This document outlines 8 steps for building an engaging online brand to attract candidates without large investments. It recommends: 1. Gathering data on top employees to create detailed personas to understand what draws candidates. 2. Encouraging current employees to share content about the culture and why they enjoy working there. 3. Providing tools and training for employees to become social brand ambassadors and encouraging sharing through contests. 4. Highlighting company values and culture throughout the hiring process and on the careers page. 5. Leveraging speaking opportunities to discuss culture and entering awards to promote being a great place to work. 6. Including benefits and making the application and hiring process clear on

1. March 2019
8 Steps for Engaging
Candidates Online
Without Investing
Big Bucks

3. ●
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5. It’s the experience an employer
communicates to potential
candidates of what it’s like
to work at their company.
What’s
an online
brand?

6. it’s
about
effort.

9. ● Hires
● Inbound
● Inbound vs. quality
● Referrals (hired vs. inbound)
● Outbound recruiter
response rate %
● Time to fill
● Agency reliance
● Social followers
● Engagement rate
● Reviews and scores
on review sites
● Careers site traffic
● Conversion rate
Making everything measurable is
square one for developing an online brand.
Step 1

10. Talk to team leads and
use performance data
to determine who your top
employees are.
Go through your interview
learnings to craft your personas.
Make them as detailed and
realistic as possible.
Step 2
Find out more about
what sets them apart
from the pack.

11. ● Why did you join our company?
● When you describe working at our company, what do you say?
● What social channels are you on? How frequently do you use
those channels?
● What’s important to you in a potential employer?
● Why did you want to leave your last job?
● What were your apprehensions before joining our company?
● What’s the difference between our company vs. others
you’ve worked for?
Step 2

12. ● Know your company story
– articulate why you do
what do you
● A social online brand that
feels conversational,
not robotic
● Channels
● Frequency
● Content format
Step 3

13. More than 2 million pieces
of content are shared every day
on LinkedIn, generating tens of
millions of likes and shares
Weekly engaged members are
5x more likely to engage with
future content
60% YoY increase in updates
viewed on LinkedIn’s home feed
Step 3

14. ● Turn employees into
content marketers
● Understand why current employees
like working at your company
● Encourage liking and sharing
on company content
● Encourage employees to
refer their networks
Step 4

15. Encourage sharing
through contests
(continued)
● Hold a contest for, say,
the top social share of the
quarter that is based on one
of your company’s values
● Have your CEO announce
the winner at a company-
wide meeting
● Highlight top social sharers
on the monitors in your lobby
or common areas
Step 4

16. ● What makes working for you unique?
● Share what your employees love about
working at your company
● Storytelling: people remember stories
and forget stats
● Showcase your culture in your
hiring process
● Don’t just tell a culture story –
live the story
● Align your internal culture and
external brand
Step 5

17. ● Speaking opportunities are free PR
● Make culture part of the conversation,
no matter what the topic is
● Culture is an increasingly hot topic
● Focusing on culture is a differentiator
● Enter contests that recognize nurturing
workplaces
● You can’t win if you don’t play
Step 5

18. ● Showcase what your company stands for,
not just what you do
● Make it easy for candidates to apply
● Show, don’t tell
● Be authentic
● Optimize your website and careers page
for SEO
● Optimize your careers page for mobile
Step 6

19. ● 401(k)
● Health insurance
● Vacation time
Things to
include on your
careers page
● Have candidates subscribe
to future job openings
● This is helpful if you’re
not currently hiring for
their role but could be in
the future
● Making it clear up front
what your hiring process
is like can save
headaches later
Step 6

20. A graphic design app
that allows you to create
banners, infographics,
social updates, and
more.
An easy way to make
videos that can be used
for everything from job
postings to new-hire
welcome messages
(more on that in a
minute).
A meme and GIF
generator to energize
blog and social
media posts.
An incredible resource
you can use to add
faces to 4,500 existing
GIFs.
A design tool for the
non-designer (social
posts, flyers, ads, and
more).
Step 7

21. ● Gifts: flowers, swag, etc.
● Thank-you notes to candidates
● JibJabs
● Personalized and empathetic “no, thank you” notes
● GIF welcomes
● Welcome video to new hires
● Video tour of the office
Step 8

22. Establish brand
success metrics
Know your
target audience
Develop a
content plan
Draft an army of
brand ambassadors
Pitch your culture,
not just your products
Optimize your
careers page
Get familiar
with free and
low-cost tools
Elevate your
candidate experience

24. CEO and President, Birchtree Global, LLC
Globalizing strategy, business, and employees since 1999.
www.birchtreeglobal.com

25. Founder, Red Pill Talent
ed.nathanson@redpilltalent.com

27. Now it’s your turn! Use this printer-friendly
checklist with 8 steps for building your online
brand.