49 Examples of Employer Brand

Storytelling

Researched and written by:

Adrian McDonagh, Founder/Chief Ideas Officer

& Becky Cellupica, Marketing & Events ExecutiveEasyWeb Recruitment 2016

Your Employer Brand being shared on social media is becoming increasingly important in the world of Recruitment. There are lots of surveys showing crazy high stats for social media job searches, for example,83% of job seekers use Facebook to look for a new role, with 40% also using Twitter.

I am a little sceptical of how these results were arrived at and how applicable they are to the UK jobseeker market. One claim that can easily be evidenced with some basic searches is that very few average companies make any real effort to tell their employer brand story. I know this from my very recent experience of researching this article which took me weeks to find the few organisations who make any attempt to do this.

The multi-nationals and uber-cool internet start ups are typically excellent at this and place a high value on providing a real insight into their culture and values. Potential employees can start to get a real feel for what it might be like to work in these organisations. We were interested to pull back the curtain and show examples from organisations who are not start ups, are UK based and have less than 1,000 staff - what we call an "Everyday Organisation".

Most of the case studies and blog posts you will see around Employer Brand are written about the larger/cooler companies. We think the examples below represent some of the most inspiring stories for the types of organisations who book onto our training events.

Regardless of the size of your organisation you will have an employer brand story to tell. We hope these examples will inspire you to follow these organisations and help you to start to tell your own employer brand story.

6 examples of job updates

UCAS have created their 'The Grass is Greener' campaign for their recruitment strategy. Using this 'catch-phrase' on each job role photo they post online allows them to brand their opportunities.

#1. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/773111155317415936 UCAS

#2. https://twitter.com/ImaginationJobs/status/292603717444853760 - Imagination

If you're good with rhyming or if you're

smart with lyrics, then Imagination's

example is great for you.

Using famous lyrics from a Christmas song

to relate not only to the weather but also to

advertise their job openings is simply genius.

#3. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/773899261679370240 - Dennis Publishing

A theme that Dennis often use on their 'Life at

Dennis' Twitter page is a simple statement,

advertising their company as 'awesome'. Themes

are a good thing to have when advertising job roles,

and creating a theme that can be turned into an

image is a good way to support your advert.

#4. https://twitter.com/OpenHouseJobs/status/656411197516967936 - Open House London Ltd

If you're proud of your staff, and if you're advertising

for a more senior role, why not show them off?

This great example from Open House London is the perfect example. Happy staff, happy life right?

#5. https://twitter.com/LendInvestLife/status/752421294042255360 - LendInvest

Taking hold of the 'showing off your staff' approach,

LendInvest have been doing the same but adding a

little extra something to their postings. Using a

popular hashtag on Twitter will allow your tweet to

be seen by more people, even if it is not directly

related to your job role.

#6. https://twitter.com/RA_careers/status/718473052808441858?lang=en-gb - Royal Academy of Arts

(RA)

Every now and then a job post will provide you with the chance to show some personality. Perhaps the above

tweet for a wordsmith could have been filled with spelling and grammatical errors to grab the attention of all those prospective candidates.

If it's too much for you to create a theme, or it

simply doesn't fit with your company values,

then using the 'short and simple' approach will

suffice enough. Using crafty words such as RA

have done in this post will tell people exactly what you are looking for.

IDEA

3 examples of employers talking about their benefits

#7. https://twitter.com/Riverford_jobs/status/420678521963675648 - Riverford Organic Farms

Riverford advertise some of the finer things in their

employee's lives. I mean, it's free food for staff!

#8. https://twitter.com/TPPCareers/status/773865704932147200 - The Phoenix Partnership (TPP)

TPP like to advertise their company benefits by

posting images on their Twitter page. Images of their

staff, in action, whilst travelling for work. So if you

provide the opportunity for travel at your company,

why not shout about it? It's a great benefit and people will love to know about it.

#9. https://twitter.com/RedGateCareers/status/766736443926536193 - Redgate

If you provide days out for your team, whether

it's a team building activity or for fun, tell

people. Redgate have got this covered and it

provides a great opportunity to connect with

their candidates who enjoy getting out and about.

4 examples of employers showing

their staff's life outside

of the office

#10. https://twitter.com/Riverford_jobs/status/578532321604870144 - Riverford Organic Farms#11. https://twitter.com/RA_careers/status/545907911881658368?lang=en-gb – Royal Academy of Arts (RA)

#12. https://twitter.com/lifeatAdestra/status/773169778357919744 - AdestraWhat we're talking about here is showcasing staff parties and events out of working hours. Posting images of

your staff parties, such as Riverford's summer party and RA's Christmas party, is a great way to show how

you care for your staff. An alternative way to do this would be to take an action shot like Adestra. It's quick, it's simple and can be more inclusive - you're inviting candidates into the action.

#13. https://twitter.com/JoinArena/status/500228663854772226 - Arena Group

Most organisations have staff days out. Few

organisations take the time to show this type of

update.

