Employer branding
How a company presents itself as a place to work, to attract and keep the people it needs: its reputation among candidates, its careers messaging and the employee experience behind it. It runs on the same principles as consumer branding, distinctiveness, reach and consistency, but the 'purchase' is a job decision. It fails when the promise is not true inside, because employees on Glassdoor and LinkedIn are the most credible media.
Where it's used
Used by HR, talent acquisition and brand teams in companies competing for scarce skills such as engineers, mechanics, nurses or drivers. Good when hiring is the growth bottleneck and generic job ads stop working.
See it in a campaign
Volkswagen Group France - Inside Jobs (2023)
Volkswagen Group France needed around 1,000 mechanics and technicians, and most hires in the sector come from rival garages. Instead of more job ads, it hid job offers inside vehicle parts delivered to competitors' workshops, where mechanics would open them during work. The message reached skilled people at the exact moment they were doing the job. It shows employer branding as a creative and media problem, not a careers page.