Make your employer brand about feeling

“I want to work for them because working there says something I like about me.”

That, to me, is what an employer brand should be aiming to achieve.

Much less about selling a company harder, and the “what-you-get”s. Much more helping the right people recognise themselves in it and the “what-you-feel”s.

The best consumer brands have always understood this. We don’t only choose products because of what they do. We choose them because of what they represent, and because being associated with them says something about us.

Employers are no different.

Of course, salary matters. Flexibility matters. Being able to do the role and being interested in doing it matter. Progression, location, benefits and the work itself all matter. But they are answers to rational questions

Employer brand can answer a different one: “Is this somewhere for people like me?”

That’s why distinctiveness matters so much. If your employer brand is designed to appeal to everyone, it won’t mean as much to the people you most want.

The aim is always to make it easier for the right people to think: “That feels like me.