Your branding is important when it comes to attracting top talent and closing new business. Your Net Promoter Score (NPS) establishes trust and authenticity for your brand, and those elements will differentiate your brand from competitors. This also helps potential clients choose your brand, so it’s an excellent sales tool.
Branding is a crucial part of being a great employer and successfully managing your business’s online reputation.
More than 59% of employers say their branding is a key component of their HR strategy. This is because people are the single most important element for organizational success, and proper branding helps companies attract and keep talent. Employer branding has become an integral part of talent acquisition.
When job seekers are looking for a new position, 84% say that company reputation is important in their decision-making.
Having a clear, strong brand is important to your people. Bookmark this article as a guide to branding yourself as an employer, and how to build better branding using reviews and referrals for sales efforts.
How to use reviews and referrals for employer branding
There are a few tactics that will help you improve employer branding, like being consistent across your channels, defining your core values, and using the right promotional channels.
But a key way to win with branding is to leverage your reviews and referrals, allowing your clients and employees to evangelize for you. Reviews on Google and in directories like Capterra and G2 can help people assess whether they want to work for your company. In fact, a majority of employees say they research company reviews and ratings when making decisions about where to apply.
You may wonder what makes reviews so important? It’s simple. People trust other people. For most of my career, I’ve looked first to see what positions are available in the industry I’m interested in, and then from there, I’ve relied on what I know about a company and whether I want to associate myself with that brand. Additionally, networking and reaching out to friends and associates is a great way to learn about available positions and get the inside scoop on what the culture is like within the company.
A great example of employee referrals is personal to me, because that is how I came to Crewhu! A friend of mine, Lauren Foley, is one of our incredible Account Managers. She came via Ryan Denning, our VP of Sales, who was brought on directly by Stephen Spiegel, our fearless leader and CEO. I had been with my company at the time for over three years, doing great in my role, but then Lauren spoke so highly of the work Crewhu was doing that she piqued my interest. Here’s what she had to say:
“I joined Crewhu because of the value that they provide MSPs, and the potential for future growth as a brand. In a hyper competitive market, it is incredibly important to understand how your clients and customers perceive you as a business, and to ensure that you are delivering the best experience that aligns with your company goals. It is also equally as important to take that insight from your customer base, and use that knowledge to improve daily operations and employee behaviors. By recognizing your Crew on a daily basis, you create a strong company culture with a focus on core values, and that is the recipe to a successful business. We at Crewhu get to help MSPs to run a successful business and be inspired daily.”
I did my research and the client testimonials were too good to ignore. A company that takes care of their clients will always also take care of their employees. That said, when Ryan reached out to chat, that was the beginning of a new chapter for me, and one I’m beyond excited about.
Similarly, referrals can be very effective branding tools to improve employee acquisition and retention. Some companies may offer an incentive, like a bonus, if a current employee refers a new hire to the company. This shows employees that the company values them and trusts them to recommend people they know, and in turn, job seekers will also see this as a win. This tactic makes it clear that the employer prioritizes its employees.
Here are a few tips for incorporating reviews and referrals into employer branding:
Actively maintain your pages
Clients and job seekers alike love to read reviews on Google and beyond, so it’s important to review your directory and web profiles regularly. You want to know how people are talking about you, and why, and consider what it may mean for current job seekers as well as potential buyers. Stay active so people see you value your brand image. If you can, reply to any negative comments with questions or an explanation so it’s clear you’re staying active in how people perceive you. Crewhu has tools to automate testimonials with our CSAT tool, so I’d definitely suggest checking that out.
Incorporate NPS and CSAT
The Net Promoter Score (NPS) and customer satisfaction score (CSAT) should be critical components of your branding approach. These scores measure and evaluate customer experience and sentiment, and you can integrate them to assess employees and specific interactions. Gathering feedback shows customers you value their opinion, which can boost branding. It also helps you identify areas that need attention within the business. These tools are essential for SEO efforts as well as closing deals.
Treating your customers well attracts world-class employees
When your customers feel seen and are treated well, your reputation will precede you. When talent is on the lookout for new opportunities, they’ll be attracted to brands with reputations for great customer service. They’ll look not just for what the job is but why they will want to give their energy to this employer. For instance, I asked Brendan Salvo, Account Executive, what brought him to Crewhu from his previous role, and he said,
“I joined Crewhu because of what their Mission means for its clients, partners and employees. And that Mission has earned Crewhu a positive reputation in the MSP and vendor community. An organization can go as far as its people can take it and this shared idea of people being your greatest asset hit home for me. To me, the idea of a company ‘taking care of its employees’ has been watered down in most places. Crewhu excites me because they have demonstrated a commitment to a shared goal and shared values, and continuously engage a team on what it means to be aligned behind those core values and goals.”
Your branding ensures your audience knows just what your ‘why’ is. The why is your secret sauce, and it’s how you’ll attract top talent that will then close deals with clients that will then become raving fans.
On the subject of raving fans, you’ll create these for your MPS if you ask for their feedback. Surveys not only collect the good feedback, but also the bad, which is essential for coaching and improving processes. The good reviews give you a clue as to which clients might refer your business to other businesses. Our Capterra page is an excellent example of where we gather feedback and learn what makes our clients raving fans or potential detractors. We use this information to train our team and improve processes.
Focus on people your company has a strong relationship with. This also works with referrals – think about someone you trust who has a solid network and see if they could refer anyone to work for your company.
Focus on employee recognition
Employee recognition initiatives give people a fantastic opportunity to talk about their experiences, and they’ll have a better impression of the employer when such incentives exist. One of our favorite reviews for employee recognition was posted by a client on LinkedIn:
“How’s this for employee recognition!!! I saved my Crewhu ‘bucks’ for some Virgin Experience Gifts vouchers and this weekend I got to fly in a helicopter!!!
Loved every second of it!!! Thanks Air IT 😍”
- Felicity Porter, Head of Professional Services, Air IT
Developing an employee recognition initiative with a tool like Crewhu can be a game-changer. Our platform integrates gamification to help you reward and motivate employees and meet company and team goals with an engaging, fun approach. Learn more about gamification through Crewhu!
Why does your MSP’s branding matter?
Any company knows that branding is important. It describes and identifies the business and considers factors such as design and logo, voice, audience, marketing materials, and company mission and vision. Employer branding helps candidates understand what the employer values and shows how they practice what they preach. Here are a few reasons employer branding is so important:
- Lower hiring costs by attracting more job candidates with a strong brand presence
- Attract better job applicants – 90% of candidates would apply to a job if it’s clear the employer maintains its brand
- Keep current employees by making branding clear and actionable
- Attract more diverse talent by incorporating DEI initiatives into branding
- Achieve higher close rates and more opportunities in your sales process
- Retain the employees you have through successful conversions and happy clients
Branding can be even more effective when you incorporate employee rewards and recognition, strategies that help you stand out to candidates and better support your workers. Check out how we can help you automate employee recognition and integrate with the tools you're already using!
When you need better feedback tools for employees and customers, Crewhu can help. Our platform integrates customer service management and employee recognition to help your organization stay efficient and see better performance. You can reward and recognize employees right through the platform and integrate feedback to understand where people are coming from.
To learn more about how to integrate feedback, download our NPS Framework and Starter Kit today or book a demo of our platform with our team!
