Your sales team is the lifeblood of your organization. Attracting and hiring top sales performers should be top-of-mind for any business leader. However, recruiting top sales talent is no easy task. More often than not, high-performing salespeople are being actively recruited by several organizations.

Many smaller, growing organizations are asking what they can do to compete against larger competitors in the quest to attract great salespeople.

Your employer brand can be your greatest asset in growing your sales team. In today’s post we’ll explore what an employer brand is, and outline strategies you can use to build an employer brand that attracts top sales talent. We’ll cover:

• What is an employer brand?
• What do top salespeople look for in an employer?
• How to Position Your Brand as a Market-Leader
• How to Build a Strong Employer Brand Online

What is an employer brand?

Your employer brand is your reputation as an employer and the value proposition you provide your employees. Your company mission, team, culture, and values make up your employer brand. An effective employer brand positions your company as a great place to work, which results in attracting and retaining top talent. Typically, the responsibility of the employer brand falls into the realm of HR, internal communications, and marketing. However, senior leadership plays a key role in shaping the employer brand.

What do top salespeople look for in an employer?

Things that appeal to salespeople that you should aim to highlight in your employer brand include:

• Above-market compensation/earning potential
• Access to sales enablement technology
• Continuous opportunities for training, education, and coaching
• Clear career paths and opportunities for advancement
• Pro-sales company culture
• Autonomy over work
• Strong, collaborative team environment

How to Position Your Brand as a Market-Leader

Salespeople want to work for companies with a strong value proposition. When it comes to employer branding, you are essentially selling your company to potential future employees. You need to emphasize what makes your business a unique opportunity to employees and sell them on the key benefits of working with you. Some ways to position your company as a market-leader to top sales talent include:

• Highlight growth stats, awards, or other achievements that embody your company’s forward-momentum.
• Share testimonials/quotes from your current employees.
• Include a case study or story from one of your most successful sales representatives.
• Include stats that emphasize your sales team’s proven track record of success.
• Demonstrate legitimacy by highlighting logos from your larger or more well-known customers.

How to Build a Strong Employer Brand Online

The online space is where many potential employees go to research your brand. It’s also where they probably first discover your brand. There are key digital channels you should be using to get your employer brand on the radar of top sales talent.

Social Media

Any socially-savvy sales reps will likely explore your company’s social media feeds before entertaining a job offer with you. When it comes to social media, make sure your company is active on key platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Career Sites

Career sites including CareerBuilder, Indeed, and Glassdoor, are all crucial components of your employer brand. Potential sales rep will use these careers sites to evaluate your company based on salary ranges and testimonials of other sales staff working at your company. For salespeople, they leverage sites like Glassdoor to determine if they’ll be a good cultural fit for your organization. In many cases, cultural fit is the most important factor salespeople look at when they evaluate a job.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is an important hub for your company’s online employer brand. Prospective salespeople will pay close attention to your LinkedIn company profile and will likely explore profiles of your key team members before entertaining a job offer with your company. Encourage your team to be active on LinkedIn and share their experience working for your company. Also ensure your company’s LinkedIn profile is up-to-date and highlights the key benefits of working for your business.

Job Postings

Job postings are more than just a way to communicate open positions at your company. They’re also the perfect place to highlight your employer brand. A great job posting should include more than an overview of the position’s responsibilities. Aim to include the following in all of your job postings:

• Compelling company summary
• Why the company culture is unique
• Key company growth metrics/achievements
• Overview of employee benefits offered
• Opportunities for career progression/growth with the company

Your Website’s Career Page

Your website’s career page is a great place to highlight your employer brand. Here are some key elements to include on your careers page:

• Key growth metrics.If your company is experiencing significant growth year over year, highlight this on your career page. Similarly, if you’re on the Inc 5000 or have been highlighted in local press, these are great things to include too.
• Employee stories.Highlight quotes from top-performing salespeople that have experienced significant career growth at your company.
• An overview of benefits you provide.Highlight your core benefits (health insurance, 401k, flexible hours, etc.) and the additional benefits you provide (gourmet coffee, catered lunch on Fridays, monthly massages, etc.).
• Your company’s culture.Explore your organization’s values and mission. Highlight the company culture you provide and what makes it unique.

Key Takeaways

In this post we explored strategies you can use to create an employer brand that attracts top sales talent. Some key takeaways include:

• Attracting high-performing salespeople isn’t easy, but a strong employer brand can help you build your sales team
• An employer brand is your reputation as an employer and is made up of digital and word-of-mouth channels
• Top salespeople are looking for an employer with a great company culture, attractive compensation structure, and opportunities for career growth
• Your employer brand should position your company as a market-leader
• Leveraging online channels like social media, career sites, and job postings is key to building a strong employer brand

About the Author

Carolyn Kick is the Marketing Manager at Launchways. Launchways helps growing businesses better approach their benefits program through a strategic approach, creative solutions, and smart technology. The Launchways team designs innovative, cost-effective benefits programs that thrill employees and make every dollar count. Visit www.launchways.com to learn more.