NCAA's March Madness Notes on Recruitment Marketing

Watching the NCAA March Madness playoffs got me thinking like I’m sure so many others, that the Bud Light and Miller Lite commercials have good messages for recruitment marketing.

As beneficial as a recruitment brand is, it’s important that it’s built from the inside out. “Know your lane,” I’ve been espousing. Nice basketball tie-in right!?! - look Mom, a sports analogy.

Figure out your employment value proposition, what matters, and use that to explain to candidates why they should join. Attracting candidates with a message that you can fulfill throughout their employment means that as wonderful as your onboarding may be, that their first day of work won’t be their best day of work or the only day they sing your praises.

Bud Light is focusing on what’s inside – literally their ingredients. Differentiating themselves from competitors by belting from the castle turrets – we are proud to have only four ingredients. If that's your jam, join us. Promise made. Promise delivered.

Miller Lite. . . 'lite' vs. 'light' - can we seriously not get everyone singing the same tune on that? I think that goes way back. . . Miller Lite’s response, lawsuit withstanding, is to focus on their strengths – ‘Miller Lite tastes better, has fewer carbs and fewer calories.’ If that sounds good to you, sign on up. I’ve talked to plenty of people who HAVE signed up and remain engaged because of Miller’s delivery on their brand promise.

It’s not new for product marketing and recruitment marketing to align. I’m a believer that they should. What first struck me in this series of ads was the Miller commercial showing the apparent cast and crew of the Bud Light commercial breaking for the day and choosing Miller Lite over Bud Light because ‘in the real world more taste matters.’

Recognizing their intention and effort to play off the Bud Light commercials, I looked back at Bud’s focus on ingredients. Why DON’T beers include ingredients labels? Don’t we want to know what’s inside?

The idea that people DO want to know what's inside also applies to recruitment brand and marketing development. You can apply it from the inside out:

1. Know and focus on what matters to your organization! Like an ingredients label, keep it simple.
2. Consider the value of a video platform like SparcStart that offers a plug-n-play approach to add some depth to your simple message – what do the manager and coworkers have to say? If your message is authentic, their spots will naturally follow and no scripting or costumes are necessary.
3. Help and encourage your employees to help you make it viral so that others hear you - what makes you-you and understand your promise.
4. Pay attention but don’t worry about your competitors. You do you – know your lane. During one game I heard an announcer say that a team was great at two-point shots. “I hope so,” I thought, realizing that that was THEIR thing. And they were THERE – at least in the ‘Sweet 16.’

Do you know your culture? Really know your culture - what retains and engages your employees? Your ingredients? Does your organization thrive on competition? Cooperation? Because of your technology? Relationships? Do you value process? Compliance? Creativity? None of these are mutually exclusive, but neither are basic ingredients and great taste. Where has your team told you that you stand out?

Do you have a theme? a mantra? An authentic and concise way to explain it? To help prospective employees taste it? Are you a great place to start a career? Develop new skills? Learn best-practices? Create? Do you have great pay? Benefits? Are you leading your industry? Climbing? Do you have a special niche?

Take a deep look inward at what matters. Take the time to hone what matters. Tell and show what matters where it matters – internally so it can be shared and externally where your target audience is – virtually or literally. Work to evolve your message staying as fresh and relevant as you do true to your brand promise.

With any luck your message will ring as true and be as iconic as Bob Christianson’s CBS NCAA March Madness theme song! Your message won’t sink in for everyone, but it's a solid step towards filling the seats of your team bus.