To turn a candidate into an employee, it’s all about the steps you take to present your company to them
Do you recall what you were thinking when you chose to work for Company A over Company B? Hopefully you do, because you have to think like a prospective employee in order to successfully market your company to prospective employees.
There are two crucial factors when marketing your company to prospective employees – being a great company, and then convincing recruits that you really are a great company. After all, the prospects who will become the best employees probably have a choice of who to work for and don’t want to work for a company that doesn’t have a good reputation.
For the sake of this blog, we will assume that you are a great company. Your task as a recruiter is to make your prospects familiar with your company’s strengths and the advantages of working there.
Other resources that might interest you:
- How to Establish a Consistent and Reliable Hiring Process
- How to Create the Ideal Candidate Profile
- How to Hire Employees Who Complement Your Strengths
5 tips for marketing your company to prospective employees
1. Market to Everyone:
Who are your future employees? If you can’t answer this question you might lose some of your best prospects long before you get a chance to interview them. This is due to a subpar website and other outdated, lackluster marketing materials. It’s possible that potential prospects, such as college juniors and seniors, are checking your company out. Thus, you need to market to everyone. You need to convey your company’s accomplishments on your website in a variety of ways – through video, audio, blogs, and links to articles about your company’s successes. Publishing first-rate brochures is another way to convey that your company is, well, first rate!
2. Use the Website to Answer Question:
Prospective employees who are impressed by your company’s accomplishments might now want to know what working for your company is like. The website should answer these types of questions. It should have sections on “Jobs” and/or “Careers” with details about the short- and long-term benefits of working for your company. This article by Cramer, a marketing company, points out that Starbucks Corporation’s website has sections for “early career seekers and those who have more experience.” Other companies have information on their employee training programs and anecdotes about employees whose stories might resonate with prospective employees.
3. Prepare Your Current Employees:
You – and the other leaders of your company – cannot be the only recruiters of prospective employees. Internal marketing of your company to your employees is essential because they could be the people who ultimately persuade a candidate to accept your job offer. Your employees should be knowledgeable about your company’s achievements and opportunities. They should also be trained in how to communicate with people outside the company. In fact, you should prepare your employees to meet candidates during the interview process.
4. Study Your Competition:
Thinking like a prospective employee is crucial. They know you’re going to say positive things about your company, but they’re also thinking about whether your company is a better fit for them than other companies. Study your competitors so you can make detailed presentations that emphasize aspects of your company that are superior to your peers. Perhaps, your company pays better. Maybe it’s better at retaining employees and/or providing opportunities for promotion. Perhaps, it’s just better at customer relations or being innovative in its product and/or services. Find the most attractive selling points of your company.
5. Be Honest and Personal:
Finding the best selling points is important, but there is a fine line between highlighting the company’s best features and giving a sales pitch. The best recruits often detect BS very quickly. Being honest about your company’s flaws and praising other companies can make your presentation more effective; Just make sure that your overall assessment of your company is positive. connect personally with recruits by discussing your career with the company and find employees who can also connect personally based on similar backgrounds.
At some point during your interview you will explain the details of the job, the salary, the perks, and the kinds of opportunities for intellectual and professional growth. If you have marketed your company successfully your candidate will make a decision about accepting the job based on its short- and long-term benefits, not just if the company offers free food or a great vacation policy.
Social media is a great tool for recruiting, especially in this day and age when everyone is constantly on their phone. Check out these social media recruiting tips in order to snag your next awesome candidate.
