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Mark Beavan

Mark has over 20 years’ experience working with clients on how their brand, technology and the web can help them attract, engage and retain the best talent. And he is still going strong. He's worked with some high-profile brands, delivered some award-winning projects, met some great people and had a lot of fun along the way. Oh, and he has a dog. Ted. He’s always on LinkedIn. He’s probably more recognisable than Mark is.

Mar 07
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Brands of Distinction Image

Building employer brands of distinction

By Employer branding, Our thoughts

Every organisation has an employer brand – but only a few have distinctive employer brand assets that make them instantly recognisable and consistently considered by talent. In a world where career options are abundant and attention is scarce, understanding what makes your employer brand distinctive is one of the most powerful levers you can pull in talent acquisition.

Just like consumer brands, your employer brand identity is built from the visual, verbal and behavioural elements that collectively represent what it feels like to work for you. Colours, fonts, photographic style, tone of voice, employer value proposition cues, brand characters, sonic elements – when consistently deployed, these act as shortcuts that help candidates notice, remember and eventually choose you.

This matters because the talent market is saturated. It’s not only competing employers adding noise; even your own recruitment communications can distract from your brand’s essence. So how do you break through?

The power of distinctive employer brand assets

Strong employer brands share the same two success criteria as famous consumer brands:

Uniqueness. Do they recognise it as yours and not someone else’s?
Awareness. Do people recognise this asset?

Think of how McDonalds’ golden arches, Nike’s swoosh, Disney’s castle silhouette, or the unmistakable Coca-Cola script and Cadbury purple packaging bring their brands to mind instantly. None of these requires the brand name to be present; the assets do the heavy lifting.

Now imagine applying that same principle to your employer brand.

What if your careers site look-and-feel, your recruitment campaigns, your EVP visuals, your people photography, or even your internal culture symbols were so distinctive that candidates could identify them in a split second? That’s the real opportunity.

The Ehrenberg-Bass Institute conducted a study showing that distinctive brand assets increased brand recall by up to 300%. Imagine if three times more people thought of your brand when it was time to change jobs? You’d be buzzing, and rightfully so.

When people remember your employer brand more easily, you win in all the places that matter:

  • More consideration when talent enters the job market
  • Higher relevance among passive talent
  • Stronger internal pride and advocacy
  • Higher awareness of open roles
  • Lower cost per hire

That is the value of a strong visual articulation of your employer proposition – in other words, your employer brand.

Why talent teams need to treat employer brand like marketers treat product brand

A distinctive employer brand:

  • Reduces reliance on high‑cost media
  • Makes you recognisable even in highly cluttered job boards and social feeds
  • Builds cumulative mental availability that compounds over time
  • Helps you stand out in competitive categories where roles look similar
  • Future‑proofs the organisation against talent shortages

But you can only unlock this by auditing and quantifying the strength of your employer brand assets. Many organisations don’t. They leave employer branding decisions to design trends or campaign‑to‑campaign reinvention. But candidates encode only a fraction of what they see into memory – and inconsistency kills recognition.

Measure, refine and protect your employer brand assets

Product marketers use the Ehrenberg‑Bass Distinctive Asset Grid to assess brand identity assets. We, as employer marketers, should do the same by assessing employer brand identity assets by their uniqueness and awareness.

We can then form a grid that uses these two measures to place each brand element into one of four quadrants. Which will help you decide whether to use, invest in, avoid, or retire each asset.

Use or lose (famous and unique)
These are your true employer brand’s distinctive assets. When an asset is in this quadrant, use it everywhere. It’s strong enough to stand in for your brand name.

Invest (unique but not yet famous)
These elements are distinctively yours, but people don’t recognise them widely yet. These assets need repetition and consistency so candidates can learn them and store them in memory. The aim is to grow them into “Use or Lose” assets over time.

Avoid (famous but not unique)
These are the assets candidates recognise, but they could belong to any employer. These can harm your employer brand by risking associations with competitors. It’s better to steer clear and instead strengthen what is distinctly yours.

Test or Ignore (not famous, not unique)
These assets either haven’t been used enough to gain traction, simply aren’t memorable, or don’t clearly belong to your organisation. For employer brands, this is where “experimental” visual ideas often sit. If repeated use doesn’t shift them toward fame or uniqueness, you should retire or rethink them.

Look at the history of your employer brand too – past symbols, internal rituals, cultural narratives or visual elements may be highly ownable but currently underused. The key is to reduce randomness and increase consistency. Every touchpoint – from job ad banners to onboarding packs – is a chance to reinforce recall.

A final reminder for Talent Acquisition leaders

Every time a candidate notices your employer brand, you earn a chance to build mental availability. But only if your identity is consistent, distinctive and recognisable. This means:

  • Fewer visual changes
  • Clear, coherent use of branded elements
  • Strong internal governance
  • Protecting the employer brand the same way marketers protect the corporate brand

Do this, and you’re not just ‘doing employer branding’. You’re building a brand of distinction in the talent market – one that people remember when it’s time for their next move.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you want help, support or even just a chat about this or any aspect of your employer brand or talent strategy, then drop us a line. Between you and I, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Feb 27
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Power of the Triangle

The power of the triangle, how to turn an EVP into an employer brand

By Employer branding

If you want to build something that lasts, you need the right structure.

That’s why engineers use triangles to construct bridges. It’s how architects stabilise skyscrapers, and how designers create frameworks that won’t buckle under pressure. The triangle is the world’s strongest shape – not because it’s complicated, but because it distributes weight evenly. It holds itself up. And once in place, it endures. The same principle applies when you build an employer brand.

Transforming an employer value proposition (EVP) into a living, breathing employer brand isn’t about slogans, stock photos, or slide decks. It’s about creating something that can stand up to scrutiny – from candidates, employees, and customers alike. At its best, an employer brand connects two worlds: Talent Acquisition and Marketing. One drives attraction and conversion; the other drives emotion and meaning. When those two forces align, the result is more than recruitment – it’s reputation.

To ensure our employer brands stand the test of time, we use a simple framework: three questions, arranged like the corners of a triangle.

Because a strong brand, like a strong structure, must hold at every point.

Point one: memorability

It really doesn’t matter how well researched your EVP is if people don’t remember it. Remember, people don’t connect to PowerPoint slides – they connect to ideas. Feelings. And stories. In a noisy talent market, where every organisation claims to offer “great culture” and “career growth,” you need a story that cuts through. And being memorable is what turns your EVP from a statement into a brand moment.

For Talent Acquisition Leaders, this means creating campaigns that make people feel something about working with you before they even apply. For Heads of Brand and Marketing, it means ensuring your employer brand is as distinct and iconic as your consumer one – because the best talent wants to join brands they already admire.

If your idea doesn’t stick in the mind, if it doesn’t make someone stop, smile, or imagine themselves there, it hasn’t done its job.

Point two: motivation

An employer brand must do more than inspire – it must move people. Memorability may get attention, but motivation creates action. For Talent Acquisition Leaders, that means converting awareness into applications. For Heads of Brand and Marketing, it means shaping advocacy – turning employees into brand ambassadors who amplify your story from within.

Motivation happens when people see meaning, when they believe that your organisation stands for something bigger than the job description. A motivated candidate applies. A motivated employee stays. A motivated workforce builds your brand from the inside out. So, your EVP must give them that reason to change, to choose, and to champion.

Point three: truth

This is the foundation upon which everything else rests. Without truth, your employer brand might be memorable, even motivating – but it won’t be trusted. The strongest employer brands don’t invent culture; they articulate it. They reveal the tension between aspiration and reality and use creativity to close that gap.

Truth doesn’t mean dull. It means honest. It’s the clarity that helps recruiters set expectations and marketers tell stories that ring true. When your EVP is rooted in lived experience, it becomes more than words – it becomes behaviour. And when people experience that truth every day, they don’t just join your company; they believe in it.

The triangle that endures

So that’s the triangle. Three corners, three questions: Is it memorable? Is it motivating? Is it truthful? Not fifty slides or hundreds of workshops – just a framework that demands clarity and rewards honesty.

When all three points align, something powerful happens: your EVP stops being an internal statement and becomes an external story. It attracts the right people. It unites marketing and talent. And it builds a brand that doesn’t just perform – it endures.

Because strong brands, like strong structures, stand the test of time.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you want help, support or even just a chat about this or any aspect of your employer brand or talent strategy, then drop us a line. Between you and I, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Feb 27
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - AI and Data Leakage

How you can stop sensitive people data leaking into public AI tools

By AI, Employer branding

AI tools have quietly become part of the HR toolkit. They help TA teams rewrite job ads at speed, summarise interview notes, sense-check policies, draft internal comms, and even brainstorm recruitment messaging. Used well, they save hours. Used carelessly, they can put your candidates, employees – and your employer brand – at serious risk.

And here’s the uncomfortable truth: HR teams handle some of the most sensitive data in the business. CVs, salary details, performance notes, medical adjustments, grievance records, workforce plans. Exactly the kind of information that should never end up inside a public AI model. So how do you get the benefits of AI without accidentally leaking people data? Let’s break it down.

Why AI risk looks different for HR and TA

Public AI tools are designed to learn. In many cases, that learning happens using the prompts people enter – unless you’re on a business-grade plan with the right safeguards in place.

That means:

  • Pasting a CV into an AI tool to ‘summarise key skills’
  • Asking AI to ‘rewrite interview feedback more professionally’
  • Dropping in headcount plans or restructuring scenarios for clarity

…could expose personally identifiable information (PII), confidential employee data, or sensitive business strategy.

This isn’t about bad actors. It’s about busy recruiters and HR partners trying to work faster – without clear guardrails. And when something goes wrong, it’s HR who deals with the fallout: loss of trust, regulatory risk, reputational damage, and very awkward conversations with the legal team.

The cost isn’t just financial – it’s trust

A people-data breach doesn’t just trigger compliance issues. It damages credibility. Candidates trust you with their career history. Employees trust you with deeply personal information. If that trust is broken – even accidentally – the impact on your employer brand can last far longer than any fine.

The widely reported Samsung incident in 2023 is a good reminder. Employees pasted confidential material into a public AI tool to ‘work faster’. No hacking. No malicious intent. Just a lack of policy, training, and technical controls – which ultimately forced the company to ban generative AI altogether.

For HR teams trying to modernise, that’s the worst-case scenario: AI becoming off-limits instead of well-governed.

Six practical ways HR & TA teams can use AI safely

1. Create an AI usage policy that actually reflects HR reality
Generic IT policies don’t cut it here. HR needs a clear, practical AI policy that spells out:

  • What counts as sensitive people data
  • What must never be entered into public AI tools (CVs, interview notes, salary data, DEI metrics, medical or performance information)
  • What is safe (anonymised data, templates, structure, tone, idea generation)

Make this part of onboarding for recruiters and HR partners – and revisit it regularly. AI usage evolves fast. Your guidance needs to keep up.

2. Use business-grade AI tools – not free public accounts
If your recruiters are using free AI tools, you’re relying on goodwill and settings most people don’t understand.

Business plans like ChatGPT Team or Enterprise, Microsoft Copilot, or Google Workspace AI come with contractual guarantees that your data won’t be used to train public models. That matters – a lot – when you’re dealing with candidate and employee data. This isn’t about ‘premium features’. It’s about creating a legal and technical barrier between your people data and the open internet.

3. Put guardrails in place with Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
Even with policies and training, mistakes will happen. That’s why HR teams benefit from Data Loss Prevention tools that can:

  • Detect when sensitive information is being pasted into AI prompts
  • Block or redact PII in real time
  • Flag risky behaviour before data leaves your environment

Tools like Microsoft Purview or Cloudflare DLP act as a safety net – especially helpful in high-volume recruiting teams where speed is everything.

4. Train HR teams on how to prompt safely – not just what not to do
‘Don’t do this’ training rarely sticks. Instead, run practical sessions where recruiters and HR partners learn:

  • How to anonymise CVs and interview notes
  • How to ask AI for structure, tone, or frameworks rather than content
  • How to sense-check AI outputs for bias or compliance risk

This turns AI safety into a skill – not a restriction – and helps teams work smarter without crossing lines.

5. Regularly review AI usage – without creating fear
If you’re using business-grade AI tools, you’ll have access to usage logs and admin dashboards. Use them. Not to catch people out – but to:

  • Spot patterns that suggest confusion or training gaps
  • Identify teams that might need extra support
  • Refine your policies as real-world usage evolves

Good governance feels collaborative, not punitive.

6. Build AI awareness into your HR culture
Policies and tools only go so far. The biggest shift happens when HR leaders:

  • Model good AI behaviour themselves
  • Encourage questions and uncertainty
  • Normalise saying “I’m not sure if this is safe – let’s check”

When AI safety becomes part of everyday HR decision-making, you reduce risk without slowing people down.

AI belongs in HR, but only if it’s used responsibly

AI isn’t going anywhere. And for HR and Talent teams under constant pressure to do more with less, it can be a genuine advantage. But when you’re handling people data, speed can’t come at the cost of trust.

With the right policies, tools, and training in place, HR teams can use AI confidently – protecting candidates, employees, and the employer brand they work so hard to build. If AI is shaping the future of work, HR needs to be leading the conversation – not cleaning up the mess afterwards.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you want help, support or even just a chat about this or any aspect of your employer brand or talent strategy, then drop us a line. Between you and I, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Feb 25
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What your AI hiring vendor won’t explain unless you ask

By AI

I’ve been around the block a few times and met a lot of very talented and passionate people. One of those is Matt Buckland, who I first met when he was heading up talent at Lyst. And I really liked him because he asked challenging questions, making me raise my game. Nowadays, Matt is Head of Talent EMEA at GHD and is still asking those challenging questions. This time he has AI recruiting vendors in his sights. It’s why I asked Matt if I could share this insightful article on our blog. Take it away, Matt.

Most AI recruiting vendors are very good at showing you what their product does. Dashboards, demos, before-and-after slides, how many people it can replace, and productivity graphs. Fewer are prepared to explain exactly what their product changes, and that difference matters far more than most buyers in TA and People teams realise.

Any tools that organise information affect speed. Tools that interpret people change outcomes. The problem is that many products are sold as the former while quietly operating as the latter. When a system scores, ranks, prioritises, or summarises candidates in ways that shape who progresses, it is no longer just automating admin. It is participating in judgment, which is where the risk actually sits.

