Never underestimate the power of a story. We seem to be innately wired to be enthralled by a narrative – our minds naturally expecting a beginning, middle, and end. In fact, it’s one of the few universal aspects of the human experience. According to anthropologists, we’re all primed for a well-told tale because of a story’s power to unite us into groups and help us understand a moral or social dilemma.
Just like stories once forged our hunter-gatherer tribes, so too today they help determine if a candidate joins your company. Sure, they’ll consider the money. However, your employer branding – the personality and narrative that your business projects – is just as much part of the equation.
Creating a story about who your company is and its mission helps build an emotional connection with an otherwise faceless organization. Not only does that attract new employees, but it also gives voice to your existing staff.
Good storytelling looks beyond the facts and figures, inspiring your employees to speak, act, and grow. Here’s how.
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What is Employer Branding?
Your employer brand is how your employees, past, present, and future, see your brand. It’s the image you project. We’re used to thinking of consumer-centric branding—picture global brands like Dove, Skittles, or Nike.
In these examples, the brand is how the company acts and speaks, its mission and value, and ultimately, its personality. Dove is caring and soft, Skittles is wacky and fun, and Nike is about excellence and tenacity. We can quickly grasp these brands because they’ve told us a story about who they are.
So, too, businesses can present a story to their employees, and employees can talk about the business. The brand is a combination of both.
Amazon, for instance, has poor employer branding. Its reputation in the news is of a soulless warehouse where employees are worked to the bone for ultimate efficiency.
Whether this is true or not, it’s a common perception. SpaceX, meanwhile, is also seen as tough on its staff but in the pursuit of excellence and new frontiers, not efficiency. SpaceX’s story is of helping humanity reach beyond the Earth and venture into the beyond. Amazon never managed to weave a similar story, leaving it to its employees to decide.
Why Employer Branding Storytelling Matters
Learn from Amazon’s mistake – if you’re not building a brand story, hearsay and gossip will do it for you. Storytelling lets you advertise why what your brand does matter.
Perhaps the most common story is that of the family-run business: it’s homely, comfortable, and timeless. However, you could be a local company passionate about serving the community with a smile on your face or a biotech firm that prioritizes innovation and cutting-edge research, always wanting to push the envelope.
In each case, we can see how storytelling matters. Let’s explore some other reasons:
- Authentic Connection: Storytelling offers a genuine glimpse into a company’s culture and values, attracting potential hires seeking more than just a paycheck but purpose and belonging.
- Market Differentiation: A one-of-a-kind employer brand story sets an organization apart in a competitive talent market, showcasing its distinctiveness.
- Employee Engagement: Employees connected to the company’s narrative have higher engagement, leading to increased loyalty and reduced turnover.
- Reputation Enhancement: A compelling story turns employees into brand ambassadors, amplifying positive word-of-mouth and bolstering the company’s reputation.
- Alignment of Strategies: Reflecting company values in storytelling ensures talent alignment with broader corporate objectives, fostering a united and productive workforce.
Examples of Storytelling in Employer Branding
There’s a simple question: How do you use storytelling to boost your employer brand? The answer: let your employees speak. If you’ve got a motivated and passionate team, they’re your greatest brand ambassadors. Let’s see how some big companies tell a story through their teams:
Google’s ‘Life at Google’ Series
Life at Google is the official blog of the tech giant. It details all the behind-the-scenes happenings, highlighting the challenges and successes of Google’s employees. For Disability Pride Month, it asked four Googlers to explore what their identity means to them.
Meanwhile, My Path to Google is an ongoing series that tells stories from Googlers, interns, and alumni. A common theme is an employee’s path to achieve their position.
Featuring videos, articles, and other content communicates the company’s dedication to fostering creativity, inclusivity, and work-life balance. It’s an amazing story for aspiring tech professionals to hear!
Starbucks ‘To Be a Partner’ Campaign
Starbucks’s ‘To Be a Partner’ campaign is a testament to its employees, aptly named partners. Not only does this space detail the remarkable benefits partners can expect, but it also tells their stories.
