Employee Branding

When talent is looking at new opportunities for employment, finding a company where the employees seem genuinely happy is a key ingredient for finding the right fit, and joining the right team. While many companies are focused on their brand reputation when it comes to selling a product or service to consumers, the more successful organizations put an equal focus on employee branding as well. 

So, what is employee branding and why is it important?

Employee branding is a marketing strategy, where time is spent educating internal teams on a company’s mission, vision and values to the point where they ideally believe and feel positive about their experiences working there. When employees think and talk positively, they in turn become external ambassadors for spreading that positivity to other employees, new talent and the end customers as well. 

When employees are happy, according to Gallup, a company can see 21% more profitability, 41% less calling out from the job, and 59% less turnover. The data speaks for itself - a company’s success starts from within.

At Grimm & Grove, we’re lucky to work alongside Gail Inderwies, President and Executive Director of KeystoneCare Home Health and Hospice, and support her ongoing initiatives to innovate palliative, hospice and homecare services in the greater Philadelphia area. 

In a recent conversation with a KeystoneCare hospice nurse from Gail’s team, Melissa Grimm saw a first-hand example of employee branding power at its finest. The nurse took a compassionate approach to her relationships with every patient, regardless of their stage of life or state of health. Thanks to her belief in KeystoneCare’s values – and her innately kind approach to care – the nurse gets to know each patient as a human being with a full life of accomplishments and memories behind them. For her, getting to know the stories of some remarkable patients was in line with her own mission for how to care and her company’s greater vision, and a great example of when employee branding goes well.

At Grimm & Grove, we often build employee branding into our marketing plans, as a first important step to generating internal consensus and word of mouth ambassadorship. Some tips for building an effective employee branding strategy include:

• Valuing your employees: Make sure to listen to your employees and reward them when possible. ‍
• Onboarding with purpose: Engage everyone at every level of your team through onboarding them with your mission, vision, values and overall purpose. If outcomes are quantitative, let them in on your business objectives and expected KPIs (key performance indicators).‍
• Telling your story: Go beyond company mission and vision and let talent in on your story. What does your brand stand for? What’s the elevator speech? Is the brand’s personality warm and fuzzy or corporate and straightforward? These personality descriptors matter. 

• Offering incentives: Think about an employee referral program or include others in the hiring process so prospects can get a real feel for the job. 

Interested in learning more about employee branding and how it fits with your business goals? Drop us a note at __.