The questions below are not about features. They are about influence, credibility, and responsibility. They are designed to expose what the tool is really doing once the demo ends and the novelty wears off.

What decision does your tool meaningfully influence?

Ask the vendor to be explicit about which decisions are affected in practice, not just where the tool appears in the workflow. A system that simply surfaces information carries a very different risk profile from one that interprets people by ranking, scoring, or prioritising candidates. If the answer stays abstract or drifts into marketing language, that lack of clarity is an answer.

Where does your tool sit on the assistive to evaluative spectrum?

Push for a clear position rather than a blended description. Genuinely assistive systems support human judgment without directing it. Evaluative systems produce outputs that users are expected to take seriously. When a vendor claims the tool is assistive, ask for concrete examples of situations where users should ignore or override its recommendations. If override is technically possible but rarely exercised, the system should be treated as evaluative regardless of how it is presented. I’ll keep making this point until we all agree!

What would a reasonable human disagree with your system about?

This question tends to separate confidence from credibility. Robust systems have known failure modes, edge cases, and contexts where performance degrades. Vendors who claim consistent reliability across roles, cultures, seniority, and geographies without meaningful caveats are signalling overconfidence rather than maturity.

How is credibility earned relative to influence?

Ask how much evidence supports the system’s most influential outputs. Focus on the specific claims being made, not the platform as a whole. Internal testing, customer-reported outcomes, independent reviews, and peer-reviewed research are not interchangeable. When a tool interprets behaviour, communication, or potential, the bar for evidence should be high. If it isn’t, the risk does not disappear; it moves to the buyer.

What data has this system learned from?

Request a broad but concrete description of the tool’s training data. Customer data, proprietary datasets, public sources, synthetic data, or some combination. Vague assurances about privacy or ethics are not substitutes for clarity. If the answer is opaque or framed entirely in marketing terms, treat that as a risk input rather than just a documentation gap.

What happens to customer data after deployment?

Clarify whether customer data contributes to future model training, whether models are customer-specific, and whether opt-outs exist. If the explanation is hard to follow or changes depending on who answers the question, governance will be harder than the demo implies.

Who is this tool really sold to, and why?

Ask who typically signs the contract and who uses the product day to day. Tools sold primarily to executives often promise outcomes rather than mechanisms. Tools sold to practitioners tend to be much more operational. Neither is wrong, but the distinction matters. When the buyer and the user are far apart, there is often future disappointment.

How often do customers challenge or override the system?

This question reveals how autonomy works in practice. If the honest answer is “rarely”, the system is functionally decision-making even if it is not marketed as being autonomous. Governance should reflect the vendor’s lived behaviour rather than its architectural intent.

What part of the employment lifecycle does this influence?

Selection, onboarding, early performance signals, and ongoing development carry very different legal and ethical exposure. Tools that shape early employment experience or performance perception sit much closer to assessment than logistics, even when branded as experience or enablement.

What would you advise a cautious buyer not to use this for?

This is a simple credibility test. Vendors who understand their product can articulate its limits. Vendors who insist it works for everything usually cannot.

If regulation tightened tomorrow, what would change?

Ask how resilient the product is to increased scrutiny around explainability, bias, and consent. If the answer leans heavily on future roadmaps rather than current capability, factor that uncertainty into the decision now. You don’t want your shiny new tool to become a lynchpin of your tech stack, only to have it disappear overnight, swept away in a lawsuit!

Who carries the downside if this goes wrong?

This is the most important question. If the practical risk lands on candidates, new hires, or hiring managers rather than the vendor or the buyer, responsibility should be assumed from day one rather than discovered later.

A closing thought for buyers

The most dangerous AI tools in hiring are not necessarily the most automated. They are the most confident, least interrogated, and most quietly embedded in everyday judgment. If a vendor cannot answer these questions clearly and calmly, the issue is not that the buyer is asking too much. It is that the tool is doing more than it can reasonably defend.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you need help, support, or just a chat about your employer brand or talent strategy, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Between you and me, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Feb 18
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Answer engines and what they mean for your careers website

By AI, Careers websites

Search is shifting into something new. Analysts predict that by 2028, 25 % of people will use AI Assistants as their first point of search. Not Google, not Bing, but tools designed to give answers instantly. We’re already seeing this play out. Traditional search engines still dominate, while answer engines like Google’s AI Mode, Perplexity, ChatGPT and Bing Copilot are gaining traction by cutting straight to the response.

For career platforms and recruiters, this means the old playbook of optimising solely for clicks and page views is under pressure. This broader move towards answer engines is reshaping how people find information – and how employers need to think about visibility, attribution and measurement in a world where a click is no longer guaranteed.

What are answer engines?

Unlike traditional search engines that serve up a list of links, answer engines provide a direct response. Ask Perplexity a question, and you’ll get a conversational answer with sources. Use ChatGPT, and you’ll get a summary or solution, often without ever clicking a link. Even Bing and Google are shifting from ‘ten blue links’ to AI‑generated answers – all with the ability to refine your query on the spot.”

For example:

Google’s traditional search engine
Here are 10 pages about entry‑level software engineer jobs in London.

Google AI mode
Here’s a curated list of entry‑level software‑engineering roles in London, plus a summary of each company.

The appeal for job seekers is clear. Speed, simplicity and less digging around on websites. For careers platforms and employers, it’s trickier because fewer clicks mean fewer chances to capture that all‑important visit.

Why answer engines matter to careers sites and job seekers

Google’s widespread introduction of AI‑generated summaries signals just how mainstream AI‑driven results have become. Google’s AI mode is rapidly expanding, too. It has rolled out in 12 countries, been activated by more than 80 million users, and is delivering billions of impressions in just six months.

On the competition front, other answer engines are reporting strong engagement and much longer session times than traditional search, indicating deep user interaction. If people are getting instant answers without clicking through to your careers site, it doesn’t mean your vacancies disappear. It means you need to think differently about visibility and impact.

Some answer engines cite sources, while others may paraphrase content without a link. Either way, measuring the value of your recruitment campaigns becomes harder when the traditional click‑to‑visit path is broken.

This is where analytics and attribution come in. By tying together multiple touchpoints throughout the candidate journey – from the first search to the final application or call – you can still prove the role your efforts play, even if the journey looks less linear than before. Call‑tracking and conversation‑analytics tools, for example, let you see which campaigns are driving honest conversations with candidates, not just clicks, helping you close the gap between what happens on an answer engine and what happens on your careers site.

How careers platforms can adapt to answer engines

In response, careers‑site managers are turning to AI‑optimisation practices – from structured markup to llms.txt files – to be cited in AI‑generated answers. Here’s how to make sure you’re still showing up:

Be present in answer engines and AI overviews

It’s not just about ranking in the search engine results pages (SERPs) anymore. You need to look at ways your website and resources can actively appear in answer engines and AI overviews when candidates ask questions about roles, salaries or interview tips. Also, keep an eye on emerging opportunities, such as answer‑engine ads, while competition is still low.

Make sure your website is answer‑engine‑ready

Answer engines need structured, trustworthy content to appear for queries. Focus on:

Content: Write pages that directly answer job seekers’ questions, in clear language. Think FAQs about roles, application processes and career advice. Keep your pages updated and refresh them regularly.

Tech setup: Use schema markup and semantic tags, keep your site fast and consider implementing an llms.txt file to guide AI crawlers (it’s important to note that it’s still early days for this and not being formally picked up by the major answer engines).

Authority: Show expertise with author profiles, up‑to‑date research and information, and citations from high‑authority sites in the career‑development space.

Understand the whole candidate journey

Clicks aren’t disappearing completely, but they’re only part of the picture now. Many enquiries will come through ‘dark’ routes, where someone sees your answer in an engine and calls or applies without visiting your site. Call tracking, marketing analytics and attribution are key here. They let you link enquiries to the channels and touchpoints that influenced them, even when there’s no obvious digital footprint.

How to track and analyse performance from answer engines

The rise of answer engines doesn’t mean traditional SEO or PPC stops mattering – far from it. But it does mean you need to adjust your tracking and measurement. Some practical steps are:

Monitor visibility in answer engines: Track when your brand or job postings are cited in AI overviews or answer‑engine results, even if you don’t get the click.

Use trackable assets: Use attribution tools and call tracking to understand where leads really start. UTM tags, trackable phone numbers, dedicated landing pages and QR codes, for example, give you clearer attribution.

Optimise beyond the click: Create content that answer engines can surface (clear, authoritative, well‑structured), but make sure you’re tracking the outcomes that matter, such as calls, applications, hires and return on investment.

Analyse ‘direct’ traffic and offline engagement: Combine web analytics with conversation analytics tools to uncover the real intent behind candidate enquiries and measure the uplift from AI visibility.

Bring it all together: Marketing attribution tools can connect fragmented journeys – from an AI mention to a direct call or application – giving you a clearer picture of performance and ROI.

Stay flexible: Tools like Google’s AI mode are evolving quickly. What works today may not work tomorrow.

Some answer engines automatically add ‘UTM Source tags’ to the links they display. These tags allow you to see exactly where traffic is coming from. By including these parameters in your tracking setup, you can continue to monitor the source of enquiries, ensuring your attribution data stays accurate even when traffic comes through new channels like answer engines.

In short

The search landscape isn’t vanishing – it’s transforming. Answer engines are shortening the journey from question to answer, which means careers websites and recruiters need to measure success differently. If you can adapt your tracking, analytics and attribution to follow the outcome – not just the click – you’ll stay ahead, no matter which engine your candidates are using. Over the next few weeks, we’re going to share more thoughts around SEO, AEO and something we’re calling XEO. Everything Engine Optimisation.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you need help, support, or just a chat about your employer brand or talent strategy, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Between you and me, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Feb 08
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BrandPointZero_employerbrandandcommunicationsagency_graduate_recruitment_2026_image

Graduate Recruitment Trends 2026: What’s Driving Graduate Behaviour?

By Early careers

Why applications are rising but confidence is falling

Every year, around this time, the graduate talent market bursts into life. Thousands of students finish their courses and look to take their first steps into the world of work. And while at BrandPointZero we’re big believers in the value non-graduates bring to UK businesses, there’s no denying that graduates remain a hotly contested group of candidates.

But the challenge today isn’t about finding enough applicants. It’s about finding the right ones. With the number of job openings in the UK continuing to fall quarter-on-quarter (ONS), businesses are finding themselves swimming in applications but struggling to identify the quality they need.

If your organisation is trying to tap into graduate talent, understanding what makes this audience tick has never been more important. Let’s break it down.

Confidence on the slide

Recent research from Bright Network paints a striking picture. Confidence among graduates in securing a role after university has fallen for the second year in a row, down to just 53%. For students with disabilities or those who identify as LGBTQIA+, that figure is even lower.

That dip in confidence shows up in behaviour. Over half (57%) of students say they’re applying for as many jobs as possible, regardless of their genuine interest, in the hope of landing an interview. And half admit to using AI to draft their applications; a 12% increase in just one year. The result for employers? Application volumes are surging, but engagement and commitment are dropping.

The experience gap

So why are graduates feeling so unsure of themselves? A big part of the story is inexperience. When asked what might stop them from achieving their dream career, 75% pointed to barriers such as a lack of relevant experience, intense competition, a limited network, or a nagging sense of imposter syndrome.

Interestingly, this doesn’t always line up with what employers actually want. While graduates assume experience is the number one quality employers value, hiring managers in fact rank ‘passion for the business’ higher, with experience coming only seventh on a list of 12 desirable qualities. That disconnect is leaving graduates panicked and uncertain, and is fuelling the cycle of scattergun applications.

Shifting priorities

The UK economic backdrop is shaping attitudes too. With sluggish growth and a cost-of-living crisis, financial stability has moved right to the top of graduates’ wish-lists. In 2025, ‘salary, benefits and career progression’ emerged as the number one priority for graduates, chosen by 37% of respondents, rising to 44% for those from low social mobility backgrounds.

Yet there’s an irony here too. While financial security is becoming more important, the average expected starting salary has actually fallen for the second year running. That tells us graduates are worried (and perhaps a little desperate) to secure stability, even at the cost of their pay expectations.

Meeting functional and emotional needs

The result is a graduate audience with both functional and emotional needs. On the one hand, they want clear, practical information about the basics: compensation, benefits, training and career pathways. On the other, they need reassurance – a sense of safety, belonging, purpose, and what the day-to-day experience of working for an organisation will really feel like.

This is where science meets art to make for great employer branding. Strong brands communicate both sides of the story: the tangible, rational benefits on offer and the more experiential, human side that shows what life at your organisation is really like.

It’s about substance, but also about style, tone and the unspoken signals that show graduates whether they’ll feel at home with you.

More than money

Despite the headlines, graduate recruitment isn’t just about money. Yes, expectations around remuneration have to be met. But once they are, salary quickly stops being a differentiator. What really matters – what separates one employer from another – is the story you tell about who you are, how you operate, and what kind of future you’re offering.

An employer brand built on a deep understanding of graduate values, attitudes and needs is the only way to truly cut through the noise, filter out the wrong candidates, and attract the ones who will thrive with you.

Time to stand out

If you’re ready to explore what that could look like for your business – whether you’re targeting graduates, Gen Z more broadly, or any other key talent audience – we’d love to talk.

At BrandPointZero, we specialise in building employer brands that don’t just compete, they stand out. Get in touch today to start the conversation.

Feb 05
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BrandPointZero_employerbrandandcommunicationsagency_employer_brand_employee_engagement_image

From Attraction to Employee Engagement: The Role of Employer Brand

By Our thoughts

TL;DR

Employee engagement is at crisis levels. 21% globally, just 10% in the UK. Employer brand brings your EVP to life with creativity, consistency and emotion across every employee touchpoint. Real example: BrandPointZero’s work with Cornerstone OnDemand shows how internal employer brand activation boosts connection and engagement. Key takeaway: When your employer brand is lived it drives retention, motivation, and business performance.
Why employer brand is seen as just a recruitment tool

When most people hear the words employer brand, they tend to think of recruitment more than employee engagement. They think it’s about how you show up on LinkedIn. The videos on your careers site. The snappy copy in your job ads. In short, a marketing tool to make your company look appealing to future candidates.

But that’s only part of the story.

