DRAB TO FAB: How To Create

A Smokin’ Hot Employment Brand Using LinkedIn

Presented to you by the Founder & CEO of CAREEREALISM, J.T. O’Donnell

AGENDA1. Attracting Active Job

Seekers

2. Attracting Passive Job Seekers

3. Employment Branding Checklist

Active vs. Passive Job Seekers

What they want in a new employer...

This is Mary.

She’s looking for a new job in the tech industry. She knows that LinkedIn should be a big part of her networking & application strategy.

3M Companies have pages on LinkedIn (and counting!).

She starts her search by looking at Company A. She’s immediately bored by what she sees. There’s no Careers Page for this company, and all that’s on the main page is one block of unimpressive, corporate jargon-filled text.

She decides that she’ll give this company one last shot, checking out its employees’ profiles in case the LinkedIn Company Page doesn’t give a fair representation of the company. (She’s a lot more forgiving than most job seekers.)

Mary skims through a few profiles from Company A, but doesn’t learn much of anything from the employees’ job descriptions, titles or summaries. She has no idea what the company is like, or whether anyone there truly loves his/her job. She thinks Company A probably doesn’t care about its

online image. These days, that’s a pretty big mistake...

It’s time to find another company for Mary to look into. She stumbles across Fusion Worldwide’s Company Page, and notices a huge difference….

...first of all, it looks much better, with photos, small paragraphs and white space. It even has a Careers Page!

On the Careers Page, there are multiple videos, status updates with relevant articles, and text that’s not a bunch of stuffy corporate-speak.

Here’s an example of one of the videos Mary notices.

Click here for other Fusion videos.

Mary has a much better feel of what Fusion is like, but she’s only getting started interacting with the company...

She follows Fusion because of what she saw.

She decides to learn more about what the employees have to say about working there.

Not every profile she sees is perfect, but there’s plenty of material to work with.

The majority of the profiles have lots of information filled in, so Mary can see common themes in employees’ experiences with the company.

She’s impressed by the clear job descriptions and the many well-rounded profiles she’s come across.

In addition to the responsibilities the various employees list, they talk about their goals and accomplishments.

Job seekers like Mary make judgments about both what is and is not present in company & employee profiles.

Her potential co-workers seem to have diverse skill sets, so they could leave Fusion if they didn’t like it there.

Some time later, Mary sees an update from Fusion (because she followed the company).

She clicks on the link, and is taken to an article on CAREEREALISM that piques her interest again.

Since the post is on a reputable career advice site, it gives a lot more credibility to the information.

By not being overly promotional, the post shows Mary that Fusion is dedicated to making its industry better every day.

She notices that the article & the Careers page BOTH have links back to Fusion’s job openings. She clicks to learn more about them. (Click the jobs below!)

Mary sees how good a fit this job description (and company) are for her.

She gets her materials together and applies.

Compared to this poor showing from Company A (which has almost nothing at all)...

...Fusion has plenty of content, plus frequent status updates with new information about the company’s philosophy.

There are also general tips for similar positions and a big-picture look at the industry.

What didn’t they cover?

Mary is one of many job seekers that will interact with your brand,

specifically with your LinkedIn Company & Careers Pages.

Some will have a similar path to hers, and others will encounter

your Employment Brand in a different way.

Next up: we show how Paul (a passive job seeker) experiences

good Employment Branding…

This is Paul.

He’s fairly happy with his job right now, but if the right opportunity came up, he’d consider taking it.

He has a solid LinkedIn profile and uses the site every once in a while to stay in touch with people in his network.

You’re looking for the best candidates for your open positions when you see Paul’s profile. He has the skills

necessary to thrive at your company. It’s time to reach out to him.

You craft a message to Paul, adding value with a link he may appreciate.

It will hopefully start a discussion with him, not necessarily get him to apply right away.

Paul opens the InMail message you sent him and clicks the link because you mentioned why you were contacting him,

but you didn’t go overboard.

(A short, authentic message with one link is a lot more likely to work than something longer that begs for an

application.)

Paul bounces around through a few posts about your company on CAREEREALISM because they’re helpful for him in his field, not because they say,

“APPLY NOW! WE’RE GREAT! WOULD YOU LIKE TO APPLY? APPLY!”

Paul likes the article you shared with him, so he decides to follow your company on LinkedIn.

Now that you’re in Paul’s newsfeed, your status updates show up for him. Sometime in the future, he sees a post he’

s interested in, and clicks to read it.

(He might also be responsive if you follow up with him, asking if he liked the content you sent to him before.)

Within the article, you wisely linked to your company’s LinkedIn Careers Page. Since Paul likes the content, he decides to give that page a look.

(He might have skipped ahead to the job posting page if you had shared that with him.)

Paul has become more and more interested in your company with each interaction he’s had, because the content actually provides value, and it shows what sets your company apart from the competition.

Paul observes the profiles of some employees, and notices there are a few people like him.

After all that he’s seen about your company and your employees on LinkedIn, Paul is ready to apply if there’s a job he could picture himself in.

Because you already know his skill set and his work history, he will probably apply. You wouldn’t have contacted him otherwise.

Paul just submitted his application successfully. Because you sought him out in the first place, you can fast-track him to the top of the application pool. It’s time to schedule an interview!

If your company’s LinkedIn Company Page looked as lackluster as this one, Paul never would have given your company a second

thought.

Because you had good Company and Careers Pages set up, Paul was willing to learn more about your company.

By seeking Paul out, you introduced him to the fact that other companies might want him. That’s a pretty good feeling for him. As a result, you can scoop him up before someone else does!

