Anphabe Company believes that in the context of talent being a valuable resource, many business leaders are clearly aware of the importance of building a recruiter brand (THNTD) as an essential personnel strategy. However, understanding correctly and doing correctly are two different things.
THNTD is not simply a recruitment brand promotion campaign, but a realistic image and perception of candidates and employees about the company – as a place to work and develop a career. Thus, even if the business has flashy slogans, if the actual experience is not commensurate, the employer brand will not create sustainable attraction or trust from talent.
In fact, many businesses have been and are making fundamental mistakes that make efforts to build SMs wasteful or counterproductive. Below are 5 most common mistakes and ways for businesses to avoid falling into this "trap".
Relying on business brands instead of investing properly in SMEs
This is a common mistake in large businesses with famous product brands. Receiving trust and love from consumers makes many leaders mistakenly believe that they already have a "recruitment brand" in the eyes of candidates.
However, business brands and employer brands are two different concepts. Consumers may admire your products but may not want to work for you.
Therefore, even if the business is already a "star" in the business field, you still need to invest separately in the THNTD building strategy.
Lack of clear THNTD positioning
Employer brand strategy cannot be strong without the foundation of brand positioning (EVP-Employee Value Proposition). This is a value commitment that businesses bring to employees when they join and accompany the organization.
Many businesses deploy a series of recruitment communication campaigns but do not have clear EVPs.
An effective EVP needs to converge three factors: Attractive with target talent; honest with what the business has, avoiding unrealistic promises; different from competitors in the industry.
Identify recruitment brands with short-term recruitment campaigns
One of the biggest misunderstandings is considering "building a recruiter brand" equivalent to "promoting recruitment". Recruitment is short-term, THNTD is long-term.
The recruitment campaign can last for several weeks, targeting a specific position; the employer brand is the result of a long journey – accumulated from many factors (enterprise culture, personnel policies...).
Only when building THNTD as a comprehensive, consistent strategy, with investment in both time, budget and commitment from leaders, can businesses form a consistent image, strong enough to attract and retain talent in the current competitive environment.
Using the same message for all talent groups
Another tactical mistake lies in using a common message for all candidate groups. This is an ineffective approach because each group of talents has different value systems and expectations.
The solution is to classify talents according to specific portraits, thereby building appropriate messages for each group: young talents, experienced experts, intermediate managers, creative groups...
Not fulfilling what was committed
The most serious mistake is that businesses do not properly implement what they have mediated in the process of building the employer brand.
Candidates' expectations will quickly collapse if the actual experience is not as initially introduced. At that time, instead of creating "brand ambassadors" from within employees, businesses face the risk of spreading negative images.
A sustainable employer brand cannot only rely on "good communication", but more importantly on "living true to what has been promised".