At BrandPointZero, we see a much bigger opportunity. Because your employer brand is also a powerful tool to engage and retain the people you already have. And right now, that matters more than ever.

The employee engagement crisis

The numbers don’t lie. According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report, employee engagement is going in the wrong direction.

  • Only 21% of global employees said they felt engaged at work.
  • That’s down from 23% in 2023.

In the UK, that number’s even lower.

  • Just 10% of workers say they feel engaged.
  • That’s nine in ten people not feeling connected to the work they do.

The cost of that? A staggering US$438 billion in lost productivity globally. So yes, attracting great people is important. But keeping them engaged, motivated and thriving? That’s what turns a good employer brand into a great one.

Your EVP is only the start

One of the tools that can help is your Employee Value Proposition (EVP). The clear articulation of what people get from working at your organisation. A strong EVP gives employees clarity. It sets expectations. It tells them, ‘This is what you can expect. And this is how we’ll help you grow.’ But while your EVP is a crucial building block, it’s only the start.

Employer brand: Bringing your EVP to life

Think of it this way: your EVP is the what. Your employer brand is the how – the emotional and creative wrapper that brings that value to life. It’s the personality, the tone, the style, the look and feel. And when done right, it creates a consistent and compelling experience that makes your business more magnetic.

So why stop at using all that creativity just to attract people? Most of us are used to beautiful, frictionless brand experiences in our lives as consumers. From shopping apps to food delivery, from streaming platforms to social media – we expect intuitive, enjoyable, even delightful interactions.
Then we come to work and it’s all plain-text emails, clunky intranets and PDFs with five different fonts. No wonder people are disengaged.

That’s where employer branding can help. By applying the same creativity and consistency we use for recruitment campaigns to our internal comms and experiences, we can engage people better. Make them feel seen. Understood. Valued. And proud of where they work.

Why internal activation matters

When your EVP is understood internally, the benefits go beyond recruitment.

  • Improved retention: Engaged employees are significantly more likely to stay, reducing costly turnover.
  • Better performance: Connected, motivated teams deliver better business outcomes and customer experiences.
  • Stronger culture: Consistent brand experiences create shared understanding and alignment across the organisation.
  • Employee advocacy: Your existing employees become your best advocates when they’re genuinely engaged and proud.

The investment in launching your employer brand internally doesn’t just improve engagement scores. It directly impacts your bottom line.

Client example: Cornerstone OnDemand

We’ve seen first-hand how powerful this can be. Our recent work with Cornerstone OnDemand involved uniting teams across regions and time zones with one shared, beautifully executed employer brand experience.

The result? A more connected, more aligned and more engaged workforce (and a couple of awards at the 2025 RADs and Talent Lab Awards!).

When you take your employer brand seriously and apply it across the entire employee journey, you unlock something really special. A brand that’s lived, not just marketed. One that’s felt day in, day out.

Ready to activate your employer brand?

Employer branding isn’t just a recruitment tool. It’s the key to driving employee engagement and retention in a world where only 10% of UK workers feel truly connected to their work.

The opportunity is clear: take the creativity, strategy and consistency you apply externally and bring it inside your organisation. Make your EVP lived, not just marketed. Create experiences that make your people feel seen, valued and proud.

At BrandPointZero, we specialise in:

  • Transforming EVPs into engaging employer brand experiences.
  • Applying consumer-grade creativity to internal communications.
  • Building employer brands that work across the entire employee journey.
  • Creating cultural clout that drives both attraction and retention.

Let’s talk about activating your employer brand.

Feb 05
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How to build a stand-out employer brand

By Employer branding, Our thoughts

TL;DR

A stand-out employer brand starts with clear organisational principles and a compelling EVP, then comes to life through the EB 5Ps: Proposition, Proofs, Position, Persona and Platform. Use this framework to build an employer brand that resonates with candidates and employees and sets you apart as a stand-out employer of choice.

How do you build a stand-out employer brand?

In an competitive talent market, building an employer brand requires more than a compelling employee value proposition (EVP). It demands strategic clarity, cultural insight, and creative execution.

In our last blog we broke down what an employer brand is. In short, it’s your reputation. And these days your reputation as an employer is as important as that of your consumer brand.

But what goes into crafting a truly compelling, stand-out employer brand? And how can you go about building one that resonates with both colleagues and potential candidates?

Here at BrandPointZero, we specialise in building authentic, compelling and accessible brands for ambitious organisations like Cornerstone OnDemand, AXA Partners and iQ Student Accommodation.

Before we dive into the tactical steps of building it, let’s first understand its foundational elements.

Core principles for building an employer brand

The first step is to review your organisation’s core beliefs and principles. This might come in the form of your vision, mission and values – or other strategic framework that sets out why you exist, your big-picture goals and how you intend to achieve these. Having a clear sense of these ensures your employer brand feels connected and authentic to your organisation’s culture.

The Employer brand 5Ps framework

Then we focus on five critical elements (what we call the 5Ps) to bring your employer brand to life. These key components work together to ensure it’s both cohesive and compelling.

1. Proposition (your Employee Value Proposition)
The EVP is your promise to your employees – the value you offer in return for their skills, experience, and time (the ‘give and the get’). A well-crafted EVP reflects not only what your organisation offers but also the shared experiences and benefits your employees can expect. This is the heart of your employer brand and it must be distinctive and aligned with your company’s culture and core principles. Take a look at the EVP we developed for Cornerstone OnDemand.

2. Proofs (of your EVP)
Proofs are the concrete examples and stories that validate your EVP. They include testimonials, colleague success stories, benefits, and any evidence that backs up your value proposition.

3. Position
What makes your organisation unique in comparison to your competitors? Understanding your position relative to your competitors involves identifying what sets you apart in the market and how you offer something distinct to prospective employees. The key here is differentiation: how can you stand out to the talent you’re targeting?

4. Persona
Your employer brand has a personality. The persona defines the body language, attitude, and tone of voice you use to communicate with your audiences. Is your brand approachable and fun or laser-focused and straight-talking? Understanding your brand’s persona will shape how you present yourself across all channels, from job ads to social media to internal communications.

5. Platform
The platform is the campaigable creative idea that you’ll use to communicate your employer brand. Yes, it encompasses your visual identity, but really it’s about something you say and do repeatedly and become famous for. It’s an idea that speaks to your proposition, position and persona, and that you can return to again and again.

How to build your employer brand: a step-by-step approach

But where should all this stuff come from? And how do we go about conjuring it all up?

Building a credible employer brand begins with deep audience understanding – the cultural, emotional and practical drivers that shape employee expectations and candidate perceptions.

We always begin by considering who we’re talking to. By doing this, we can build an employer brand that’s relevant, accessible, and inclusive. The goal is for potential talent to look at your brand and think, “You understand me. And your business is a place where I belong.”

It can be helpful to begin this process by asking two questions:

1. Do I understand the diverse range of cultural identities within my organisation and candidate employee audiences?
It’s essential to consider the different backgrounds, experiences, and expectations of people both within and outside your organisation. In particular, what they currently think and feel about your business as an employer.

2. Do I understand the collective memory of each group regarding their experience of employment?
This involves delving into the shared stories, references, and expectations that your audiences may have regarding the workplace. It’s about knowing how they perceive work, what they value in an employer, and what experiences have shaped their approach to their careers.

Armed with these answers, you’ll have developed a clear understanding of how your audiences think, feel and behave around employment in your sector. Think you’ve got all that? Nice one – you’ve just built cultural literacy for your audience! Now you’re ready to create relevant and compelling brand experiences for them, that deliver on the promise of your EVP.

Embedding your EVP

From attraction to onboarding and retention, every phase is an opportunity to reinforce your EVP messaging across different touchpoints throughout the employee lifecycle.

  • Attraction: Job ads, career pages/website and social content that speak directly to your target audience’s needs and desires.
  • Onboarding: Design an onboarding experience that reflects your brand values and sets new joiners up for success. This is where you start building your internal culture.
  • Retention: The communications and experiences we serve the people inside our business need to be as beautiful and carefully crafted as those outside. So continuously reinforce these through employee development, recognition programmes, and other initiatives that align with your EVP.

Bringing your employer brand to life

A successful employer brand doesn’t start and end with external communication, it must resonate and capture the imagination of your people. After all, they’re your most powerful advocates. There are many different ways to build awareness, pride and enthusiasm from the get-go.

  • Launch events: A fun and engaging event can bring your employer brand to life for your employees, bringing them together and help them feel part of the journey.
  • Resources and guidelines: Practical but essential to providing colleagues with a guide to your brand, what it means, how it works, and how they can embody it in their day-to-day.
  • Creating advocates: Empower your most engaged colleagues to act as ambassadors to champion your employer brand both inside and outside the organisation. You can even gamify the process using tools like Real Links.

Above all, make it easy and fun for everyone to get involved!

Building an employer brand is not a one-time effort, it’s an ongoing process. To keep it fresh, relevant and aligned with your audience’s evolving needs, it’s important to continually nurture your brand, monitor engagement levels, seek feedback from employees, and adapt your messaging and strategies to stay current and impactful.

Frequently asked questions

Q: What is the EB 5Ps framework?
A: The 5Ps – Proposition, Proofs, Position, Persona and Platform – are the five elements used to design a cohesive, differentiated employer brand.

Q: How long does it take to build an employer brand?
A: Employer branding is an ongoing process. While core strategy can be developed quickly, typically within 12-16 weeks, embedding it across attraction, onboarding and retention takes continuous improvement.

Q: Do you need a separate employer brand from your consumer brand?
A: Not separate, but distinct. Talent audiences have different motivations and needs, so your employer brand must communicate in ways tailored to candidates and employees.

Get in touch

At BrandPointZero, we help organisations build employer brands that are culturally relevant, creatively distinctive and strategically aligned. If you’re ready to create a famously effective employer brand, get in touch. We’d love to help.

Feb 04
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How building cultural clout can supercharge your employer brand

By Employer branding, Our thoughts

TL;DR

Part 2 of 2: In Part 1, we explored how consumer brands like Nike, LEGO, and Monzo use cultural engagement to stay relevant and build deeper connections. Now, we’re looking at how employer brands can apply these lessons to attract talent, boost engagement, and build lasting competitive advantage.

What is cultural clout for employer brands?

Cultural clout isn’t just for consumer brands. It’s essential for employer brands too. Culturally aware employers attract diverse top talent, drive higher engagement, build stronger reputations and foster innovation. In today’s ever-changing world, your cultural positioning directly impacts your ability to compete for the best people.

4 ways cultural clout supercharges your employer brand

At BrandPointZero, we’ve been looking at this issue for a while and we think it’s a mistake not to be culturally aware as employers. When you’re relevant, timely and meaningful, you’re also more attractive. So, let’s explore why embracing culture is not just a good idea, but a downright necessity for a thriving employer brand.

How can cultural awareness and engagement benefit employer brands?

1. Attracts greater diversity of talent

Great talent isn’t just looking for a pay cheque; they’re looking for a place where they feel they belong. When your brand resonates with the cultures that matter to the people you’re trying to connect with, you become a magnet for the best and brightest. Are you putting out the vibes of a forward-thinking, inclusive, and dynamic workplace?

According to LinkedIn, 75% of job seekers consider an employer’s brand and reputation before applying.

2. Builds employee engagement

When an employer understands the cultural contexts that matter to its people, then it can design experiences and communications which are more relevant, inclusive, and accessible. And when employees feel connected to their workplace on a cultural level, engagement goes through the roof. Imagine the difference between clocking in at a place that’s just a job versus a place that aligns with your values, interests, and passions. Engaged employees are more productive, more innovative, and they stick around longer. Win-win really.

3. Enhances brand reputation

These days, a company’s internal culture can be more visible to the outside world than ever before. Glassdoor reviews, LinkedIn posts, and social media shoutouts can make or break your brand’s reputation. Look at the likes of Brewdog and Google – both rocked by scandals relating to their workplace culture. By fostering a culture that aligns with positive societal values, you not only keep your current employees happy but also build a strong, attractive public image.

86% of candidates research company reviews and ratings before applying (Glassdoor). Your internal culture is now your external brand.

4. Drives innovation

A culturally aware brand is one that’s in tune with the world and its rapid changes. This awareness fosters an environment where new ideas can flourish. When you understand and integrate diverse cultural perspectives, you’re more likely to innovate and stay ahead of the curve. After all, the best ideas often come from the most unexpected places. 

According to Josh Bersin’s research for Deloitte, inclusive companies are 1.7 times more likely to be innovation leaders in their market and 1.8 times more likely to be change‑ready.

How to Start Building Cultural Clout

Ready to start building cultural clour for your employer brand? There are loads of different ways your employer brand can become more culturally literate. Here’s where to begin:

Be clear on what you stand for.
Make sure there is real clarity within your organisation on your vision, mission and values, what you care about and what that might mean for your employer brand.

Listen. Listen. And keep listening.
Are you plugged into the key channels of informal colleague communication? Teams isn’t for chit chat, but Slack and Workplace (and whatever replaces it) are. And with subgroups open for all sorts of interests and circumstances, they reveal a great deal about the lived experiences and cultural trends that matter to your people. This insight can be invaluable in planning future activations that are in tune with both current and prospective employees.

Talk the talk AND walk the walk.
Once you have clarity on what you stand for and the cultures that matter to your people, then it’s important to define a credible and achievable role for your employer brand in those spaces. Then you can activate, be that through sponsorship, patronage, participation, or even developing a voice of authority.

Support your people to advocate for you in their own way.
Peer referral is the most powerful recruitment tool you’ll ever have. But it only works when it feels authentic. So loosen the shackles a little and allow your people to communicate your employer brand pillars within the cultural discourse of their own social networks. Whether it be through different platforms, content formats, language or perspectives. Doing so will build familiarity, likeability and trust in your employer brand.

Develop partnerships with organisations and causes that your people care about.
This can be equally effective on a local, national or global level, depending on your audience. Ben & Jerry’s is known for its activism and partnerships with numerous social justice organisations. As a strong advocate for refugee rights in Europe, it launched the UP Collective in partnership with The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN) to help remove some of the barriers refugees face when re-entering the job market.

Embracing culture isn’t just a fluffy, feel-good strategy — it’s a hardcore business imperative. It attracts top talent, boosts engagement, enhances your brand’s reputation and drives innovation. Brands like Nike, LEGO and Monzo are leading the way, showing that cultural awareness and engagement is not just possible but profitable.