Paul is another one of the many job seekers that will interact with your brand through your LinkedIn Company & Careers Pages.

With the right approach, you can compel him to join your team and reach another career milestone!

CHECKLIST FOR SUCCESS

EMPLOYMENT BRANDING 1.0 VS. 2.0

EMPLOYMENT BRANDING 1.0 VS. 2.0

The 1.0 strategy is like playing checkers. The 2.0 technique is like playing Monopoly. Which one involves business?

2.0● Treat applicants like

potential customers.

● Use social media (like LinkedIn) to find candidates.

1.0● Post openings on

many job boards.

● Post the same jobs on your company website.

COMPANY PAGE

Include a header image that catches the visitors’ eye.

● Bright colors draw attention; use different colors to evoke different moods.

● Action forces people to carefully examine what is happening in an image.

● People automatically make photos more interesting to us. We’re social creatures after all!

Have a description of the company that shows how it makes a difference in the business world.

● Don’t use industry terms, because even when used correctly, they can sound stuffy.

● The best employees want their work to have a purpose. Show them yours.

● Use simple, clear language, and make it brief.

Post status updates that teach visitors about the company, its news and the values it holds.

● Each update is a chance to show the world what your company is like.

● If you provide value in an update, you’ll earn the trust of your readers.

● Post regularly to stay on your followers’ minds & reach a larger portion of your audience.

CAREERS PAGE

Add an intriguing image to engage job seekers.

● Most people are visual learners, so give them something stimulating to look at.

● Tell a story with your pictures.

● Sneak your logo into the image if you’d like.

Include a title that shows how visitors would fit in well.

● Talk about the importance of great employees.

● Share the impact they can have on your company.

● Boil your company’s goals down to just a few words.

Write a description that shows what the company does without using corporate jargon.

● Don’t give every detail you have.

● Share the details most important to your current employees.

● Chances are, they’re what’s important to potential employees.

Use Strong visual elements (a video, slide deck or infographic).

● You can say much more with photos than text (and even more with videos than photos).

● Viewers are 144% more likely to buy from you after seeing a video.

● Why wouldn’t employees be the same way?

JOB POSTINGS

Craft clear job postings, not fancy titles or descriptions. (No ninjas!)

● For LinkedIn to show your openings to the right people, you need to label things clearly.

● Play Family Feud with your descriptions.

● Make it easy to search, so great applicants can find you, and LinkedIn can find more great passive candidates!

Make status updates that teach visitors about the company, its news and its values.

● We’re repeating this for a reason.

● Status updates are the building blocks of great branding.

● Don’t take 45 days to write ONE, but still take them seriously.

Choose a title that is concise.

● If there is a commonly-used title for the job, use it!

● There’s nothing wrong with an, “Account Executive” opening.

● It’s much better than, “Sales Guru.”

Produce a job description that is easy to read.

● Bullets and numbered sections are good.

● White space makes it even better.

● Easy to read = easy to consider applying!

Craft an about this company section that explains the company’s strengths, purpose and goals.

● Mention how important employees are to your company’s success.

● Include some visual content (a photo, video, infographic or slide deck).

● As usual, telling a story is better than listing facts.

Regular status updates are baaaaack…

● Pepper the jobs you have open in with your other updates.

● Be cognizant of when & how often you promote open jobs to get a good mix.

● Even if they like your company, followers won’t join your team if you don’t ask them to!

SHOWCASE PAGES

Pick a catchy header image.

● There are fewer words allowed in a Showcase Page description.

● The image needs to be powerful.

● Like the other photos you have, use bright colors, action, and people.

Show a description of the product/service you’re promoting.

● Use a brief description of the product/service that shows how it makes a difference in the business world. (You only have 200 characters or less. This bullet is 177 characters.)

● State the purpose of the showcase page as quickly as possible.

Status updates are even more important for Showcase Pages!

● You thought that wasn’t possible, didn’t you?

● Treat your Showcase Page (and its updates) as a chapter in the “book” of your company’s LinkedIn pages.

● Make sure the updates shared here add up to a consistent story.

CONTENT

Select the content format carefully.

● Each content format has its own strengths and weaknesses.

● Videos are great for introductory info if they’re short.

● Whitepapers can provide lots of details in an organized manner.

● Quotes and photos are especially shareable.

Make it easy to navigate from one piece of content to another.

● Connect every piece back to other content.

● If someone is reading introductory content, link to more of that, or link to what the next step might be.

● Don’t introduce yourself to someone then immediately ask them to apply.

Talk about your employees and what they’re able to achieve with their teammates.

● Google chooses rock stars and makes them rock legends.

● Show how you treat your employees.

● The more genuine (or funnier), the better.

Give evidence that your company is a thought-leader/value provider.

● If you create it, it may sound arrogant.

● If we create it, it is more credible by default.

● A major publication attracts major attention.

● We average more than 1 Million pageviews/month.

Call for applications & referrals for your open jobs.

● Include your employees in the search to amplify your reach.

● LinkedIn’s forte is the strength of networks.

● Each person that encounters your brand has a network you may not have tapped yet!

Employment Branding can reduce your hiring costs (especially if you’re currently using a recruiter),

AND it doubles as great PR!

Are you ready to get people like Mary and Paul interested in working for your company?

CLICK NOW for a free Employment Branding consultation with us today by using the code “eebee101” at the link above. It’s normally $500!

In the 30-minute consultation, we’ll discuss your current branding situation

and suggest a course of action.

We look forward to speaking with you!

Thanks for attending today’s webinar!

Got questions? Enter them in the chat box below or email us at employmentbranding@careerealism.com.

Happy Branding!