2 examples of employers showcasing life inside the office

#14. https://twitter.com/lifeatleon/status/765849755771625472 - LEON Restaurants

Why not send a quick picture of your staff in the

office/workplace? Not only does it advertise the

working environment, it also gives candidates the

opportunity to imagine themselves in that environment.

#15. https://twitter.com/firefishnow/status/743430674804244480 - Firefish Software

Firefish's careers page quite often retweets the

main company's posts, which is fine when it's

relevant. When you have something in the office

which can be exciting for staff, such as a large TV

screen to watch sport, then post it up. It shows you have a relaxed office environment.

6 examples of celebrating staff achievements

#16. https://twitter.com/onthebeachjobs/status/743442444545572866 - On the Beach

#17. https://www.facebook.com/easywebrecruitment/photos/a.10151198784724777.469810.151640049776/10153179732584777/?type=3&theater

– EasyWeb RecruitmentThe two above examples from On the Beach and EasyWeb are the perfect ideas on how to celebrate your staff's success and achievements -

celebrate key milestones in their career. One of EasyWeb's values are 'Share our success and reward each other' so we share when one of

our employees has been here for a long period of time. It's also good for internal communications and it shows good retention of staff.

#18. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/753943367373889536 - Dennis Publishing

Dennis are back to show us how they care about

their staff and how they are supportive and happy

when their staff achieve awards. Updating your

account with an image from an awards ceremony

shows that you make a fuss of your staff's achievements.

#19. https://twitter.com/ANCareers/status/626859277676883968 - Anthony Nolan

Anthony Nolan have an Employee sports team and often share the success of this team online

#20. https://twitter.com/firefishnow/status/740841520211845121 - Firefish Software

#21.https://www.facebook.com/easywebrecruitment/photos/a.10151198784724777.469810.151640049776/10151684228134777/?type=3&the

ater&__mref=message_bubble – EasyWeb Rec

Firefish are seen here congratulating their colleague and his partner on their recent engagement.

Here at EasyWeb we once celebrated our very own Sean marrying our colleague Lena with the whole tam there to

support them (quite literally in Sean's case).

These kinds of posts go a long way to establishing a fun, friendly and caring employer brand.

4 examples of employers welcoming new hires

#22. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/729650460102111232 - UCAS

UCAS love their new starters. Show

off how excited and proud you are with a picture of your latest hires

#23. https://twitter.com/JobsatCareerjet/status/212553501992157185 - Careerjet

If a picture is too difficult to get (or your

staff decide they don't want to be in

one) then a simple text-tweet can

suffice. Including hashtags will allow the post to be seen further afield.

#24. https://twitter.com/standrewscareer/status/783218615889821696 - St Andrew's Nursing

St Andrew's post is the perfect way to update

your followers about new staff, especially if

you take in a large number. Grouping them

together and uploading an image from an

induction is even better if you have some who would rather be hidden from sight.

#25. https://www.facebook.com/notes/life-at-easy-web/meet-philippa-drage-one-of-the-few-latest-additions-to-

the-easyweb-team/1412008968816306 - EasyWeb

Here at EasyWeb, a fun and

interactive activity we do with our

new colleagues is give them a

short interview we can post online

with a photo. Hearing first hand

from an employee what it's like to

work for a company and getting to

know people you could potentially work with goes a long way.

2 examples of company announcements

#26. https://twitter.com/OntheBeachUK/status/730348131578204160 - On the Beach

If you would like to make your own GIF, try this link.

On the Beach recently turned 12 years old and

wanted to shout about it on Twitter. If they've been

around that long they must be doing something

right, right? Although this is great, a way to improve

this tweet would be to include how much % they

have grown over those years. But bravo for the fun GIF.

IDEA

#27. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/769130130769870848 - Dennis Publishing

If you have a new social media outlet and want to

share it, do what Dennis do and invite people to

follow you via your already established channels.

Here Dennis are sharing their Instagram page on

Twitter, which gives an insight into the type of things they get up to in (and out of) the office.

5 examples of employers shouting about their

office location

#28. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/741252634221383680 - UCAS

UCAS are back and with a great example.

They really like to sell the benefits of their

Cheltenham location which is essentially the

reason behind their "Grass is Greener"

theme. It provides them the opportunity to

'mention' local events, which gains retweets

from them and could promote their company

to potential candidates attending these events.

#29. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/664454754068733952 - UCAS

Something great that UCAS do is they

share things related to the local community -

this example being food. This is the kind of thing that's important to relocators.

#30. https://twitter.com/TPPCareers/status/745275430446432256 - TPP

More great updates for relocators - TPP share local

news on their page. It's also great for your internal communications.

#31. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/738664673864777728 - UCAS

We know they keep cropping up, but

they really know what they're doing

when it comes to shouting about their

local area. Again, a great post for

relocators, but engaging, mentioning

tagging, and tweeting other local

companies’ gives you access to all their followers too!

#32. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/727495525851877376 - UCAS

UCAS doing what they do best and

posting about other local events helps

them to achieve more coverage on Twitter.

4 examples of employers sharing their Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR)

#33. https://twitter.com/JoinArena/status/487508061289189376 - Arena Group

Arena Group like to update their candidates on what they do for their local community.

#34. https://twitter.com/lifeatAdestra/status/767722653209755649 - Adestra

If you support a local charity or have a

'charity of the year' like Adestra, share who

they are. If you visit their offices, upload

picture of your staff there helping out and making a difference.

#35. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/746288030873432064 - Dennis Publishing

Dennis continuously post about charity days they

run in-house for staff. Posting images of the food

they bake and the office dressed-up for fundraising

events is a good way to show your support for local

charities as well as your fun office environment. This

one example of Dennis shows their support of the

LGBTQ community, which has the additional benefit

of advertising equality and diversity in the workplace.

#36. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/773823527376019456 - Dennis Publishing

Dennis have also incorporated the popular

'#ThrowbackThursday' into their tweets, so

they're reaching more people while also

reminding candidates of what they can get involved in if they were to join the team.

2 examples of regular monthly items

#37. https://twitter.com/UCAScareers/status/760737856889491456 - UCAS

#38.https://www.facebook.com/easywebrecruitment/photos/a.10151198784724777.469810.151640049776/10154244503209777/?type=3&t

heater – EasyWeb

If you don't have the time to be thinking about new things to post every month, UCAS have created a staff calendar which shares a picture

from an employee each month. This can help take the strain from you having to find new content.

Something we do here at EasyWeb is post about our 'Employee of the Month', sharing our staff success and showing candidates that they

could be praised for the hard work they do.

5 examples of employers engaging with the days of the week

#39. https://twitter.com/cabana_brasil/status/771634045469941760?lang=en - Cabana

#40. https://twitter.com/LendInvestLife/status/774233697595731968 - LendInvest

#41. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/779340473089523712 - Dennis Publishing

Using popular hashtags on Twitter such as '#FridayFeeling' is a fun way of showcasing your company to candidates. It's important to

remember only to post if your values/culture is relaxed/fun.

#42. https://twitter.com/lifeatAdestra/status/779262070667620352 - Adestra

Get interactive like Adestra, who have started

to post a 'riddle of the week'. This works well

in the office, and with candidates.

#43. https://twitter.com/RA_careers/status/696251890825306112?lang=en-gb – Royal Academy of Arts

(RA)

RA join in with a lot of the 'National Weeks' on

twitter. The example here is from 'Wellness Week',

advertising a range of activities put on for their employees.

4 examples of short, quick & fun posts

#44. https://twitter.com/lifeatAdestra/status/776342908526010368 - Adestra

Something as simple as an email received

can provide material for a quick, simple and authentic post

#45. https://twitter.com/DennisAdSales/status/765817996883492865 - Dennis Publishing

Dennis are always posting in-office activities and this

is a great example of their staff getting into the spirit

of the Olympic Games this year. If candidates like what they see, they'll apply

#46. https://twitter.com/cabana_brasil/status/773595537236951042?lang=en – Cabana

Linking posts to popular TV shows as Cabana have

done with GBBO shows candidates that you have

something in common with them - you like what they

like. Even better, Cabana have directly linked this

with their product. If this is something you can do, we advise you do it.

#47. https://twitter.com/ANCareers/status/634711809962938368 - Anthony Nolan

We have done this ourselves here at EasyWeb and

it works wonders with followers – who doesnt love a

cute office dog? It's fun, it's simple and it's a guaranteed winner.

2 examples of Employers sharing bigger posts with

more work

#48. https://twitter.com/LifeAtDennis/status/776820531270193153 - Dennis Publishing

#49. https://easywebrec.wistia.com/medias/t64nq35pty - EasyWeb

Dennis took some more time out of their day and created a GIF/Video which showcases their spirit during the holidays. Now although this

does take longer to create for social media, it's a great way of showing your fun side and what staff can get involved in. We posted our own

Christmas video to Facebook a few years ago as a way to wish our followers a very Merry Christmas.

As you can see from the many examples above, it is easy to build your Employer Brand

online, you just need to make sure that you do it well enough to entice new candidates

through your door. Our top tips are to remember to be honest, be natural, use everyday

language but most importantly to interpret your company's values. It won't work if you

are posting things that have nothing to do with your company. If you're a great place to

work then you need to shout about it a bit more. Our last bit of EasyWeb advice is for

you just to have fun with what you do and enjoy interacting with candidates online.

If you would like to find out more on how to build your Employer Brand, please see below for our

next free training webinar:

Building your Employer Brand by simply telling your Organisation's storyTuesday 29th November 2016 @ 2:30pm

Originally published at http://www.easywebrecruitment.com/features/2013-03-18-09-22-50/blog-template/item/103-49-examples-of-employer-brand-storytelling

on 18th October 2016