As people leaders, the ball is in your court. Start tuning into the cultural currents and be open to how it guides your employer brand’s journey. Not only will you create a workplace that employees love to be part of, you’ll also build an employer brand with cultural clout that stands the test of time.

Ready to build your cultural clout?

As people leaders, the ball is in your court. Start tuning into the cultural currents that matter to your workforce and be open to how they can guide your employer brand’s journey.

Not only will you create a workplace that employees love to be part of, you’ll also build an employer brand with cultural clout that stands the test of time. One that attracts top talent, drives engagement, and positions you as an employer of choice.

Need help building cultural clout for your employer brand?

We’d love to chat about how to identify the right cultural conversations for your brand and develop authentic engagement strategies.

Feb 02
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Employer Brand Agencies BrandPointZero and TLA Merge

By Our thoughts

In a significant development for the UK employer branding industry, two award-winning Bristol agencies have joined forces to create a comprehensive employer brand consultancy. Bristol-based employer brand agency BrandPointZero has merged with That Little Agency, a move that will significantly increase the PointZero Group’s digital expertise.

What this means for clients

Both agencies specialise in employer branding and have a raft of industry awards and accolades between them. The merger enables clients to access end-to-end employer brand solutions – from strategy and insight through to creative development and digital activation.

The businesses are no stranger to working together – owners Andy Bamford and Mark Beavan were previously colleagues in a former agency.

BrandPointZero founder, Andy Bamford, explained the strategic rationale: “The team at BrandPointZero have been really impressed with the way Mark has built an award-winning business with an impressive client list over the past seven years. We’re excited to bring his employer brand knowledge into our team, particularly in digital and business development. It’s a natural next step for Mark, and a huge opportunity for the Group.”

For Mark Beavan, merging That Little Agency offers an opportunity to grow the scale and capacity of his output and take advantage of BrandPointZero’s enviable creative and strategic resource. “It’s the coming together of two employer brand journeys,’ said Beavan. ‘Andy and I worked together for years, then went off and did our own thing. Now we’re coming back together to pool our expertise, supported by a brilliant team. What’s better than growing a global business with somebody you know and trust?”

About PointZeroGroup

BrandPointZero and That Little Agency are proudly part of the PointZeroGroup, a collective of creative agencies that specialise in all things people. We believe that great businesses transform lives and improve societies. But businesses only become great when they recruit, engage and inspire great people.

We help build great businesses through three areas of expertise:

  • Employer Brand (BrandPointZero, now including That Little Agency)
  • Culture and Communications (Home)
  • Reward Communications (RPZ)

The merger became effective on 1st January 2024.

Get in touch

For more information about the merger or to discuss your employer brand needs, get in touch. We’d love to hear from you.

Jan 20
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Graduate recruitment: Is it really all about salary?

By Early careers

Every year, around this time, the graduate talent market bursts into life. Thousands of students finish their courses and look to take their first steps into the world of work. And while at BrandPointZero we’re big believers in the value non-graduates bring to UK businesses, there’s no denying that graduates remain a hotly contested group of candidatesBut the challenge today isn’t about finding enough applicants. It’s about finding the right ones. With the number of job openings in the UK continuing to fall quarter-on-quarter (ONS), businesses are finding themselves swimming in applications but struggling to identify the quality they need.

If your organisation is trying to tap into graduate talent, understanding what makes this audience tick has never been more important. Let’s break it down.

Confidence on the slide

Recent research from Bright Network paints a striking picture. Confidence among graduates in securing a role after university has fallen for the second year in a row, down to just 53%. For students with disabilities or those who identify as LGBTQIA+, that figure is even lower.

That dip in confidence shows up in behaviour. Over half (57%) of students say they’re applying for as many jobs as possible, regardless of their genuine interest, in the hope of landing an interview. And half admit to using AI to draft their applications; a 12% increase in just one year. The result for employers? Application volumes are surging, but engagement and commitment are dropping.

The experience gap

So why are graduates feeling so unsure of themselves? A big part of the story is inexperience. When asked what might stop them from achieving their dream career, 75% pointed to barriers such as a lack of relevant experience, intense competition, a limited network, or a nagging sense of imposter syndrome.

Interestingly, this doesn’t always line up with what employers actually want. While graduates assume experience is the number one quality employers value, hiring managers in fact rank ‘passion for the business’ higher, with experience coming only seventh on a list of 12 desirable qualities. That disconnect is leaving graduates panicked and uncertain, and is fuelling the cycle of scattergun applications.

Shifting priorities

The UK economic backdrop is shaping attitudes too. With sluggish growth and a cost-of-living crisis, financial stability has moved right to the top of graduates’ wish-lists. In 2025, ‘salary, benefits and career progression’ emerged as the number one priority for graduates, chosen by 37% of respondents, rising to 44% for those from low social mobility backgrounds.

Yet there’s an irony here too. While financial security is becoming more important, the average expected starting salary has actually fallen for the second year running. That tells us graduates are worried (and perhaps a little desperate) to secure stability, even at the cost of their pay expectations.

Meeting functional and emotional needs

The result is a graduate audience with both functional and emotional needs. On the one hand, they want clear, practical information about the basics: compensation, benefits, training and career pathways. On the other, they need reassurance – a sense of safety, belonging, purpose, and what the day-to-day experience of working for an organisation will really feel like.

This is where science meets art to make for great employer branding. Strong brands communicate both sides of the story: the tangible, rational benefits on offer and the more experiential, human side that shows what life at your organisation is really like.

It’s about substance, but also about style, tone and the unspoken signals that show graduates whether they’ll feel at home with you.

More than money

Despite the headlines, graduate recruitment isn’t just about money. Yes, expectations around remuneration have to be met. But once they are, salary quickly stops being a differentiator. What really matters – what separates one employer from another – is the story you tell about who you are, how you operate, and what kind of future you’re offering.

An employer brand built on a deep understanding of graduate values, attitudes and needs is the only way to truly cut through the noise, filter out the wrong candidates, and attract the ones who will thrive with you.

Time to stand out

If you’re ready to explore what that could look like for your business – whether you’re targeting graduates, Gen Z more broadly, or any other key talent audience – we’d love to talk.

At BrandPointZero, we specialise in building employer brands that don’t just compete, they stand out. Get in touch today to start the conversation.

Jan 11
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Clearing your browser cache

By Careers websites

Apart from “Kind regards”, the phrase that I include most in my emails to clients is, “and remember to refresh the page to reload the code and see the update. If that doesn’t help, you may need to clear your browser cache.” Of course, refreshing the page often solves the problem, but occassionally the client does need to clear their cache. And more often than not, they don’t know how to do it. This should help.

What is cache anyway?

Your browser stores bits of websites (images, scripts, etc.) to help them load faster next time. That’s the cache.

But sometimes:

  • It gets outdated
  • It conflicts with new updates
  • It just… misbehaves

That’s when you give it a gentle reset.

Google Chrome

Steps:

  1. Click the three dots (top-right corner)
  2. Go to Settings
  3. Click Privacy and security
  4. Select Clear browsing data
  5. Tick Cached images and files
  6. Hit Clear data

Shortcut: Press Ctrl + Shift + Delete (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + Delete (Mac)

Microsoft Edge

Steps:

  1. Click the three dots (top-right)
  2. Go to Settings
  3. Click Privacy, search, and services
  4. Under Clear browsing data, click Choose what to clear
  5. Select Cached images and files
  6. Click Clear now

Edge is basically Chrome’s cousin – so this will feel familiar.

Mozilla Firefox

Steps:

  1. Click the three lines (top-right)
  2. Go to Settings
  3. Select Privacy & Security
  4. Scroll to Cookies and Site Data
  5. Click Clear Data
  6. Tick Cached Web Content
  7. Click Clear

Firefox likes to be different – but not too different.

Safari (Mac)

Steps:

  1. Click Safari (top menu) → Settings/Preferences
  2. Go to the Advanced tab
  3. Tick Show Develop menu in menu bar
  4. Close settings
  5. Click Develop (top menu) → Empty Caches

Yes, Apple hides it. Because of course they do.

Brave Browser

Steps:

  1. Click the three lines
  2. Go to Settings
  3. Click Privacy and security
  4. Select Clear browsing data
  5. Tick Cached images and files
  6. Hit Clear data

If you’re using Brave (for those who hate advertising)

When should you clear cache?

  • A website looks broken
  • You’re not seeing recent changes
  • You’re troubleshooting login issues
  • Or just doing a digital spring clean

A quick word of warning

Clearing your will cache speed up troubleshooting, but it may log you out of some sites and for a short while may make pages load slower once. Until it once again caches key information, then the page load will be faster again. One step back for two steps forward.

Final thought

Clearing your cache is like giving your browser a quick shower – it doesn’t fix everything, but it solves a surprising number of problems. So if something’s acting weird online, then give this a try this first. It’s a bit like turning it off and then on again?

Dec 01
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The myth of the Gen-Z-only website

By AI, Careers websites

That Little Agency - Employer Branding - Careers Websites - Content Marketing - Multi-generational Image

It sounds like the start of a joke. A Baby Boomer, a Millennial, and a Gen Z-er all land on your company’s careers website. One is hunting for job security and a good retirement plan. Another is scouring for purpose and growth. And the youngest? They’re sizing up your values, scanning for TikTok-worthy content, and deciding (usually within second) whether you’re even worth a scroll. And if your careers site is speaking only to one of them, you’re losing the others.

Welcome to the new era of recruitment, where building your careers website around just one generation (looking at you, Gen Z evangelists) is not just short-sighted – it’s costing you talent.

The universal basics, because everyone’s got standards

Before we dig into generational quirks and preferences, let’s start with what every job seeker wants, no matter their age. There are six non-negotiables that must be baked into your site:

  • Clarity about the role: This includes detailed job descriptions, expectations, and transparent salary ranges. No one wants to play “guess the compensation.”
  • Culture insights: People want to know who they’ll be working with, why your company exists, and how it feels to be part of it. Mission statements, employee stories, and authentic videos are essential.
  • Easy navigation and mobile optimisation: Your site should be intuitive, fast, mobile-friendly, and accessible to everyone.
  • Simple applications: Job applications shouldn’t feel like a part-time job. A streamlined, save-and-resume application process is key.
  • Transparency about hiring: Lay out your hiring steps, expected timelines, and FAQs. Nobody enjoys being ghosted, especially after they’ve poured hours into the application process.
  • A visible commitment to inclusion: Show diversity in action, not just in words. Representation in imagery, real DEI initiatives, and a clear stance matter.

Those are the basics. If your site doesn’t nail these, generational tailoring won’t save you. But once the foundations are set, it’s time to go deeper. We know that we’ll be making a few sweeping statements here, and that grouping individuals by their generation can be a little presumptuous, but please bear with us as it is a useful approach as we highlight a few trends and observations.

The generational layer cake, because ‘one size doesn’t fit all’

Here’s where things get interesting. Each generation brings its own priorities, expectations, and digital behaviours. If your careers website is targeting only one group, you’re likely frustrating or even alienating others. Let’s unpack what matters most to each.

Baby Boomers: Keep it clean and respect experience
Boomers (born 1946–1964) are often overlooked in today’s recruitment narrative, but many are still active in the workforce. And they bring invaluable experience. They’re drawn to roles that offer stability, robust benefits, and a respectful nod to their years of service. If your site’s all razzle-dazzle with no substance, they’ll bounce. So, what resonates with Boomers? Clear, professional language. Legible fonts. Straightforward navigation. Information on healthcare, pensions, and phased retirement options. And maybe a line or two about how much your company values seasoned professionals (because they’ve earned it).

Gen X: Show the balance, not the burnout
Gen X (1965–1980) is your quietly ambitious, no-nonsense cohort. They want to know whether your company will let them lead a life outside of work. Make sure your careers page showcases real flexibility, be that remote or hybrid work options, autonomy, and family-friendly policies. They also care deeply about career advancement and continuous learning, so spotlight upskilling programs and opportunities for growth. If your site can answer the question, “Can I thrive here without burning out?”, Gen X will stick around.

Millennials: Purpose, progress, and a dash of personality
Millennials (1981–1996) are your values-first generation. For them, work isn’t just a payslip. It’s a personal mission. They want to know what your company stands for and how they can grow with you. So don’t hide your DEI work on a subpage three clicks deep. And don’t bother with sterile copy. Use real stories, real photos, and real humans to share what it’s like to work at your company. Emphasise development paths and make your impact obvious. Sustainability, social responsibility, and recognition culture? Put those front and centre. According to Robert Walters, over 90% of Millennials rate career progression as a top priority. If they don’t see a path? They won’t bother applying.

Gen Z: Purpose-driven, mobile-first, and brutally discerning
Ah, Gen Z (1997-2012). The digital natives who know when your “values” are just fluff, your social media is an afterthought, and your hiring process is held together with sticky tape. This generation is career-curious and values-aligned. They crave growth (70% expect promotion within 18 months), feedback (74% expect it within a week of applying), and purpose (86% say it’s essential). If they land on your careers site and can’t immediately feel your mission, culture, and progression opportunities? They’re gone.

And yes, they’re mobile-first. 46% apply for jobs via their phones, and 62% discover roles via social media. So, if your site isn’t fast, responsive, and social-integrated, it’s basically invisible to them. Short-form video, employee Q&As, TikTok-style content, and even live chat functions can make your site Gen Z-ready. But remember, currently Gen Z only currently represents 27% of the global workforce. They’re just one slice of the hiring pie. Your site should reflect all your future employees, not just the trendiest ones.

The myth of the Gen-Z-only website

It’s tempting to take what we’ve learned about Gen Z and overhaul everything to suit them. And yes, we should be calling out the tired, corporate careers pages that miss the mark entirely. But a Gen-Z-only approach ignores the talent and value offered by other generations. You don’t need a flashy TikTok takeover or chatbot-driven UX to appeal to Boomers or Gen X. And you don’t need to strip it all back to basics to win over Gen Z. What you need is flexibility.

Introducing the personalised careers site

Imagine landing on a careers homepage and being greeted with choices like:

  • “I’m a recent grad – show me the ropes.”
  • “I’m a seasoned pro – take me to the big leagues.”
  • “I care about purpose – what’s your mission?”