It doesn’t just say they’ve got a College Achievement Plan; it tells the story of four people who succeeded because of Starbucks’s support. The single mother who rose to become a district manager or the young immigrant who decided to give college another shot – these stories inspire and incentivize prospective employees, putting a name and face to a scheme.
HubSpot’s Culture Code Slides
HubSpot took a different approach. They created the Culture Code: a mega-slide deck that covered everything about the company and its value. It talks about why culture matters in a company and how HubSpot goes above and beyond to create a company culture that works for everyone.
More than that, it details how employees should act and work, built around the core values of HEART: Humble, Empathetic, Adaptable, Remarkable, Transparent.
Examples include:
- Solve For The Customer — not just their happiness, but also their success.
- HubSpot has a no-door policy, where everyone has access to anyone in the company.
- Influence should be independent of hierarchy.
- Culture is to recruiting, as the product is to marketing.
5 Tips for Effective Employer Branding Storytelling
Pitch to Your Target Audience
How you tell a story depends on who you are selling it to. SpaceX’s narrative of human excellence and new frontiers appeals to techies and engineers but wouldn’t appeal to a nurse or creative person. Your story should, therefore, target your primary employee base.
Consider not just the demographics but also the psychographics of your candidates. Who are they? What are their motivations? Where do they want to be in five years?
Tailor your message to resonate with their values, aspirations, and expectations. Doing so can ensure you design a narrative that appeals directly to them, ensuring that the talent you attract aligns with your organizational needs.
Answer Potential Employee Questions
Just like there’s a buyer’s journey, there’s also an employee journey. From awareness about needing a new job to considering which employer to apply for, you can enhance this journey by answering some key questions.
- What’s the work culture like?
- Are there opportunities for growth?
- What benefits are offered?
- Is the company involved in any charitable or social projects?
Your storytelling should preemptively answer these questions. Craft stories that provide insights into daily operations, showcase professional development opportunities, and highlight unique perks
Find Inspiring Stories in Your Organization
Take a leaf out of Starbucks’s book. Don’t just tell candidates what you can do for them; show them through inspiring stories from within your organization.
Seek out these narratives from employees across all levels. Sharing real-life testimonials or success stories humanizes your brand and illustrates the tangible opportunities and experiences your organization offers.
Say What Other Brands Can’t
Has your business done something incredible? Have you revolutionized a service or product? Do you go above and beyond to support your local community? Are you a creative powerhouse that worked on some mind-blowing projects?
Whatever you can say that others can’t is what sets you apart. It could be your work culture, unmatched training programs, or special initiatives only your company undertakes. Highlighting these distinguishing factors can help your employer branding stand out from the rest.
Make It About Your Values
Values are the backbone of any organization. They shape culture, guide decisions, and foster a sense of community. Ensure that your storytelling is deeply rooted in your company’s core values. When potential employees see a strong alignment between their personal values and the company’s, they’re more likely to feel a sense of belonging and commitment.
Closing Thoughts
Stories aren’t just for children’s bedtime or blockbuster films; they’re the foundation of how we see the world and find our place in it.
For employers, your company narrative is like a lighthouse guiding talent to your shores. It’s not just about ‘jobs’ anymore – it’s about dreams, aspirations, and purpose. So, step into the shoes of a storyteller as you create your employer branding.
Paint a vivid picture of your brand, sprinkle in authentic tales from your passionate team, and watch as the magic unfolds. Because, in the end, isn’t a company’s strength truly measured by the stories it inspires?
Sources:
- https://recruitee.com/articles/employer-branding-storytelling
- https://linkhumans.com/storytelling-in-employer-branding/
- https://www.papirfly.com/blog/employer-branding/the-essential-role-of-storytelling-in-employer-branding/
- https://www.columnfivemedia.com/ways-to-tell-your-employer-brand-story/
- https://www.usiq.org/what-is-employer-branding/
