Employer Brand Video: how to create and use it

"Young generation ?love to watch not to read!" - this is how we can paraphrase a well-known expression today, in the world of YouTube and visual communications.? Video is the strongest communication tool especially for the young generation.

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Some statistics about YouTube and video content

??More than 90% of US internet users between the ages of 18 and 44 watch videos on YouTube

??The top 5 countries with the most YouTube users include the U.S., India, Brazil, Japan, and Russia

?? More than 1 billion people use YouTube every month

??YouTube is undisputedly dominant among young adults in the U.S. between the ages of 18 and 24, making it the most preferred option among this age group

? The average YouTube viewing session lasts more than 40 minutes

? YouTube reaches more 18- to 49-year-olds in the U.S. than any cable network.

? In 2023, people watch an average of 17 hours of online video per week

? People spend 84 minutes a day watching videos

? More than 70% of YouTube viewers watch videos to help them solve problems or learn something new

? 70% of teen YouTube users say they relate more to YouTube creators than traditional celebrities

? More than 50% of YouTube users are younger than 34 years

? 50% of millennials and Generation Z say they "don't know how they would live their lives" without video content

?? 91% of people want to watch more video content from companies

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This statistic proves that we have to use video content when working with an employer brand. Especially since video today is also the content for the most popular social networks - Instagram and TikTok.??

In creating an attractive image of the company as an employer, we want to reach the heart of a person, not just give a set of arguments ?for choosing our company. Therefore, the ability to competently present the employer's brand through video, using the maximum possibilities of this format, is a new competence that HR and communicators should possess.

?To do this, it is important not only to understand the laws of the genre, know trends (or communicate with experts in this field, who are always up to date), and understand your audience. To create an inspiring image of the company, it's important to have a value proposition - the foundation of the employer brand. EVP helps us to focus on and create core messages. Often, it also determines the style of ?communication and our tone of voice.

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Five important steps in creating ?Employer Brand ?video

Step 1: You must understand the purpose of creating a video and your target audience. Why you need it, how and where you will use it. It would be naive to think that you can solve all the problems at once with one video for all needs and audience . So make sure you define your goals.? Will it be a video for attracting candidates, for telling candidates about the company during the recruitment process, or for onboarding new employees? Or maybe it's a video about certain types of jobs or work in certain areas? Is this video for graduates qualified professionals?

Step 2: For creating the video, it is important to rely on the EVP as the basis for positioning. It's important built your image which helps you ?to attract those who are close and ready to share the company's values and culture.? Without an articulated value proposition, this is difficult to do.? If you just make cool videos, but their message is not connected to your value proposition, it will be harder to build a successful and strong employer brand.

Step 3: Choose a format and style. Unfortunately, so many companies act in a trivial way, choosing the standard solution of filming the office and "talking heads" of the company's management and employees. There are dozens of such HR videos on the Internet.? Your task is to attract attention, and stand out from the crowd, only then you will get your message across. Remember the AIDA (Attention - Interest - Desire - Action) communication model. Unfortunately, these videos are poorly memorized and very similar to each other.? Try to distinguish yourself. Here are some examples of cool options and formats you can use (https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/13-cool-employer-branding-videos-tatiana-koval/?trackingId=30rZa9CPS0uyfVK0wIewCQ%3D%3D )

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Step 4: Select distribution channels and ways to use the video. This will affect the script, the length of the video, and even the format (horizontal videos are desirable for YouTube and vertical videos for social networks). You may make several videos based on one story or make a big video and then make a shorts ?from it.? Whether your video will be posted on your website in the "Careers" section or used to attract attention in an advertising campaign, or whether you plan to send it to potential candidates to give additional arguments in favor of working for you - all this will affect the scenario. The video format can also be the basis for long-term engagement: it helps to promote the employer brand.

Step 5: Analyze your competitors in the labor market and their approach. If your video is very similar to theirs, you use the same language (and even with plenty of classic business stamps), then there is no differentiation. You could change your approach and think about it when creating your video.

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You can go through all these steps on your own or with a video production provider. They will be able to help you with format selection, and script and will tell you the current trends that are important to consider. Especially if you are creating a video that you plan to use for years.

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Popular video formats for employer branding

We've reviewed dozens of HR videos in our work.? We'll break down the most commonly used formats, so you can choose the one that will allow you to better deliver your message while being noticeable against your competitors.? In this case, we are also talking about classic employer branding videos, which are used to position the company and are a way to tell its story. This is a long-term content and we recommend to pay attention to it before investing your time and money.

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Here are a few of the most popular formats:

-??????? Filming employees in the office

-??????? Company storytelling and invitations from the tops

-??????? Employee shoots in the studio or external locations

-??????? Promotional videos

-??????? Humor

-??????? A daily life of an employee

-??????? Advertising and image clips

-??????? Photo clips or a selection of events

-??????? Employee image: what you can be and what you can do

-??????? A story about the company's capabilities

-??????? Videos for events/special dates

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I hope in my selection (I matchet it earlier in this article) ?you can fins something that will inspire d you and you will create your own cool employer brand video.