These create personalised entry points that meet people where they are. Add filters, curated journeys, or even generational-style UX paths to let your candidates tailor their experience. One size doesn’t fit all. And your site shouldn’t try to force it.

Ask your colleagues what they want

Still not sure how to make your careers site better for everyone? Ask your own team. Set up a quick internal questionnaire to learn how your people use (and judge) careers websites. Here are five questions to get you started:

  • What generation do you identify with? (Boomer, Gen X, Millennial or Gen Z)
  • What is your current role and level of experience?
  • When you look at a careers website, what information matters most to you? (Rate from 1–5: salary info, growth opportunities, benefits, DEI content, company values)
  • What do you wish more companies showed on their careers sites?
  • How was your experience using our company careers page?

Gathering this data gives you real-world insights and helps you build something with your people, not just for them.

Build for everyone. Not just the cool kids.

Your careers website isn’t a vanity project. It’s your frontline recruiter. Whether someone is looking for their very first job or their final promotion before retirement, your site should make them feel seen, supported, and excited to apply. Forget about building a website for just one generation. Instead, design for humans. Offer clarity, purpose, accessibility, and a healthy dose of personality. That way you’ll be far more like to attract talent across every generation. Because when it comes to great hiring, exclusion is expensive. And inclusion is powerful.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you need help, support, or just a chat about your employer brand or talent strategy, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Between you and me, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Jun 01
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Interrogate your employer brand like it’s a bent copper

By Employer branding

That Little Agency - Employer Branding - Careers Websites - Content Marketing - AC12 Image

If your employer brand walked into AC-12, would it come out clean? As David Ogilvy once said, “Interrogate the product until it confesses.” But swap “product” for employer brand and suddenly you’re staring down the barrel of something a lot more relevant. Too many companies act like they’ve got nothing to prove. They trot out their values like a checklist, talk about their “great culture,” maybe throw in a dog-friendly office and a vague promise of “flexibility.”

And they expect talent to just buy it.

Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey

But as Line of Duty’s Ted Hastings often said, “I’m interested in one thing and one thing only – the truth.” And that’s exactly what your employer brand needs to reveal.

The truth about what it’s really like to work there. The truth behind the slogans. The truth you’ll only find by putting your EVP in the interview room and turning up the heat. Because right now, too many employer brands are giving us the same jargon-filled script. “We’re innovative, collaborative, and passionate.”

People don’t buy a quarter-inch drill. They buy a quarter-inch hole

Theodore Levitt observed that people don’t buy products or services, they buy solutions to their problems. Same goes for jobs. People don’t care about your headline perks – they care what this job means for their life, their ambitions, their identity.

Especially if you’re not the biggest name in the market. Because when you’re the underdog, you don’t get to phone it in. You don’t get to play it safe. You have to go deeper. You have to ask tougher questions of yourself.

Interrogate your EVP like you’re leading an AC12 investigation

Surveil your culture. Interview your people. Dig into exit interviews like cold cases. Cross-reference what you say with what actually happens. Burn the boilerplate. Freeze the clichés. Shake the shiny surface until something real and raw falls out. What’s the truth at the core of your employer brand that no one else is brave enough to say? Because that’s the stuff talent notices. That’s the thing they remember when choosing where to put their time, energy, and future.

In short

Big organisations have the luxury of reputation. You may not. But you do have an advantage: the power to be real. So put your employer brand under surveillance. Ask it the hard questions. And don’t stop until you have them bang to rights. And then we’ll be sucking diesel.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you need help, support, or just a chat about your employer brand or talent strategy, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Between you and me, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Jun 01
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Business Case for Content Marketing

Building a business case for content marketing

By Content marketing

You know that little voice in your head saying, “We should really be doing more with our content”?  We hear it too. Especially when it comes to using content marketing to build your employer brand. If you’ve got the urge to get moving but need to convince the powers that be, whether it’s your HR Director, a budget holder, or a sceptical stakeholder, this blog’s for you. Let’s talk about how to put together a simple, solid business case that’ll help get your content marketing dreams off the ground and into action.

Start with why (and be real)

Here’s the truth: whether you like it or not, your employer brand already exists. It’s out there, being shaped every day by Glassdoor reviews, LinkedIn comments, and whispered messages in DMs. People talk. Especially online. So, your real question is: Do we want to be part of the conversation, or let others define it for us? Content marketing gives you the chance to take control of your story. To share what it’s really like to work for you. And to attract people who’ll actually thrive in your culture.

A few useful statistics:

  • 75% of job seekers check out a company’s reputation before applying. (Glassdoor)
  • 70% are more likely to apply to companies that share stories about their people and culture. (TalentLyft)

Set a realistic goal

Content marketing won’t magically solve all your hiring problems overnight. And that’s okay. Your goal here isn’t to fill every open role by Tuesday. It’s to build momentum. To strengthen your reputation as a great place to work. To help the right people find you and feel good about clicking “Apply.” Keep it high level, but real. Something like “We want to use content to build awareness of our culture, grow our reputation, and attract better-aligned candidates.” That’s a lot more convincing (and achievable) than promising a 50% spike in applications within a week.

Pin down some clear objectives

Now you’ve got your big-picture goal, you’ll want to break it down into a few things you actually want your content to do.

Here are three good starters:

Raise awareness: Put your name out there as an employer people want to work for.
Show what it’s like to work with you: Use real stories, behind-the-scenes moments, and insights to help candidates imagine themselves on your team.
Encourage better applications: When people understand your vibe, values, and expectations, they’re more likely to apply for the right reasons.

These are the kind of things content does best. Not just filling roles, but helping the right people feel excited about joining you.

Add some proof (because numbers talk)

Now’s the time to back it up with a few facts and stats that show content marketing works. Not just for clicks, but for real business results. Try these on for size:

  • Companies with strong employer brands see a 28% lower turnover rate. (LinkedIn)
  • 92% of recruiters say employer branding improves their hiring efforts. (LinkedIn Talent Solutions)
  • Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing, and generates about three times more leads. (Demand Metric)

That’s a whole lot of value. And far more efficient than expensive job ads that get ignored.

Share what success could look like

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Just paint a picture of what good could look like. For example, we’ll move from vague job posts, little social activity and candidates who ghost after interviews. To a library of stories from your people, engaging posts that spark conversation, and applicants who “already feel like they know us.”

The best content helps candidates self-select, so you’re not wasting time interviewing people who don’t fit. And here’s a bonus: people love working somewhere that’s proud of its culture. So, this isn’t just about recruitment. It’s about retention too.

Think multi-channel, not one-hit wonder

This isn’t just a blog here, a LinkedIn post there. Great employer branding content works across platforms:

  • Social media: Behind-the-scenes reels, day-in-the-life stories, culture spotlights.
  • Your careers site: Interviews, testimonials, videos showing off your space (even if it’s remote).
  • Job descriptions: Clear, human language that matches your tone and values.
  • Email campaigns: Warm up cold candidates with content that feels personal.

And don’t forget employee-generated content. It gets eight times more engagement than company posts. (Social Media Today)

Make your money talk

Alright, the big question: “How much is this going to cost?” Here’s your answer: not much, if you do it right. Content marketing is one of the most cost-effective tools out there. Think of it like this. A blog costs less than a big recruitment ad. And it keeps working for you long after it’s published. Plus, companies with strong employer brands see 43% lower cost-per-hire. (LinkedIn) So yes, there’s some time and effort involved, but the return? Totally worth it.

Build it with what you’ve got

Don’t wait for the perfect plan. Start small.

  • Ask your people for stories.
  • Share a team photo with a simple caption about what you’re celebrating.
  • Film a short video walking around the office (or on Zoom!) and let someone explain why they love working there.

This kind of content is authentic, engaging, and way more effective than polished-but-sterile corporate fluff.

TL;DR

When you’re making the case for content marketing in employer branding, hit these key points:

  • People are already talking about you. Content helps shape that conversation.
  • Candidates want to know what it’s really like to work with you.
  • Good content attracts the right people and makes your hiring process more efficient.
  • It’s cost-effective, measurable over time, and great for both recruitment and retention.

Want some help?

If you’re thinking “Yes, this all makes sense but I still don’t know where to start”, that’s where we come in. We’ve helped businesses big and small get their employer brand out there with real, relatable content that people actually want to read, watch, and share. Drop us a message. We’re always up for a chat. And the kettle’s already on.

May 30
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Business Case for Careers Websites

Building a business case for a new careers website

By Careers websites

Thinking about building a new careers website? Or upgrading the one you’ve already got? Smart move. But now comes the tricky part – convincing the people in charge of the purse strings that it’s actually worth the investment. You know it’ll make a difference, but maybe they need a little more than your gut instinct to give it the green light. That’s where this blog comes in. We’ve laid out exactly why having a dedicated, well-built, candidate-friendly careers site isn’t just a “nice to have”. It can be a game-changer. And we’ve backed it all up with solid stats to help you build a proper business case. Let’s dive in.

What a careers website isn’t

Let’s get this out the way first. A “careers page” tacked onto your main website with a few job listings and a blurry photo of last year’s Christmas party is NOT a careers website. It won’t cut through the noise. It won’t excite top talent. And in today’s competitive job market, it definitely won’t convince someone to hit “apply.” So, if you’ve been told “we already have a careers page,” this is your chance to explain why that’s not enough.

What a careers website is

A real careers website is your employer brand’s home. It’s where you get to tell your story, your values, your culture, the kind of work you do, and why someone would want to be part of it. It’s where candidates get that all-important first impression. Done right, it’s packed with real voices from your people, helpful tips, maybe a blog, maybe a video (we’ve made a few for Deichmann), and a clearly mapped out journey from interest to application. It’s engaging, informative, and built around what candidates actually care about. And in a world where more recruitment happens online than in-office? This is your digital handshake.

Because not everyone knows who you are (yet)

If you’re not a household name, you need to work harder to grab attention. A great careers site helps you do just that. Think of it as your online pitch to potential candidates who stumble across your job ad or Google your company. If what they see is dull, clunky, or barely there, they’ll move on. In fact, 86% of job seekers research company reviews and ratings before applying. And 75% consider your employer brand before even thinking about clicking “apply.” (starred.com) A careers site gives you control over that first impression and a chance to make it a good one.

You’ll build a talent pool (and keep people interested)

Not every great candidate will find the perfect role the first time they visit. But if your site gives them the option to register their interest, sign up for job alerts, or read more about life at your company, you’ve got a chance to keep them warm. That way, when the right role does come up, you’re not starting from scratch. Instead, you’ve already got engaged, informed candidates who want to work with you. And an added bonus is you can segment this pool and send them tailored content they’ll actually want to read.

You’ll deliver a way better candidate experience

Let’s talk about candidate experience. It really matters. 60% of job seekers quit partway through online applications if the process is too long or confusing. (onrec.com) That’s a huge amount of missed opportunities. A well-designed careers website streamlines things. It helps people find what they need, understand the role, and feel confident enough to apply. All without jumping through hoops or creating accounts they’ll never use again. It’s smooth. It’s clear. And it leaves a great impression, even if someone doesn’t land the job.

You can link it with your ATS (and make things seamless)

Already using an ATS (Applicant Tracking System)? Great. A careers website can pull your job data straight from it and make it look… well, a whole lot nicer. When we built a new site for The Telegraph, we integrated their ATS (Workable) directly into the site. That meant candidates didn’t have to hop between systems or get confused by inconsistent branding. The experience was seamless from start to finish and it showed in the results. An integrated system keeps candidates engaged and helps reduce that pesky drop-off during the application stage.

You’ll get insights and data to make better decisions

Another big plus? With a proper careers site, you get access to all kinds of data. Thanks, Google Analytics! You can track where candidates came from (job ads, LinkedIn, social, etc.), what content they engaged with, how long they stayed, and whether they actually applied. That gives you clear, actionable insight into what’s working and what’s not so you can focus your recruitment budget in all the right places. It turns guesswork into strategy.

You’ll actually get more applications (seriously)

We don’t just build careers sites because we like how they look (though they do look good). We build them because they work. When we launched the new site for NFU Mutual, it saw a 36% increase in completed applications and a 148% boost in visitors. That’s the power of better UX, clearer content, and a site that actually speaks to what candidates care about.

TL;DR

Jobseekers today are looking for more than just a role. They want to know who they’re working for. A careers website gives them the window into your world they need. It’s your chance to show off your culture, values, and team. It helps position you as an employer of choice and gives people plenty of reasons to choose you over someone else. In fact, 81% of job seekers expect a dedicated careers website. And 89% say it’s a key source of information when considering a job.

If you’re trying to build a business case for a new careers website, you’ve got the stats, the strategy, and the why. It helps you attract better people, boost your employer brand, reduce drop-off, build talent pipelines, and gather insights to improve over time. Oh, and did we mention you’ll likely get more completed applications? At That Little Agency, we’ve built award-winning careers sites for names like Clarks, Met Office, Volkswagen Group UK, Berenberg, JLR, Miele X and the Telegraph Media Group. And we’d love to help you too.

Need help making your case?

We’ve even developed a free careers website audit to benchmark how your current site stacks up. It’s packed with useful, actionable feedback that can strengthen your pitch for a new build. Interested? You can find out more Careers Website Audit. Or just fancy a chat? Drop us a line. Some of our best work starts with a biscuit and a Zoom call.

May 30
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Business Case for Employer Brand

Building a business case for employer branding

By Employer branding

Employer Branding sounds like one of those things only big, shiny companies with massive HR teams worry about. But in reality? It matters to every business that wants to attract great people, keep them around, and make work feel… well, like a good place to be. Whether you’re a start-up or a seasoned name in your industry, your employer brand is already out there. It’s in your job ads, your Glassdoor reviews, your interview processes. It’s even in what your people say about you at the pub. So, this blog is here to help you make the case for why investing in your employer brand (on purpose, not by accident) is one of the smartest moves you can make. We’ll keep it simple.

People want more than a job. They want a reason

Gone are the days when a decent salary and a desk were enough. Today’s candidates want to feel something about where they work. Purpose. Progress. Personality. They want to know what you stand for and whether it matches what matters to them. The numbers back it up. 92% of people would consider leaving their current job for one with a better reputation. (smartdreamers.com) And 76% are more likely to stay with a company that has a strong employer brand. So, if you’re not showing up with a clear, compelling story about why your workplace is worth joining, the chances are your competitors are.

