Your employees are the face of your company. They're the ones who are out there representing you to clients and customers and are most likely to be seen by the public. Their personal brand can have a significant impact on your company's brand. If your employees are experts in their field and have a strong personal brand, it can reflect positively on your company.
Employee branding is how employers promote their employees' personal brands. You can do this in several ways, including social media, company websites, and business cards. It's up to the employer to know what brand they seek when interviewing and hiring. When your new hire matches your desired brand, you're on your way to a successful employee branding strategy. All you have to do next is help them build their personal brand!
You may be afraid to encourage your employees to embrace their brand because they may become more attractive to other employers. But you need to focus on the positives. Employee branding can be a great way to improve your company's brand. It can also help you attract top talent and keep your best employees.
Employee personal branding and corporate branding can go together like peanut butter and jelly- if done correctly. The benefits of a well-executed employee branding strategy are many and can cause a significant competitive advantage for your company.
By working with your staff, you'll develop more trust with your customers, too. Over 50% of consumers are more likely to believe messaging from a business's employees rather than a CEO or company spokesperson.
There are many benefits to encouraging your employees to build their personal brands. Here are a few of the most important ones:
If your employees have a solid personal brand, it will reflect positively on your company. Their unique brand can help raise awareness of your company and its products or services. Together, you can create a powerful brand that will attract more customers and clients.
Research shows marketing messages reach 562% more of your audience from employees instead of the corporate brand. A strong employee brand can help you attract top talent. Potential employees will be more likely to want to work for a company with solid employee branding. People trust employees more than companies, so it's essential to have a strong employee brand.
Encouraging your employees to build their brands can also help you retain your best employees. If they feel like they can develop their personal brand within your company, they'll be more likely to stay with you. Supportive employers also help your business attract and keep talent. Happy employees are more productive. A study by the University of Warwick found that they are 12% more productive than unhappy workers.
There are several ways you can encourage your employees to build their personal brands. Here are a few of the most effective:
Encourage your employees to use social media to share their expert knowledge. They can do this by writing blog posts, creating videos, or sharing infographics. Feature the blogs, videos, and other marketing items on your company's website and social media to help promote your employees' personal brands.
Challenge: Invite your employees to follow your social media platforms and encourage them to submit ideas for posts. They are more likely to engage and share posts if they feel like they were included in the creative process.
Feature your employees on your company website. Write blog posts about their expertise or create video interviews with them. Along with featuring employees' personal branding videos, blogs, and other marketing content, develop an "About Us" page that includes employee headshots, bios, and links to their social media profiles. You can also have your marketing department complete interviews with the employees to help others get to know them better and share their stories on the website.
Challenge: Plan a day for a professional photographer to come into your office to take nice headshots of employees. There should be a balance between formal and fun photos. This way, you can have a nice photo to feature on your website and the employees will have a variety to choose from for their LinkedIn and email profile photos.
Make sure your employees have business cards that feature their personal brand. These are a great way to make sure their personal brand represents your company in a positive light. Jazz it up a little with digital business cards. These can include videos, social media links, and even a QR code that simultaneously promotes talent and your company.
Challenge: Provide 3-5 pre approved business card design templates for employees to choose from. Encourage them to fill in the template with their desired creative assets and submit or share in company communication channels.
Encourage your employees to use their email signatures to promote their personal brand. They can include links to their social media profiles or websites. Always review email signatures before they're sent out to make sure they reflect your company's brand in a positive light.
Challenge: While email signatures should be professional and reflect the company in a positive way, they should also present the employee’s personal brand. Provide employees with the approved company logo to be used in their signature but allow them to choose their signature font and other creative elements. These should be approved but creativity and personalization should be encouraged.
Provide your employees with resources to help them build their brands. This can include books, websites, or articles. You can also offer to help them develop their personal brand. You can also sponsor workshops or events that focus on personal branding. Employees will appreciate the opportunity to learn more about developing their brands.
Challenge: While working to grow your company, helping your employees grow should also be a priority. Choose a monthly or quarterly book to provide to employees and schedule a lunch or meeting where they can discuss what they learned and applied into their personal lives. You can also include motivational speakers and funding for something of their choice that encourages growth.
Developing your employees' personal brands is a great way to improve your company's brand and attract top talent. It's also an excellent way to keep your best employees. And, the best part is, it's free marketing! Make sure you take advantage of this cost-effective marketing strategy.
Your staff is your company's best marketing asset. Invest in them, and they'll pay you back by helping to build a strong company brand.
Personal branding isn't just for marketing and salespeople. Every employee has a personal brand, whether they realize it or not. And that brand reflects your company. During a time when luring top talent is more challenging than ever, personal branding is an essential part of your HR strategy.
You might not have a dedicated HR department or even a hiring manager as a startup or small company. So, how do you attract top talent? By utilizing your employees' personal brands!
Your employees are your company's best brand ambassadors. They can help you attract top talent by sharing your company's story and promoting your brand on social media, networking events, and even in their personal circles.
Follow-up employee branding with ISOTalent. We are a full-service staffing and recruiting firm that can help you find the best talent for your company. Unlike traditional staffing agencies, we offer low hourly rates to save you money. We agree: time is money. Save both by working with us. Contact us to discuss your company's needs and hourly recruiting rates today!