Employer branding – People buy people

“Recruitment is a pain! I can’t find enough of the right people for my business” 

Sound familiar?

In our world, people buy people. 

For the record, we don’t work in people trafficking. We work in professional services, where trust is the currency we trade in. 

In our conversations with business leaders across property and construction this month, a key theme is top of ‘their list’ for 2022: recruitment. There simply aren’t enough people to meet the demand. Law firms, investors, design teams, contractors… they’re all saying the same thing.  

Let’s be clear. Recruitment isn’t just recruitment anymore. You can’t just pop up a job ad and sit back and wait for the right person to walk in the door. 

Recruitment is about branding. 

The people you want are already gainfully employed. And they’re busy! 

You have to demonstrate enough value to encourage them to jump ship. That means capturing their attention and showing them how you can improve their career, job satisfaction and/or provide a better cultural fit. This can be made easier or more difficult depending on how happy they are in their current position, but one thing is for sure: top-quality candidates don’t stay very long for low-quality employers.

In short, if you want the best people, you’re going to have to compete with the best employers. 

It’s time to invest in your ‘employer branding’ 

Employer branding sits within your brand work, with an emphasis on you as an employer of choice. How do the right candidates judge whether you’re the company for them? They’ll look at all the usual stuff: salaries, benefits, reports on Glassdoor. But it won’t stop there. 

The branding that’s really going to set you apart from your competitors are the messages you give out. Your values, your culture, your current staff roster and the opportunities you offer for staff development will all stand out. 

It’s these elements that you have to make sing on your online and offline media.  

• Make your values transparent and those that share them will seek you out like a bee to honey 
• Demonstrate a company culture that’s vibrant and chock full of activity and watch candidates queue up at your doors 
• Let your staff provide insight into their roles and working life through blogs and media. Communicate the staff development structures within your business and the inspiring work you’re top class team are delivering. Heads will turn and the best candidates will take notice. 

‘But my business is all of those things’ I hear you say. Maybe. But… is it proven? And are you sharing that brilliance with the world or keeping it behind closed doors?  

A strong employer brand will draw the best talent to you. Recruitment (and retention) will become easier. And your business, with the right people, will be stronger, more varied and more profitable. 

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Need some help with your employer branding? Contact Luma today for a no-obligation chat.