You already have the story. You just need to tell it well

Good news – you don’t have to invent some glossy, made-up narrative. Your employer brand isn’t a pitch. It’s a reflection of what already makes your company great (or different, or quirky, or cool). Is it the people? The energy? The way you laugh through the tough times? Whatever makes your culture tick, that’s your superpower. The key is to tell that story clearly, consistently, and stick it where the right people can see it. It’s not about perfection. It’s about being honest, interesting, and you.

It makes hiring easier, faster, and cheaper

Here’s the really good bit: when people like what they see about your company, they’re way more likely to apply. And if your brand is strong, they’re more likely to be a good fit and say yes when the offer comes in. That means fewer wasted interviews, shorter time-to-hire, and less pressure on your team. In fact, companies with strong employer brands cut their cost-per-hire by 43%. (tmpw.co.uk) That’s going to make a big difference to that all important bottom line. Plus, when your reputation is doing some of the heavy lifting, you don’t have to work as hard (or pay as much) to stand out in the crowd.

First impressions last. Make them count

The candidate experience isn’t just about efficiency. It’s your first chance to show people what you’re like to work with. Every email, every phone call, every delay or no-show interview sends a message. And here’s the thing: 55% of job seekers ditch applications after reading a bad review (inc.com) and 78% see the application process as a reflection of how a company treats its people. (impress.ai) So there’s no doubt about it. It matters. Even if someone doesn’t get the job, they should walk away thinking, “Hey, I’d still recommend that place.”

It keeps your best people around

Hiring’s only half the job. The other half? Keeping your people happy, engaged and (most importantly) not on LinkedIn job alerts every week. A solid employer brand helps you deliver on your promises. When your culture, values, and day-to-day experience actually match up, people notice. And they stick around. Companies with strong employer brands see 40% less turnover. That means fewer exit interviews and way less time spent wondering why your best people are disappearing.

It strengthens your entire brand

Your employer brand doesn’t just sit in the HR corner. It touches everything. When people love where they work, they talk about it. They post. They share. They attract others. And it’s not just warm fuzzies. The employee voice is three times more credible than the CEO’s (qualtrics.com) when it comes to talking about life at a company. That kind of advocacy? You really can’t buy it. And when potential customers or partners see a company full of happy, engaged people, it builds trust. Your reputation grows in all the right ways.

TL;DR

You’re already being judged as an employer every day. The only question is whether you’re actively shaping that reputation or letting it take on a life of its own. A strong employer brand helps you hire better, retain longer, save money, and boost your reputation. And best of all? It doesn’t have to cost the earth. Sometimes it just starts with being more honest, more human, and more intentional about how you show up. So, if you’ve been waiting for a reason to invest in your employer brand, this is it. Because in a world full of noise, people don’t just want a job. They want to feel like they belong. The question is: are you giving them a reason to?

Need a little help?

If you’d like some help, support or even a little chat around defining your employer value proposition, developing your employer brand or any aspect of your talent attraction strategy just drop us a line. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea and a biscuit.

May 28
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Refreshing Your EVP

Question, Mark. How often should we change our EVP?

By Employer branding

It’s a question I get asked all the time: “How often should we update our EVP?” And honestly, it’s a fair one. With the fast pace of change these days, and all the noise around employer branding, it can feel like you need to refresh your EVP every time something shifts in the business. But before rushing to rewrite, let’s take a step back.

Think of your EVP – your Employee Value Proposition – as something alive and evolving. It’s not a one-off project you tick off the to-do list. If your organisation hasn’t changed much, there’s usually no need for a complete reset.

When is it time to rethink your Employee Value Proposition (EVP)?

There are definitely moments that call for a proper review. Big shifts, like a merger, acquisition, major growth or downsizing, are good reasons to step back and ask: “Does our current EVP still reflect who we are now?” Because let’s face it, your company might not be the same place people joined a year or two ago. The culture, the work, the experience – it’s probably evolved. And your EVP should reflect that.

It’s about being honest and accurate. If the business has genuinely changed, your messaging to both current and future employees needs to catch up. People notice when it doesn’t.

But not every change means a new EVP

A new Head of Talent Acquisition? A competitor winning some awards? A few comments that the EVP “feels a bit tired”? These aren’t bad prompts to check in on your messaging, but they don’t mean you need to tear everything up and start again.

Unless the employee experience has genuinely shifted, your EVP likely still holds water. If your organisation hasn’t changed much, forcing a new EVP can actually dilute your message and confuse your people.

It’s not all or nothing

It doesn’t have to be a big yes-or-no decision. Instead of thinking in black and white, think of your EVP as something you tune, like tweaking an engine to keep it running at its best. Small, thoughtful updates based on feedback from new joiners, exit interviews, engagement data, and day-to-day observations can keep your EVP aligned and relevant. It’s about refinement, not reinvention.

The problem with changing too often

Here’s something to consider: if you’re refreshing your EVP every three or four years without any significant business changes behind it, you could be sending mixed signals. What are you saying to people? That last year’s message doesn’t apply anymore? That this year’s pitch is completely different?

That kind of flip-flopping can lead people to question whether your EVP was ever real in the first place. If they don’t see real change in the organisation, but they keep hearing a new story, it starts to feel like marketing fluff, and trust begins to slip.

So how do you know when a change is needed?

Good news: you don’t have to rely on guesswork. There are plenty of indicators you can track to figure out whether your EVP still hits the mark. If you’re not already measuring some of these, it might be time to start:

  • How many hires are coming from key competitors?
  • How are those teams performing after those hires?
  • What’s engagement like after three months for new joiners?
  • How many new hires are even aware of your EVP?
  • Are candidates being lost to counteroffers?
  • What percentage of new joiners turn into top performers?
  • How long are they staying?
  • Are they willing to share their stories?

These insights can paint a clear picture. If things are heading in the wrong direction, make some targeted adjustments to your EVP. But if the numbers are holding up well, that’s a good sign it’s still working.

In short

So, when should you change your EVP? Only when your organisation has gone through a meaningful shift. Otherwise, keep an eye on it, listen to what the data’s telling you, and make the occasional tweak to stay sharp and relevant. Your EVP doesn’t need constant reinvention, but it does need regular care and attention.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you need help, support, or just a chat about your employer brand or talent strategy, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Between you and me, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Apr 27
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Persuasion versus promotion: The power of employer branding

By Employer branding

That Little Agency - Employer Branding - Careers Websites - Content Marketing - Persuasion Blog Hero Image

Is employer branding misunderstood? I frequently encounter this question, and those who ask it can be forgiven for assuming the answer is ‘yes’. Too often, how companies present themselves to current and prospective employees feels unimaginative or formulaic. There seems to be a lack of appreciation for what strong employer branding can achieve. Somewhere along the way, many organisations have confused its purpose. Employer branding is less about promotion and more about persuasion.

Consider the difference between these two approaches. Promotion is broadcasting a message: job postings, benefit summaries, and corporate slogans. A careers page that simply says, “We’re hiring – apply now.” The office tour video that focuses on the free snacks or the social posts listing your awards, rewards and perks. Promotion is all about visibility. But its impact often stops there. It tells but doesn’t connect.

Persuasion, by contrast, is about storytelling, articulating culture, and building an emotional connection. It’s about showing – not telling – people why your organisation is a great place to work. It’s about crafting an authentic narrative that resonates with individuals, whether they’re candidates, colleagues, or ex-employees. Great employer brands use persuasion to build trust, foster loyalty, and spark genuine excitement. They invite people into something bigger: a shared purpose, an inclusive organisation and a culture worth being part of.

This means a slight shift in mindset for our friends working in talent acquisition. To move away from sourcing candidates, generating applications and creating shortlists, and towards persuading the right people to believe in, invest in, and champion your culture. And that includes those people who already work for you. If we capture the hearts and minds of people, their bodies and talent will quickly follow.

In short

Next time you review your employer branding efforts, ask yourself: how much of it leans on promotion versus persuasion? And consider how to tip the balance decisively toward the latter.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this article helpful. If you want help, support or even just a chat about this or any aspect of your employer brand or talent strategy, then drop us a line. Between you and I, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, chocolate Hobnob and a video call.

Apr 26
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - What is SEO

What is Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)?

By Careers websites

One of the most common questions we’re asked when developing a careers website is: “Can you make sure it’s optimised for Google?” It’s a smart – and important – question, but not always a clear one. The short answer is yes: we’ll ensure your site is fully set up for indexing across all major search engines – not just Google, but also Bing, Yahoo UK, DuckDuckGo. That’s just a standard part of our process. But true optimisation is about more than ticking technical boxes. We need to understand: What exactly should your site be optimised for? Is it a specific job? A department? A key element of your employer brand? Maybe all three? Once we know, we can build an SEO strategy aligned to your goals.

Before we dive deeper, let’s step back and cover the fundamentals of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) – and how search engines really work.

Back to basics

SEO is both an art and a science. At its core, it’s the process of enhancing a website’s visibility in search engine results for relevant queries. Effective SEO spans a wide range of efforts – from technical improvements to content strategy – all aimed at matching user intent and delivering a strong user experience.

How search engines work

Search engines like Google follow three key steps:

  • Crawling: Bots scan the internet, collecting information from millions of web pages.
  • Indexing: This information is stored and organised within a massive database.
  • Ranking: When a user searches, algorithms select and order the most relevant pages to display.

For instance, a search for “Employer Brand Agency” prompts Google to sort through its index and display the results it deems most relevant to the user’s query and intent.

That Little Agency - Employer Branding - Careers Websites - Content Marketing - Search Results List Image

Organic traffic vs paid search

SEO primarily focuses on generating organic traffic – visitors who find your website through unpaid search listings. However, on most search results pages, you’ll also see paid advertisements – often listed at the top.

A few important distinctions:

  • Search Engine Marketing (SEM): Encompasses both paid and organic strategies to appear in search results.
  • Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): Specifically focuses on improving unpaid, organic visibility.
  • Search Engine Advertising (SEA): Refers to paid ads targeted to specific keywords.
  • Pay-Per-Click (PPC): A model where advertisers pay each time a user clicks on an advert.

Both SEO and PPC have their place. While PPC delivers immediate results (at a cost), SEO builds sustainable visibility over time. Ideally, a balanced approach incorporates both.

Why SEO matters

Companies invest significantly in SEO for a reason: it drives high-quality, sustainable results. To illustrate, Google processed approximately 8.3 billion searches daily in 2024 – a number that continues to grow exponentially. If you have a website, appearing in relevant search results is essential.

SEO captures real intent

Unlike social media, where brand messages compete for attention, search is intent-driven. Users are actively seeking information, solutions, or opportunities – and SEO connects you directly with that demand. This makes SEO a powerful inbound strategy: users come to you, already primed to engage.

SEO creates competitive advantage

Creating a website and leaving it at that simply won’t cut it. With new websites popping up left and right, getting noticed is becoming increasingly complex. But SEO can help your employer branding by:

  • Enhancing visibility
  • Building authority and credibility
  • Increasing engagement
  • Driving qualified traffic
  • Strengthening employer brand loyalty

The three fundamentals of search engine optimisation

SEO is all about optimising your website to increase your online visibility. But what do we mean by that? What exactly should you be optimising? Well, there’s a lot you can do, and it can be divided up into three main areas.

Technical optimisation
Technical SEO ensures your website functions properly for both users and search engines. Key focus areas include:

  • Fast page loading times
  • Crawlability (making the right pages accessible to search engines)
  • Eliminating dead links
  • Website security (SSL certification)
  • Implementing structured data

A fast, secure, well-structured site not only improves rankings but also provides a superior user experience – a key priority for search engines.

On-page optimisation
On-page SEO focuses on optimising the elements within your website itself. This includes:

  • Creating high-quality, relevant content
  • Smart keyword integration
  • Demonstrating Experience, Expertise, Authority and Trustworthiness
  • Building clear site structures and internal linking strategies
  • Crafting effective URLs, meta titles, and alt text

On-page optimisation ensures your content is discoverable, relevant, and valuable — boosting both user engagement and search rankings.

Off-page optimisation
Off-page SEO focuses on building your site’s reputation across the wider internet. Key strategies include:

  • Earning high-quality backlinks
  • Content marketing
  • Active engagement on social media platforms

High-quality backlinks act as endorsements of your content’s credibility, signalling trust to search engines and helping to improve rankings.
Platforms like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, Indeed, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube – along with major job boards – can all enhance your SEO performance.

Key search engine ranking factors

Search engines evaluate hundreds of factors when determining rankings. While the exact algorithms are proprietary, several key factors are consistently influential:

  • Content quality, relevance, and usability
  • Strength of internal and external linking
  • Technical infrastructure (security, mobile optimisation, etc.)
  • Overall user experience (site speed, ease of navigation, etc.)
  • Brand reputation and online presence

Focusing on these fundamentals provides a strong foundation for sustainable SEO success.

So, where does that leave us today?

Search engines continue to improve their algorithms to improve their users’ experience. The focus points of SEO in 2025 are still high-quality, user-centric content, technical excellence (site speed, security, mobile compatibility) and a clear alignment with search intent. Search engines are working hard to better understand a user’s search intent and show that user the results that best fit their needs. Related to that, they continue to improve how information is presented in the search results, which can differ quite a bit per search intent.

Zero-click searches
Today, more searches are answered directly within search results – without users clicking through to a website. While this can reduce site traffic, being the source of these featured answers still strengthens brand visibility and authority.

Large Language Model (LLM) chatbots
Tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude are reshaping how users search for information. Search engines are also incorporating AI-driven overviews that synthesise information across sources to answer complex queries. This evolution means SEO strategies must focus not just on attracting clicks, but also on becoming trusted, high-authority sources that AI and search platforms reference.

Need a little help?

We’re here to help. Whether you’re launching a new careers site, aiming to improve your search visibility, or looking to ensure your brand is referenced across new AI-driven platforms, it all starts with one essential question: “What exactly do you want to be optimised for?” Once you can answer that, you’re already on the path to success. Let’s connect. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea and a call.

Apr 24
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Search Engine Optimisation Image

How to improve the SEO of your careers website

By Careers websites

Search engine optimisation (yep, that SEO thing again). Mysterious? A bit. Important? Definitely. It’s the not-so-secret sauce that helps your careers site show up when someone searches “marketing jobs in Bristol” or “best places to work in fintech.” And guess what? It’s not just about stuffing keywords into a page anymore.

