Leveraging Employee Testimonials
Much of the time, consumers research a product online before committing to a purchase. This is true of prospective employees, too. Before accepting a job offer, candidates research the company online, ask their family and friends what they know about the business, and look at any reviews they can to get the best idea of what the company is all about.
This behavior can be used to your advantage as a hiring manager! Before people “buy” into your business (IE: accept a job offer), they should have a better picture of what kind of company you are and how you treat your employees. To make sure you control that message as much as possible, create a strategy to leverage testimonials.
Why utilize employee testimonials?
A video or quote from a real employee at your company will speak much louder to prospective candidates than anything you might provide in a written response. Humans are instinctive storytellers, so an employee testimonial is a perfect way to promote authenticity and transparency around your business.
If your current employees are treated well in their jobs, they’ll want to share that with others.
How should you leverage testimonials?
Starting this process is pretty simple – just ask! Encourage your top performers to send you short video testimonials, or a quote you can attribute to them, explaining why they love their job, the company, and why they choose to stay. You can also highlight milestone anniversaries, promotions or employees who have been with the company for several years.
These testimonials can be shared on social media, of course, but it’s important to include them in other places people learn about your company! Try incorporating them into your job ads by adding a job-specific testimonial as quotes within the job description or, if possible, embedding a video clip on the webpage itself. Consider including them on your career page on your website, as well.
What format is best?
Mix up the media used to share your employee testimonials. Utilize testimonial images, videos or even audio. Know your audience. Some formats may work better when targeting candidates for certain positions. Engagement may also vary depending on the demographics. Track the performance of each format type and create benchmarks on what works best.
Also consider the format when asking for testimonials. Some of your employees may be more comfortable using different platforms, so be sure to give them options.
At The Reserves Network, we encourage our employees and customers to provide us with testimonials on their experience. This helps show who we are and what we do when cultivating new relationships with candidates and clients. Reach out to us today to learn more about how you can leverage testimonials to strengthen your recruiting brand.
