What do you do if your employer branding lacks creativity?

If your employer branding lacks creativity, consider refreshing it by conducting a brand audit to identify areas for improvement. Engage employees for input and ideas, showcase company culture authentically through storytelling, utilize visual elements effectively, and highlight unique selling points to attract top talent.

A lack of creativity indicates a lack of inspiration. One of the roles of a defined EVP is to generate inspiration. Your EVP is not just be a strapline. There should be a complete narrative that shows what perception you want to influence your audience towards. And there should be a robust evidence pool for why that perception is valid. If that doesn't inspire creativity - someone else needs to take the job on!

Identify the Problem- Understand why your current branding lacks creativity. Is it due to a lack of resources, outdated strategies, or a disconnect with your target audience? Better understanding your audience can improve gaps. I'd analyze the current problems compared to industry competition and go from there.

Encourage the marketing department to be innovative Introspect by conducting a short survey involving the internal stakeholders. Invite suggestions and rework on the branding strategy

evaluate your current employer branding efforts. What's working, and what's not? Identify areas where you could inject some creativity to make your brand stand out. Next, brainstorm some fresh ideas. Get your team together and think outside the box. Brainstorm ways to showcase your company culture, values, and perks in a unique and memorable way. Consider leveraging storytelling to bring your employer brand to life. Share employee testimonials, success stories, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of life at your company to give candidates a real sense of what it's like to work there.

Sharing stories, testimonials and features of actual employees is a great way to infuse more creativity into your employee brand. Saying, "We are the best!" doesn't mean as much to people anymore, but reading a story about what company's are doing on a day to day basis will allow people to connect with you in a more authentic way.

If your company has a Marketing Department, ask them for assistance in helping to develop or even refine your Employer Brand. Your Employer Brand should align with your companies marketing, so it is imperative to seek their input. Plus, while most of us are experts in one or more area of Talent Acquisition, few of us also possess all the marketing skills needed to develop, launch, and maintain everything that goes into effective Employer Branding.

Engage with your team, especially those in creative, marketing, and HR departments, to gather diverse perspectives on how to enhance your employer branding. Employees can provide insights into what makes your company unique and suggest creative ways to showcase these elements. Additionally, involving employees in the branding process can help ensure the messaging is authentic and resonates with the company culture.

You must engage the appropriate subject matter experts. Create a focus group with employees from communications/marketing and specific business lines that often have open positions. See if the content is resonating with them or creating a desire to take action. Summer interns are also great tilling ground to gauge the "creativity" of your EB content.

Some actions: 1) Host Collaborative Workshops: Organize brainstorming sessions involving diverse departments to generate ideas collectively. 2) Implement Idea Platforms: Set up suggestion boxes or digital platforms for employees to share creative suggestions. 3) Encourage Cross-Departmental Collaboration: Foster collaboration between departments to leverage diverse perspectives. 4) Offer Training for Creativity: Provide training programs to enhance creative thinking skills among employees. 5) Recognize and Reward Innovation: Establish a system to acknowledge and reward innovative contributions. 6) Seek External Inspiration: Encourage exploration of industry trends.

People don't want to see the canned photos that are bought to reflect a company --- they are drawn to the real people who work there. Using your employees as brand ambassadors and involving them in marketing campaigns is a great way to drum up internal excitement and to connect in a better way with potential new hires.

Visuals play a crucial role in branding. Update your imagery to be more vibrant, inclusive, and reflective of your company's culture and workplace. High-quality, engaging photos and videos of your office, employees at work, and company events can give potential candidates a genuine glimpse into life at your company. Consider hiring a professional photographer or a graphic designer to create visuals that stand out.

Revamp your messaging and elevate your employer brand with these tips: 1. Infuse a conversational and authentic tone into your messaging to humanize the employer brand. Use language that connects emotionally with the audience, emphasizing the company's values, culture, and impact. 2. Implement interactive storytelling methods, such as employee spotlights, behind-the-scenes content, and testimonials, to create a sense of community and belonging for both current employees and potential hires.

Review and refine your branding messaging to ensure it is clear, compelling, and highlights what makes your company a great place to work. Focus on storytelling elements that share your company's journey, values, and mission. Personal stories from employees about their growth, achievements, and experiences can add a human touch that attracts candidates.

Encourage members of your workforce to create authentic content and/or showcase them in social media posts. People trust people far more than a corporate brand; so authentic, engaging content focusing on members of the workforce as individuals is much more powerful and effective. Work with colleagues who are comfortable and engaged to create content that is specific to them and highlights them as individuals; rather than asking them to create content or feature in content about the firm. Highlight them as individuals and role models first and foremost; and members of the firm's workforce second. Engaging authentic content will be much more impactful and effective; and will compliment even the best 'corporate branding' on social media.

A strategic shift towards leveraging social media marketing and storytelling can be highly effective. You can try out new trends by creating real life and compelling narratives that resonate with your target audience and showcasing your company culture authentically through platforms where your potential employees are active.

Share authentic glimpses of your company culture, real-life stories from employees, and the vibrant atmosphere of your workplace. Engage with candidates on platforms they frequent, fostering genuine connections and showcasing what sets your organization apart.

Don’t be afraid to experiment with new ideas or approaches to employer branding. Whether it’s trying out new social media campaigns, interactive job postings, or unique employee engagement initiatives, experimentation can lead to innovative strategies that set your brand apart. Monitor the performance of these experiments and adjust based on what works best.

It's good practice to be consistent with themes and/or series. Mixing up the format is key. As the communication theorist Marshall McLuhan said: "The medium is the message" - ie the form of communication (the medium) influences and shapes the way information is perceived and understood, often more than the actual content (the message) itself. In essence, the medium through which information is conveyed carries inherent characteristics and impacts that extend beyond the explicit content being communicated. In simple terms: have a consistent mixture of content including videos; static tile posts; carousels; photos and text.

Define your employer branding objectives first. Is it only for attracting potential candidates or to improve employee engagement / retention? Different strategies apply for these objectives. To attract potential candidates, determine your candidate segments and choose a persona that represents it. Try to speak their language and using any media / design that attracts them the most. To improve employee engagement / retention, make sure you implement your EVP first to your existing employee before communicating it externally. Love the suggestion about experiment often because in order to be creative, you are indeed have to sit back and reflect, use different approaches, add some changes / twists in your regular source of inspirations.

Additionally, soliciting feedback from recent hires on what attracted them to your company can provide valuable insights into the strengths of your employer branding and areas for improvement. Creativity in employer branding is not just about being different; it’s about authentically showcasing your company's culture, values, and what makes it a unique place to work. By assessing gaps, involving your team, updating imagery, refining messaging, leveraging social media, and experimenting often, you can develop a creative and compelling employer brand that attracts top talent.