Whether you’re managing a full-blown careers hub or just want your job postings to be easier to find, this blog will walk you through the basics (and some juicy extras) to boost your visibility, attract the right candidates, and outsmart the algorithms. Even the AI-powered ones. Let’s dive in.

Start with a reality check

Do a quick Google search for pretty much any job title. Who’s at the top? Indeed. LinkedIn. Job boards with million-dollar budgets and armies of SEO experts. But don’t be discouraged. You’re not trying to outrank Indeed. You’re trying to be the best result for the right candidate. Think niche, long-tail searches like “entry-level shoe design jobs in Manchester.” That’s where you can win.

Be mobile-first (because your candidates are)

More than half of your traffic will come from mobile devices. Google knows this, and it cares. A lot. If your site loads slowly or looks clunky on mobile, you’ll be penalised in rankings. So make sure your pages are slick, quick, and mobile-friendly. Start with Google’s PageSpeed Insights for a quick health check.

Speed = Experience = Better rankings

Speaking of speed, nobody wants to wait for your site to load. Candidates will disappear. Google will sulk. SEO will suffer. Compress those image files, cut out unnecessary code, and host on a decent server. According to research, nearly half of users expect pages to load in under two seconds. Make sure yours does.

Get on board with Google for Jobs

Want a shortcut to more job views? Make your job listings Google for Jobs friendly. That means using structured data (schema markup) so Google can read your job info and include it in its job search box. Clients who’ve done this have seen traffic spike by up to 60%. Free traffic. Real candidates. Want help? Well, we wrote a paper around this, so download a copy and ask your tech team to add the right tags. No brainer.

Write you job ads for humans (not robots)

It’s easy to just paste in a job description and call it a day. But resist! Write your job ads like you’re trying to excite someone about the opportunity (because you are). A human tone is better for both your audience and search engines. Google’s algorithms favour natural, readable content that sounds real, not robotic.

Ditch the funky job titles

We get it, “People Wizard” sounds fun. But no one is searching for it. If your job title doesn’t match what candidates are typing into Google, your listing won’t show up. Keep it clear and searchable: “HR Manager,” not “Culture Ninja.” By all means go bananas later on in the job description.

Think beyond the job title. Use keywords smartly

Start with the basics (job title, location), then think: what would someone actually type into Google? “Digital marketing job Leeds,” “remote graphic design role,” “graduate software engineer London.” Use those phrases in your headings, subheadings and meta descriptions to boost relevance.

Optimise for voice search

People don’t talk the same way they type. Instead of typing “accounting jobs,” they’ll say, “show me accounting jobs near me.” That’s voice search. And it’s rising fast. Add natural, question-based phrasing to your copy and FAQs, and make sure location details are crystal clear.

Make the most of images and videos

Don’t just chuck in any old stock photo. Name your images properly (e.g., data-analyst-team-london.jpg), and use alt text that describes what’s happening.

Bonus tip: Videos rock for SEO. They increase time on page and boost click-throughs. Think “day-in-the-life” clips, culture tours, or behind-the-scenes interviews.

FAQs: your secret SEO weapon

Remember how AI tools like ChatGPT are becoming a new kind of search engine? Well, guess what. They love FAQs. One founder added FAQ schema to a few pages and started appearing in ChatGPT answers within 48 hours. That’s lightning fast by SEO standards. Use FAQs to answer questions like:

  • “What’s the interview process like at [company]?”
  • “Can I apply for multiple roles?”
  • “Do you offer remote jobs?”

Use structured data (FAQ schema) so both Google and AI tools can pick them up.

Share vacancies on your socials

Social shares don’t just drive traffic. They also influence search rankings. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter (X), and even TikTok can boost the visibility of your careers content. Encourage employees to share job openings and blog posts with their networks. It helps with reach and brand authenticity.

Build killer landing pages

Think of your site as a collection of landing pages, not just one homepage. Create dedicated pages for job categories, locations, or career paths (“Tech jobs in Glasgow,” “Early Careers at [Company]”). These focused pages help with both user experience and SEO.

Blogging isn’t dead

In fact, it’s more alive than ever. You’re reading this one for example! A good blog can answer candidate questions, boost keyword rankings, and drive traffic to your vacancies. Think “Top tips for interviewing at [Company],” or “5 reasons our grads love working here.” Bonus: link to relevant jobs at the bottom of every post.

AI is changing the game

Here’s what you need to know right now:

Search engines are smarter than ever. Google’s BERT and RankBrain updates mean that search engines understand context. It’s not just about keywords anymore. It’s about meaning. So your careers content should focus on the intent behind what people are searching. Tip: Don’t just optimise for “Careers at [Company]”. Try “How to apply for a job at [Company]” or “Is [Company] a good place to work?”

Personalised job recommendations. AI can dynamically tailor job suggestions based on browsing history or location. Use tools that personalise listings based on what the user has looked at before. This gives candidates a smoother experience and boosts your engagement.

AI-driven local SEO. Hiring in Manchester? Or for remote roles in Wales? AI now gives much more weight to local searches. Optimise your site for geo-specific queries like “customer support jobs in Birmingham.”

And here what to plan for in the near future

Chatbots for careers sites. Expect AI-powered chatbots to become standard. They answer candidate FAQs, guide people through applications, and even capture data in real time. This makes the experience faster, friendlier, and more efficient for job seekers.

SEO for AI search tools (Bing!) Tools like ChatGPT use Bing’s search index. So, if you’re only optimising for Google, you might be missing a chunk of AI-driven search traffic. Here’s how to show up in AI answers:

  • Add FAQ schema (structured data).
  • Focus on long-tail, high-intent keywords.
  • Create topic clusters: blog posts, guides, and landing pages that all link together.
  • Post on Reddit, Quora, and Medium (AI models love those sources).
  • Monitor where your brand is being mentioned in AI tools like ChatGPT.

Ready to see how you measure up?

If you’re wondering how your current site stacks up, we’ve got you. Our Careers Website Audit benchmarks your site against best practices for content, structure, speed, mobile performance, and of course, SEO. We’ll tell you what’s working, what’s not, and where to improve. All within 48 hours. Want one? Just drop us a line and we’ll take it from there.

In short

You don’t need to be an SEO wizard to make big improvements. Think like your ideal candidate, write like a human, and keep the experience simple, fast, and relevant.With AI playing a bigger role in how people search, now’s the perfect time to experiment, tweak, and stand out.

For further information

If you feel that you’d like some help, support or even a little chat around your careers website and SEO, just drop me a line. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea, a biscuit and a Zoom call.

Apr 17
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - Glassdoor

How to encourage your people to leave a good Glassdoor review

By Content marketing, Employer branding

In today’s competitive job market, businesses are always looking for ways to attract top talent without breaking the bank. So, ensuring your business has a good online reputation should be high on your list of priorities. When we buy products online, who doesn’t check the reviews first? It’s a simple way to ensure we’re getting the value we expect, and the same goes for job hunters. Before jumping into a new role, candidates want to be sure it’s as great as advertised. After all, switching jobs due to unmet expectations doesn’t look great on anyone’s CV.

That’s where sites like Glassdoor come in. As more candidates turn to workplace review sites to make informed decisions, employers have a huge opportunity to showcase what makes their business great – without needing to spend a fortune.

But how to encourage your people to leave reviews without feeling like you’re begging for approval, or that you’re applying pressure on them to say positive things about your business and your culture when they might feel differently? Here are 10 steps you can take to get your employees on board with sharing their experiences, without it feeling like an extra chore or an uncomfortable ask they’ll try to avoid.

1. Ensure yours is a positive working environment

You can’t expect glowing reviews if your workplace isn’t glowing. A supportive, engaging environment is the foundation for authentic, positive feedback. Happy employees are naturally more inclined to share their great experiences. To foster this, make it a habit to regularly check in with your team, seek their feedback, and, most importantly, act on it. Then they’ll be much more likely to share their positive experiences with the world.

2. Introduce Glassdoor and its value

If you want employees to leave reviews, help them understand why it matters. Take time to explain how Glassdoor impacts your company’s reputation and attracts top talent. When employees realise their feedback contributes to the bigger picture, they’ll be more invested in sharing their honest experiences. Make them feel like their voice truly counts.

3. Get your company’s Glassdoor profile ‘unlocked’

Unlocking your company’s Glassdoor profile is a small investment with big returns. It allows you to showcase richer content like photos, job postings, and videos, giving potential employees a real taste of your company culture. Plus, your current team will appreciate seeing a Glassdoor page that reflects the company they know and love. It builds pride and connection.

4. Make reviews part of the employee experience

Integrate review opportunities into key moments of the employee journey:

Onboarding: New hires are full of excitement, so ask them about their first impressions.
Work anniversaries: Reflecting on growth and milestones is the perfect time to gather feedback.
Promotions and milestones: Celebrate career progress while gathering insights into their journey so far.
Exit interviews: Even departing employees can share balanced, thoughtful feedback.

This approach keeps your Glassdoor page fresh and active.

5. Simplify the process – offer a clear “How to” guide

Make leaving a review a breeze by providing clear, step-by-step instructions. Not everyone’s familiar with how Glassdoor works, so guide them through the process. Offer simple, easy-to-follow steps to ensure they feel comfortable sharing their feedback without stress or confusion. The simpler you make it, the more likely they’ll take the time to write a review.

6. Encourage open and honest feedback

Let your team know that honest feedback is not only encouraged, but it’s genuinely valued. Make it clear there’s no pressure to leave only positive comments – authenticity is key. Whether they’re sharing praise or constructive criticism, giving employees the freedom to be open creates a culture of trust. Plus, potential candidates can spot fake reviews a mile off, so be upfront about the good and the bad.

7. Make it more fun – gamify the process

Glassdoor doesn’t allow incentivised reviews (and rightfully so!), but you can still make the review process fun and engaging with a bit of healthy competition. Create a friendly leaderboard, showing which departments have the most Glassdoor engagement. Give shout-outs to employees and teams who actively participate. This approach will help encourage everyone to join in without feeling forced. Who doesn’t love a bit of friendly competition?

8. Respond to reviews

Actively monitoring and responding to reviews on Glassdoor is essential for creating a transparent, open dialogue with your employees. Whether the feedback is positive or negative, showing you’ve engaged with it lets your team know you genuinely care about their opinions. By acknowledging reviews in a meaningful way, you’re reinforcing the idea that employee feedback drives progress and contributes to a better workplace for everyone.

9. Feature reviews in your internal communications

If you want your team to leave reviews, show them what happens when they do. Feature positive reviews in your internal communications; think company newsletters, all-hands meetings, or even on your social media pages. You could also use employee testimonials as part of your recruitment strategy. Why? Because doing so creates a culture of recognition. When employees see their peers being celebrated for sharing their experiences, it encourages them to do the same.

10. Make reviews a catalyst for change

Glassdoor reviews aren’t just for external branding – they should drive real change. When employees see that their feedback leads to improvements, they’re more likely to leave reviews in the future. Hold regular town halls to discuss common themes in reviews and outline steps you’re taking to make change. When feedback translates into action, employees will be even more motivated to share their thoughts.

TL;DR

The key to encouraging positive Glassdoor reviews is to create an environment where your people genuinely want to share their experiences. By making reviews a regular part of your company culture, recognising employee contributions, and ensuring that feedback leads to meaningful change, you’ll be building a stronger employer brand – one authentic review at a time.

Need a little help?

We hope you’ve found this content helpful. If you want help, support or even just a chat about this or any aspect of your employer brand or talent strategy, drop us a line. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea or a Zoom call.

Apr 10
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - The Real Cost of a Poor Employer Brand

The real cost of a poor employer brand. And how to fix it.

By Employer branding

If you’re in talent acquisition right now, you may well be juggling a long list of open roles, increasing candidate drop-off rates, more turnover, and rising recruitment costs. It may well be that your employer brand isn’t doing what it should. The good news? It’s totally fixable. The sooner you address it, the better – it’s cheaper to tackle the problem before it snowballs into something bigger. Think of us as your employer brand doctor – here to help prevent problems before they start!

Stick with us, and we’ll show you exactly how a weak employer brand can be bad for business, plus some simple, cost-effective ways to turn things around.

So, what exactly is your employer brand?

In a nutshell: it’s everything. It’s how potential candidates view you, not how you see yourself. In today’s job market, your brand needs to stay fresh and appealing to attract top talent and keep them around. Crucially, your brand impacts more than just hiring. It influences your reputation with customers, investors, and even stakeholders too.

The stats are clear: 88% of job seekers take your employer brand into account before applying, and companies with a strong brand are three times more likely to hire quality candidates. On the flip side, 69% of candidates say they’d turn down a job offer from a company with a poor reputation – even if they’re unemployed. If you want to get ahead and keep top talent coming in, making sure your employer brand is solid is more important than ever.

(Source: MRINetwork)

The cost implications of a poor employer brand

A weak employer brand isn’t just an image problem – it hits you where it hurts: your wallet. It’s often hard to see at first, but over time, a weak employer brand can cost you big in ways you might not even realise. From recruitment expenses to lost productivity, here’s a rundown of where your brand is draining your resources:

The cost of candidate fallout
If your brand is a turn-off, candidates will be dropping off too.  A 2024 Cronofy report found that 43% of candidates bail on interviews because of scheduling delays. And it doesn’t stop there – drop-off rates are high at every stage: 22% during application, 24% at screening, and 25% at interviews.

The cost of increased turnover and poor candidate quality
With a poor employer brand, you’re going to attract lower-quality candidates, which means higher recruitment costs and more turnover. Companies with weak brands may need to bump up salaries by 10% to attract talent (source: Harvard Business Review), and you’ll probably spend more time filling roles, which can hurt your operations. On the flip side, companies with strong brands experience 28% less turnover. That’s huge, considering replacing an employee can cost up to 200% of their salary!

The cost of increased reliance on agencies
When your employer brand is weak, you might lean more heavily on recruitment agencies. And guess what? Those fees can run anywhere from 15% to 30% of a candidate’s first-year salary – sometimes even higher for hard-to-fill roles. 

