If you want to stand out to potential employees, you need to show them who you are and why they should want to work for you. The easiest way to do that? Tell your employer brand story through content. The more you share your personality, spotlight the things that make you unique, celebrate your team, and give people a peek behind the scenes, the more you can bring your brand to life. But what does that look like in real life? We thought we’d show you with a roundup of great employer branding examples across a variety of industries.
15 Awesome Employer Branding Examples
Some of these examples are simple. Some are out of the box. But all can inspire you to approach your employer branding with more creativity. And, hey, if it inspires you to try something new, we hope you’ll show us what you did. (Maybe we’ll add it to the roundup.)
1) Joann: Employer Value Proposition
One of the best ways to tell your brand story is with a compelling employer value proposition to help you connect with potential applicants. When written well, it will speak to the right people—and compel them to take the next step and apply. Joann is one of our top employer branding examples because they lead with such a strong EVP. It’s the first thing you see on their site, and they’ve packed plenty of personality into a few short sentences. You could say it’s…well crafted. (Sorry, I had to.)
Tip: If you don’t have a strong EVP, follow our guide to create one.
2) EPIC: A Purpose-Centric CTA
Everyone wants a job that is fulfilling and meaningful. From the jump, EPIC leads with its purpose-centric messaging. “Create code that saves lives” is a powerful, compelling, and emotional call-to-action that grabs attention and inspires compassionate coders to learn more.
Tip: For more ways to lead with purpose, see how these 10 brands put their values front and center.
3) Blizzard: Behind-the-Scenes Content
Sure, you can read a brand’s mission statement and About page, but to get a true sense of a company’s culture you want to know what the day-to-day is like. What are the fun things to look forward to? What types of traditions, activities, or events will you enjoy with your community? Blizzard’s behind-the-scenes @lifeatblizzard Instagram account is one of our favorite employer branding examples because it covers every culture category: work, fun, teams, pets, campus weirdness, and more.
Tip: For more ways to spotlight your team, follow our guide to create content that shows your culture.
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4) LUSH: Tips to Get Hired
The interview process is very stressful, so it says a lot when a brand works to make it less stressful. LUSH gives applicants a cheat sheet straight from their recruiters, offering insights into their hiring process and tips on how to stand out. This simple piece of content makes applicants feel confident and empowered, and shows that the brand truly cares about helping its people succeed.
5) Southwest Airlines: Veteran Resources
Southwest is dedicated to helping veterans transition to new careers. Thus, their hiring page includes details on their Military Service Appreciation Program, featurettes with veteran employees, and even a handy tool that helps veterans match their military experience to available jobs. This variety of content proves their employer brand is genuinely appreciative of those who have served—and truly committed to hiring them.
6) Louis Vuitton: Team Interviews
From their interactive origin story to their ongoing education and speakers, Louis Vuitton shares their employer brand through a variety of content. One of the more unique pieces of content is a series of audio interviews, where current employees describe the way they’ve advanced their careers at the company. These stories, from employees around the world, give interesting and valuable insight into the unique career paths people can forge within the company. 
7) Sherwin-Williams: Bits of History
Sharing your company history is a smart way to bring people into your employer brand story. But when your company has contributed to history, that’s something to brag about. Paint company Sherwin-Williams uses space on their careers page to highlight the world-famous landmarks their paint has been used on, from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Hollywood sign. It’s a simple way to show off the brand’s reputation with pride.
Tip: See how we shared our origin story for ideas to share your own.
8) Schbang: Job Announcement
Sure, you could throw up a generic “Now Hiring” sign on your website or social, but that isn’t the most enticing way to get people to apply. Take a page from marketing agency Schbang, whose incredibly clever job announcements are both entertaining and intriguing. Not only does it show off their creativity but it also demonstrates the level of creativity they expect from anyone applying.
9) CLIF Bar: Ingredients to Make a Clifster
When you’re recruiting talent, you’re not just looking for who can do the job; you’re looking for someone who can bring something unique to the table. But what exactly is that? To figure that out, the team at CLIF sat down and listed, in detail, the “ingredients” that make a good Clifster. This shows both their communal spirit and provides valuable information to help people determine if they’d be right for the job. 
10) HubSpot: Culture Deck
Wonder what HubSpot’s culture is like? They’ll tell you everything you want to know about the brand—in a 150-page presentation. Their Culture Code Deck is an impressive piece of content (and, yes, they warn you about the length) in which they share their mission, values, and so much more.
11) Trader Joe’s: Job Titles
Even the littlest things can bring your brand story to life. Simple things like headers, CTAS, or job titles are a great way to infuse your personality into the application process. Trader Joe’s crafts enthusiastic job descriptions that make people excited to join the team, right down to the job titles themselves. Instead of “Grocery Worker” or “Manager,” they call their employees Crew and Mates. It’s both creative and whimsical, giving people the sense they’re about to embark on a grand career adventure.
Tip: Make sure your copy always reflects your brand voice, and use our brand messaging framework to tell a consistent story.
12) Adidas: Employee Spotlights
What’s life like at Adidas? They boldly and proudly show you through individual videos where real employees do the talking. But these videos aren’t the generic talking-head kind. They are dynamic and energetic day-in-the-life snapshots that give a face to the brand and showcase the people, campus, and inspiration that make working there unique.
13) Progressive: D&I Data
Plenty of brands pay lip service to diversity and inclusion, but they aren’t particularly transparent about it. Progressive takes the opposite approach. Instead of making generic statements about how they support diversity, they put their data where their mouth is by publishing charts about their workforce representation, broken down by race and ethnicity. This demonstrates their commitment to accountability, which makes their employer brand all the more attractive.
Tip: Learn more about how data storytelling can benefit your brand.
14) Gusto: Benefits Description
While the job hunt is a serious thing, you can bring levity and joy into it in simple ways. Just like Trader Joe’s does with their job titles, Gusto adds a little personality to their benefits descriptions. (Who doesn’t want a couple of bucks for a thrill or chill?) These types of little touches showcase the brand’s playful personality and give you a sense of who they are behind closed doors.
15) T-Mobile: Social Content
Your own employees are one of the best sources of employer brand stories, and T-Mobile mobilizes their team in a particularly smart way. Through the hashtag #TeamMagenta, team members share jokes, stories, photos, and other content on Instagram and Twitter. It’s a clever way to increase awareness, cultivate community, and inspire potential applicants to join the team.
Two new members to #TeamMagenta work (T-Mobile) had a special delivery for two special girls! #TMobile pic.twitter.com/OwEWX7pjIC
— Jeff Coates (@JeffMKItrainer) July 21, 2020
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How to Create Your Own Employer Branding Content
There are plenty of ways to tell your employer brand story, but the smartest way to tell it is with a well-crafted content strategy. This requires research, planning, and insight into how people perceive your brand—and how you can use storytelling to connect with them. To do that…
- Audit your current employer branding to understand your strengths and weaknesses.
- Conduct an employer competitive analysis to find out how other brands are positioning themselves—and how you can differentiate.
- Map your employee experience to identify what messages people need to hear at different stages of the employee journey.
- Check out 10 more employer branding examples (with tips to tell your story).
And if you get stuck at any stage, consider bringing in expert help. Try our tips to find and vet a content agency, or hit us up. We’d love to talk about how we can solve your challenges.
