How can you use LinkedIn to showcase your brand, attract talent, and retain them?
Through a series of columns written for you on the BIZLife portal by Dejan Pataki and Nemanja Živković, two experts with extensive experience in marketing, communication, and optimization of LinkedIn performance, you will have the opportunity to learn more about strategies that make the most of the opportunities that LinkedIn offers. This time the topic is LinkedIn and Employer branding.
Written by: Nemanja Živković
Welcome!
Today we are talking about how LinkedIn is changing the boundaries in innovation related to human resources and employer branding, with a special focus on how HR can use LinkedIn as a platform to cross these boundaries.
What is employer branding and why is it important?
Employer branding is the perception of what it means to work for your company. Every contact a candidate has with your company shapes this perception. On LinkedIn, it’s a daily challenge – how do you present the right image of what your company offers? HR teams need to understand that LinkedIn is not only a recruiting tool, but also a platform for telling stories about the company. Employer branding is the key to attracting those candidates who are not only looking for a job, but values that are in line with theirs.
Your story is what attracts the right people, not just the positions you offer.
Freepik
Why is LinkedIn the most important platform for HR and employer branding?
LinkedIn has become an indispensable part of the daily HR process. Candidates use LinkedIn not only to find a job, but also to research the company culture.
What is extremely important is how LinkedIn enables dynamic and fast communication. LinkedIn gives you the ability to create content that is much more flexible and authentic than traditional career sites.
Example: Companies that regularly share authentic content about what is happening within the company have a greater response from candidates who are a better fit. How many such companies do you know? Me not much.
Creating a differentiated story: What makes you different?
One of the biggest mistakes companies make on LinkedIn is telling generic stories. LinkedIn audiences want to see authenticity, stories that are real and that show what working at your company is really like.
It is important to connect your values with concrete examples. Don’t just say that your company values innovation – show how employees use innovation in their daily work.
Example: Instead of “We value innovation”, create a post that shows an employee using an innovative solution to improve a process in the company.
See the difference?
HR as a key player in innovation: Crossing the boundaries of traditional HR
Traditional HR processes, such as classic job advertisements, are no longer sufficient. Candidates today are looking for much more information before they decide to apply – they want to know what your mission is, what values you respect, how you take care of your employees.
LinkedIn allows you to tell those stories through employee engagement and the sharing of authentic experiences. HR teams today have the opportunity to become innovators in their companies, crossing boundaries and redefining the role of recruitment.
HR innovation is not only in processes, but in the way we tell stories.
Freepik
Measurability of success on LinkedIn: How to know if your strategy is working?
One of the key elements of any HR strategy on LinkedIn is measurability. In order to know whether employer branding is producing results, you need to monitor certain KPIs (key success indicators).
Measure not only the number of candidates who apply, but also the quality of those candidates, their engagement with your content, and how long they stay with the company after you hire them. At the same time, LinkedIn allows you to monitor the response of your posts – the number of views, comments, shares, both individually and collectively. It also allows you to suggest content to employees.
Example: Comparison – What is the quality of candidates before and after the introduction of authentic LinkedIn campaigns.
What is the last Linkedin campaign you remember?
Authenticity and transparency in employer branding
Employer branding does not mean “beautifying reality”. Instead, authenticity is key. Through transparent communication on LinkedIn, companies can show their true values, even when they are not perfect.
Example: If a company values employee autonomy, this may mean that the work process is sometimes chaotic. It is important that companies do not hide these negative aspects, but communicate them openly, as this will attract people who are ready to work in such an environment.
Employer branding is about finding the right people for the right role – you don’t want a lot of candidates, you want a few high-quality candidates who match your values.
When I analyze a company, the decision of whether to work with that company is influenced by the company’s culture. I get insights into the culture simply by analyzing the presence of that company on LinkedIn. No, not only company pages, but above all profiles of employees and leaders. Do they communicate, how do they communicate, do they have personal views or are they just company bots (sharing and reposting posts for company pages), or are they not active at all (silence often speaks louder than words).
Think about it.
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Controlling the narrative vs. influencing perception
It is impossible to completely control how people will experience your brand. Instead, employer branding is a process of influencing perception. Companies can suggest ideas, but people will form their own opinions.
Example: If your company constantly talks about innovation, but it is not backed up by real examples or actions, people will quickly see a lack of authenticity.
Instead of trying to control the narrative, focus your efforts on influencing through real examples and transparent communication.
Error with “beautiful images” and generic content
Many companies try to create beautiful but empty images and generic posts. This does not contribute to employer branding because it does not provide real value to employees or potential candidates.
Example: Instead of sharing generic posts with pretty pictures of the office, share stories about everyday employee challenges and their solutions. Show “behind the scenes” how your company works. The pictures from the team building are nice, but to be honest, no one chooses a company to go to team building.
People want to see the real thing, not a polished version of your company. It creates an authentic connection with potential candidates.
Crossing borders through innovative HR strategies
I invite you to use LinkedIn as a tool to push the boundaries of innovation in HR. Innovation doesn’t just come from technology – it comes from the way we tell the stories of our companies. LinkedIn is a platform that makes it possible to cross those boundaries on a daily basis through employer branding.
Employer branding is not very different from marketing. Marketing generates demand for your services or products, while employer branding generates demand for open positions in your company.
Marketing aims to facilitate sales and attract ideal customers, ready to buy, who will come to your site on their own, and ask to make a sale.
Employer branding aims to facilitate employment and attract ideal candidates for open positions (a real fit, even if there is currently no open position for them), who will recognize themselves and come with the words that they want to work for you, stating the reasons that your employer branding communicated.
Start today – tell stories that are authentic and show the world why your company is the ideal place to work.
Source: BIZLife
Photo: Private archive
Source: bizlife.rs