The cost of low engagement and productivity
Engaged employees are happy employees. Companies with engaged employees see 23% higher profitability and 17% more productivity. In contrast, disengaged workers are contributing to a global loss of $8.8 trillion in productivity each year. So, poor engagement can definitely hurt your bottom line.

In short, a poor employer brand might seem like a minor issue now, but it adds up fast – and it’s costing you more than you think. Fixing it is a smart way to save money in the long run and stay competitive.

Time to fix your employer brand?

Your employer brand doesn’t stay fixed – it’s always evolving. With the way things are changing in the job market (think shifting employee expectations, more hybrid work, and a bigger focus on purpose-driven workplaces) your brand could probably use a refresh to stay competitive. Brands need regular attention, so let’s make sure yours stays attractive to the best talent out there.

Review your employer value proposition (EVP)

Today’s employees expect more than just a salary. They want things like flexible working, mental health support, and psychological safety. DEI is no longer just about policies. It’s about action and creating an inclusive culture. Plus, your EVP needs to adapt to the changing landscape of job roles, especially with AI and automation on the rise, and increased demands for pay transparency and career progression.

If your EVP isn’t aligned with these evolving needs, it’s time to rethink it. A little investment now could make a huge difference in how your brand is perceived and how you attract and keep top talent. For more guidance, check out How to Make Your EVP Work Harder by our friends at BrandPointZero.

Adapt your EVP for different audiences

Just as consumer brands tweak their messages for different customer groups, your employer brand should speak to the unique needs of each team within your company. Salesforce are nailing this by using LinkedIn to showcase diverse content for different roles within their organisation. Similarly, Marriott does a great job with Instagram reels, highlighting everything from hospitality to corporate roles.

These brands understand that one-size-fits-all doesn’t work. Platforms like LinkedIn, TikTok, and Instagram Reels are really popular with brand right now who are using them to show behind-the-scenes peeks at their workplace cultures. This authentic, real-life content helps you connect with the right people.

If you need inspiration, check out our case study with NFU Mutual, where we helped them create a super-targeted EVP for their pricing team.

Don’t stop at the candidate experience

The candidate experience is a big deal, and rightly so. If candidates drop out of your hiring process, you lose time and money, plus you might end up paying agency fees to fill the role. A bad candidate experience can even hurt your reputation and make it harder to hire top talent in the future.

AI is changing the game. Companies like Chipotle have slashed hiring times from 12 days to just 4 using AI-powered assistants. Also, fairness and ethical practices in hiring is a must have. By creating clear, unbiased hiring criteria and offering equal opportunities to all applicants, you’ll boost your employer brand and attract a more diverse pool of candidates. And with remote work now a staple, it’s crucial that your hiring and onboarding processes are seamless, even virtually. Clear communication is key, and making remote hires feel valued from the start will help ensure a smooth transition.

Check out our article ‘Candidate experience: How to meet and exceed their expectations’ but don’t forget to carry those good experiences through into equally good on-boarding as that’s the time new hires will be evaluating promises against reality.

Re-engage candidates with your employer brand

Once you’ve nailed your employer brand story, it’s time to get it out there. Encourage your employees to share their real experiences on LinkedIn, TikTok, and Instagram. Trust us – real stories from real employees resonate way more than polished corporate ads. Companies that embrace employee-generated content see up to twice as much engagement. If you want to dive deeper into this, check out ‘Content marketing for recruiters. Engaging candidates with your employer brand’.

In conclusion

A weak employer brand is probably costing you more than you think. It’s not just about recruitment fees – it impacts your reputation and even customer loyalty. If you let things slide, it’ll only get harder to fix. So, take a moment to ask yourself: Is your EVP still delivering what your employees want? A little tweak could make a huge difference. And let’s face it – a strong employer brand isn’t just a feel-good thing – it pays off hugely in the long run. If you need help, we’re here to chat!

Want some help?

If you feel you’d like some help, support or even a little chat around your careers website or aspects of your employer brand and talent attraction strategy just drop us a line. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea and a Zoom call.

Mar 05
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BrandPointZero - Employer Branding and Communications - Blogs - The Importance of KPIs

The importance of effective KPIs for your employer brand

By Employer branding, Measuring effectiveness

In today’s competitive job market, your employer brand plays a crucial role in attracting and retaining top talent. It’s not just about looking good on paper – it’s about creating a company culture people genuinely want to be a part of. And in a world where resources are often stretched thin, it’s more important than ever to make sure you’re doing more with less. That’s where employer branding Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) come in.

By tracking the right KPIs, you can ensure your employer branding efforts are aligned with your business goals and generating real, tangible results. Think of it as finding the most efficient route to success – getting the most bang for your buck while improving your bottom line.

What are employer branding KPIs?

KPIs are measurable values that help companies track the success of their efforts. In the context of employer branding, KPIs are metrics that show how well your brand is doing in attracting, engaging, and retaining top talent. They help you understand what’s working and what’s not, and they guide your decision-making.

Tracking the right KPIs is vital as it allows you to allocate resources wisely, prioritise the areas that need attention, and focus on the strategies that are delivering the best results. A little investment in measuring the right KPIs can pay huge dividends in the long run – helping you attract quality candidates, improve retention, and create a brand that stands out in a crowded market.

Employer branding KPIs you can’t afford to skip

Here’s a breakdown of the most important KPIs to track in your employer branding efforts:

Talent attraction and recruitment metrics

  • Application conversion rate: This is the percentage of job seekers who apply after viewing a job post. A higher conversion rate suggests that your employer brand is enticing potential candidates to take the next step. 88% of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before applying for a job, so getting yours right is critical to scoring well here. Tracking your conversion rate can help you optimise your job listings to attract the right talent. (Source: Vouchfor.com, 2025)
  • Time-to-Fill: This metric measures the time it takes from posting a job to hiring a candidate. A long time-to-fill can indicate inefficiencies in your hiring process, while a shorter one suggests your recruitment efforts are on point.
  • Quality of hire: This KPI evaluates the performance and retention of new hires. It’s essential because hiring the right candidates isn’t just about filling positions quickly – it’s about finding people who will thrive in your company culture and stay for the long-term.
  • Candidate experience score: How do potential hires feel about your recruitment process? Tracking this score allows you to gauge candidate satisfaction and identify areas for improvement, which can significantly impact your employer brand’s reputation.

Employer brand awareness metrics

  • Career site traffic: Tracking the number of visitors to your career site helps you understand the reach of your employer brand. More traffic often means greater awareness and interest in your company, which is a great sign of your brand’s appeal.
  • Social media engagement: Likes, shares, comments, and interactions on your employer branding posts indicate how well your brand resonates with potential candidates. It’s important to monitor how your brand is being received on platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok, as these can be powerful tools for recruitment.
  • Employee reviews and ratings: Reviews on platforms like Glassdoor and Indeed offer valuable insights into your employer brand from the people who matter most – your employees. These reviews can show where you’re excelling and where there’s room for improvement.
  • Employer Net Promoter Score (eNPS): This measures how likely employees are to recommend your company as a place to work. A high eNPS means your employees are happy and willing to advocate for your brand, which is a powerful tool for recruitment.

Employee Retention and Engagement Metrics

  • Employee retention rate:This metric tracks how well your company is keeping talent. A strong employer brand that supports employee growth and satisfaction can help reduce employee turnover by as much as 28%. (Source: dsmn8.com, 2024)
  • Internal mobility rate:This KPI reflects the opportunities for growth within your company. High internal mobility is a sign of a healthy work culture where employees feel they have room to grow.
  • Employee engagement scores:Regular surveys can give you a snapshot of how engaged your employees are with your company’s culture and mission. Higher engagement (which will come naturally with a stronger brand – sometimes by up to 20%) means your brand is likely creating a workplace people want to be a part of. (Source: Vouchfor.com, 2024)

Why these KPIs matter

So why track all these KPIs? The answer is simple: it lets you make decisions driven by real data. 72% of recruiting leaders around the world agree that employer branding has a significant impact on hiring. By understanding where you stand on key metrics, you can allocate your resources more effectively, targeting high-impact areas which need attention. (Source: Vouchfor.com, 2024)

  • Prioritisation of high-impact areas: Not every part of your employer branding strategy will deliver the same results. Tracking KPIs helps you identify what’s working and where to focus your efforts – ensuring you’re not wasting time or money on initiatives that aren’t bringing value.
  • Cost savings & ROI: A little investment in tracking and optimising your KPIs can result in huge savings in the long run. For example, a strong employer brand can reduce recruitment costs by up to 50%, while also speeding up the hiring process. That’s money back in your pocket and less stress on your HR team. (Source: Vouchfor.com, 2024)
  • Competitive advantage: Employer branding is a powerful tool in attracting top talent. By tracking KPIs, you can continually refine and improve your strategies, building a stronger brand that stands out in the job market.

Optimising employer branding efforts with limited resources

You don’t need a massive budget to make a big impact with your employer brand. Here are a few ways to optimise your efforts and get the most out of your limited resources:

  • Employee advocacy: Encouraging employees to share content on LinkedIn, Instagram, and other social media platforms is one of the most cost-effective ways to promote your employer brand. Employees’ authentic stories carry more weight than corporate messaging and can help you reach a wider audience.
  • Automate and streamline processes: Use tools to help you track and analyse your recruitment, social media, and employee engagement metrics. Automation saves time and ensures you’re always on top of your KPIs.
  • Focus on organic growth: Enhance your career site’s SEO, showcase your company’s culture through storytelling, and be transparent about your values. These efforts can create traffic and help attract the right candidates without spending a fortune on paid ads.
  • Repurpose & reuse content: If you’ve already created content for your recruitment efforts, repurpose it! Use the same blog posts, videos, and testimonials in different formats and across different channels to maximise their reach.

In conclusion

Tracking KPIs is crucial to the success of your employer branding efforts. By measuring the right metrics, you can ensure your recruitment, retention, and brand awareness strategies are aligned with your business goals. And you’ll be able to do all of this with minimal investment.

A little time and effort spent tracking your KPIs can lead to huge benefits in terms of cost savings, improved efficiency, and a more attractive employer brand. In the end, it’s all about doing more for less. And with the right approach, you’ll be on your way to building a brand that not only attracts top talent but keeps them around for the long haul.

Want some help?

If you feel you’d like some help, support or even a little chat around your employer brand KPIs or other aspects of your employer brand and talent attraction strategy just drop us a line. After all, much of our best work has started with a cup of tea and a Zoom call.

Feb 06
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Everything you wanted to know about Google for Jobs (but didn’t know to ask)

By Content marketing

Depending on when you’re reading this, Google for Jobs has either already launched, or is due to launch very soon. Which means that you’re either enjoying the free-of-charge surge in job seeking traffic that suddenly started arriving at your careers website, you’re wondering why you’re missing out, or you want to know what on earth Google for Jobs actually is and how you can prepare for it.

We believe that Google for Jobs is a huge opportunity for employers. It’s levelling the playing field for all recruiters by making sure that everyone is playing by the same set of rules and being held to the same standards. And if you’re prepared, then being an early adopter could give you a significant advantage over your competitors for talent. And, to get started, we’ve answered some of the questions that you might have on this big topic.

What is Google for Jobs?

Google for Jobs launched in the US in June 2017. According to Google it “uses machine learning to understand how job titles and skills relate to one another and what job content, location, and seniority are the closest match to the jobseeker’s preferences.” Put simply, it’s an algorithm that better organises job listings on the Internet so job seekers can find them.

I know what you’re thinking, “Can’t we look for jobs on Google already? What’s the fuss about?” But do that now and you’ll be presented with a list of job boards carrying those roles – and you’ll then have to visit each one to find out more. Do the same when Google for Jobs arrives in the UK and it will take you to the exact roles matching your search.

Why is it a good thing for employers?

Google are offering employers the opportunity to have their jobs indexed by their search engine. And if they are indexed correctly, then job seekers are going to see them. With so many jobs being indexed from job boards and direct employers, Google for Jobs could quickly be the go-to place for job seekers. What’s more, candidates will be able to apply directly through your careers website (or ATS) via Google for Jobs. It’s a new and user-friendly way for candidates to find your roles – and to drive traffic to your careers website direct from Google.

Why is it a good thing for jobseekers?

When a process is made easier, saves time and gives better results, what’s not to like? Instead of visiting different job sites to make sure they haven’t missed a role, Google for Jobs will deliver positions closely matching a jobseeker’s preference – which could include location, type of job (full-time, part-time), ideal salary range, company type and even the specific employer by name. And it will eliminate any duplicate listings. Google’s means of filtering will help jobseekers construct a highly-personalised search – which could quickly identify roles that might not show up in a traditional search.

What will it look like?

Well you may have already seen what it looks like, as Google for Jobs is already live in the US. If you were searching for ‘marketing jobs’, sandwiched neatly between the sponsored and organic links you’ll find a new box called ‘Jobs’. In it you’ll find the jobs that Google believes are most relevant to you based on your search and location. They will be a mixture of job adverts from the job boards and employer’s careers websites. But from what we understand, direct jobs featuring on careers websites will be given priority over those listed on the job boards.

Can’t I just ignore it?

It’s your call but, as an employer, you’d want your vacancies to show up where job seekers are looking, wouldn’t you? When people want to search for something online, 90% of the time they turn to Google. So, when Google start making job searches as rewarding as they’ll be with Google for Jobs, we’d be amazed if it doesn’t quickly become the place to search. Imagine, your competitors roles are showing up, but yours aren’t. Ignore it if you want to. But why would you want to?

How can I be ready for it?

Google for Jobs will look for the same things in a career site that it does in any good website. If your career site is mobile friendly, has fresh content, the right keywords (and clear job titles) with well-indexed job postings on the same domain as your website (very important), then you are some way towards being ready. And if you have video on your careers website Google will like it even more. If however, your roles are advertised from your ATS – which usually has a domain different from the main website, then you have some work to do. Google for Jobs will not find roles hidden from their search bots by the ATS.

Need a little help?

We hope that we’ve given you a little more insight about the opportunity offered by Google for Jobs – and you are as excited as we are. There’s always an advantage in being an early adopter so, our advice is to start finding out more and if you have an ATS, ask your provider what they can do to help you prepare.

We hope that you have found this little snapshot useful. But if you’re hungry for more detail, then please request a copy of ‘Our little guide to Google for Jobs’ ebook. There is much more information available on what you need to do to get the most out of Google for Jobs.

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