s easy to see the value your employer brand creates during the hiring process or onboarding—whether that’s attracting potential talent, streamlining the process or engaging employees. However it’s just as important to keep that brand alive throughout the employee journey.
Consistent messaging in internal branding, recognition and years-of-service programs are a few ways to integrate your brand’s messaging throughout your employees’ tenure. It’s not just a reminder that your organization is a great place to work. It aligns your values with your actions and puts your people first.
But what are employer branding best practices when it comes to successfully engaging employees? Here are four key elements to keep in mind.
1. A memorable employee value proposition (EVP)
Your organization’s EVP is the cornerstone of your employer brand. A successful EVP helps teams embody a sense of purpose and belonging, leading to increased employee engagement and team pride. It affects public reputation, attracting new talent, decreasing turnover and reducing recruitment costs.
Make your EVP part of your employee experience and brand. Communicate it with an internal campaign strategy and manager toolkits to educate employees, and make leaders brand advocates.
Tip: Create environments that reflect your EVP
Use environmental branding like wall art or murals in common areas or video call backgrounds to put brand values front and center.
Add messages to functional company swag, from mouse pads, or apparel. These tokens serve as daily reminders of your brand and your values.
2. Years of service awards and recognition
Help employees connect with your brand values using meaningful recognition and service milestones. It brings your employer brand to life and adds touch points along the employee journey. For example, many organizations recognize milestone work anniversaries like 5 or 10 years. Yet according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, today's employee tenure averages to 3-4 years. Recurring recognition and years of service awards—given sooner, rather than later—reinforces employee purpose and workplace culture.
Consider an employee engagement platform to encourage managers and peers to issue recognition. The platform acts as a digital town square, where everyone can celebrate each other's work anniversary or workplace win—showcasing brand values in an accessible way.
Gratitude creates a more meaningful work experience, especially for tenured employees. With longer years of service, be sure to send an employee gift with a note from leadership so these moments match their tenure and loyalty. Longtime team members are a testament to your work culture and brand.
Related: How to reprioritize employee recognition
3. Employee feedback loops
The secret to a strong employer brand starts with your people. Think about who your employees are—how do they work best? What are their goals and needs? What made them want to work for your brand in the first place?
Use surveys or focus groups to gather information and see how your employer brand can support them best. Maybe there’s a cause or organization your employees are passionate about. Maybe your global team wants more opportunities to connect meaningfully with one another. You can also gather data from prospective hires.
Use this feedback to align your employees wants and needs with what you do next. People are more likely to engage and get excited about programs that speak to them—especially if their voices led to the change. Your employees should help shape the brand's story. As they take ownership and pride in the company, they show why your organization is a great place to work.
Related: How we helped a healthcare system unite 20,000 employees under one brand
Tip: Connect with employees where their interests live
Don’t be afraid to connect with team members through other channels. Think about who your employees are. Where do they go to recharge? To learn? To connect with other employees? Maybe there’s a professional organization your employees participate in that you can sponsor.
Get creative with how you stay connected. Produce a podcast series that focuses on telling the story of your brand through employee experiences. You can even add a fun personal twist by curating themed Spotify playlists that speak to your brand.
Create a unique hashtag that represents your organization and encourage team members to share their experience on social media. It gives employees the freedom to share your brand story in their own words.
4. Consistency and employer trust
Consistency is one of the most important elements of employer branding. Providing templates, design assets and style guide keeps the brand's messaging consistent as teams apply it overtime. However, organizations also need to consistently lead with their employer brand through their actions.
Your employer brand is the organization's promise to their team members. It sets expectations for current or potential employees, and builds employer trust as they follow through. It communicates why someone would want to work at your organization in an authentic way.
Beyond recruitment, it’s equally important to use your employer brand throughout your team members' tenure so they don’t lose sight of what drew them to work at your organization in the first place.