Storytelling as an important part of your employer branding

Storytelling

When we talk about employer branding, corporate branding or storytelling for companies in general, it is largely about positioning yourself in a market as an attractive company and workplace.

Branding storytelling can convince, persuade and sell a message. When you use storytelling as part of your employer branding strategy, it can be a challenge to use 'entertaining' as a technique. Creating engagement can also be a little uphill. This is because employer branding is basically one-way communication.

If, on the other hand, you prefer two-way communication, you can try reading more about employee advocacy here.

Regardless of whether you use employer branding or employee advocacy, the purpose of your storytelling is that you create value for your audience and are relevant.

Other benefits of storytelling include:

• Greater visibility compared to competitors who are fighting for the same group of skilled employees
• Opportunity to show a publicly unknown value that you have in your company. Maybe you run a talent program, give the employee of the year a holiday, or something completely different

In this way, you can create better market positioning and differentiation.

In order to create good storytelling, you need to know which techniques you can use.

You can get these techniques here:

Storytelling techniques

Make sure that your story telling in employer branding is relevant to the target group. For a message to be relevant to the target audience of potential candidates to work in your company, don't talk down to the target audience like parents talk to their children. Instead, you must speak at eye level.

We have also covered the technique of standing out.

On the other hand, we have not talked about the fact that good storytelling has several side stories and a main story. Try to think of how the 24 sections are structured in a Christmas calendar. There are a lot of issues along the way that need to be resolved. But the big story is that everyone must reach the goal of having a really good Christmas. The technique here is therefore that the storytelling is tension building, which keeps your audience engaged.

Speaking of the Christmas calendar, good storytelling is about speaking to the hearts and minds of your audience. An example of this is identical to the following example and technique.

Find a new angle that your competitors aren't using. How many employer branding videos have you seen where an employee stands in the store and says that working in this particular company is something oh so great? Try instead to create a good storytelling around the employee in video. Have some sequences made where your employee gets ready at home, goes to sports etc. It creates an entirely more personal profile, a more credible image of the employee and also of your video.

Don't wait too long to make your point. Our brains only take a few seconds to assess whether any advertisement is good - relevant - and worth spending time on! So make a quick point. It is in the pitch that you get the viewers' attention and interest. So create an eye-catcher. 

The packaging of your video must be made so that it is possible to comment on and share the video. That way, you can create the greatest possible reach and get the most out of your marketing budget.

Why should I actually watch your video? To watch a video, I have to press the play button. Completely impractical, so remember to insert the YouTube play button.

Storytelling model

 

We have now looked at how to do storytelling. The actual model for good storytelling is:

1. Introduction, where you create an eye-catcher
2. Centre, where you hold the viewers' attention
3. Ending where redemption comes. For example: "Meet Andrew (whom you have seen in the video) and other students at our open house event on...

It is also important that the target group can identify with the protagonist. Then find a main character who, in terms of age and appearance, is in sync with the viewers.

In this way, the first person perspective comes to be like a reflection of the target group.

We are now ready to see how your video should be used in the best way.

When you have the completed employer branding video, you are ready for the next step. Here's how to make one: