6 min read
Guest Post by Glassdoor
In today’s candidate-driven market, Glassdoor is increasingly the way job seekers look for jobs and research companies—and form opinions about those companies. As the fastest-growing job site in the U.S. with background on 500,000+ companies and more than 11 million company reviews, salary reports, interview reviews and benefits reviews, it shouldn’t fall off of any employer’s radar. Glassdoor should be treated as another place for employers to engage with their past, prospective and current employees, and to drive their culture and values forward.
So are you taking the time to think about how you and your company interact with Glassdoor?
If you’re not, you’ll be relieved to know that getting the most out of your Glassdoor profile is pretty straightforward, and it’s something you can start today.
With that in mind, here are five mistakes you might be making (and, more importantly, how to fix them!)
Mistake 1: Thinking employers have no voice on Glassdoor
More than 3,600 clients are actively recruiting talent on Glassdoor, influencing job candidates while they’re researching companies during job searches.
Meanwhile, taking a direct, hands-on approach to Glassdoor, rather than delegating the responsibility to HR or Marketing, is becoming a top priority for truly invested CEOs at small and large organizations.
Your success at leveraging Glassdoor is all about the actions you take and the replies you give to those that review your company. On your profile, you can start replying to reviews about your company, leadership, interview process and benefits. Don’t be afraid to tackle negative or challenging issues head-on in a candid, non-defensive voice, which will help build trust in your organization. This is a big step: Sixty-two percent of Glassdoor users say their perception of a company improves after seeing an employer respond to a review.
Mistake 2: Not building out your Glassdoor profile
Surprise! More people may be reading about your company on Glassdoor than your own careers page or LinkedIn profile. Part of that reconnaissance takes in company reviews left on your profile but also the basics like the name of your CEO, company address and description of your company.
Job seekers on Glassdoor are also after the inside view of your company. Based on site surveys, the top 5 things they want to know when they research are:
- Salary/compensation
- Benefits
- Basic company information
- What makes the company an attractive place to work
- Company mission, vision and values
(Glassdoor U.S. Site Survey, January 2016).
Once your employer account is approved, your marketing or HR team can start embellishing it with updated company information, details about your mission and photos to give job seekers a look into your culture. Remember: It’s important to continually refresh your content to give the most up-to-date perspective on your company. If you have a company blog or social feeds, link up the RSS to your Glassdoor profile for continuous content.
Mistake 3: Ignoring your reviews, brand and reputation
With their pick of jobs and companies, candidates spend more time these days researching their next career move. Influencing their choices, from the beginning of their job search to the eve of accepting an offer, are the candid reviews and critiques left on Glassdoor about your company.
In fact, six in 10 job seekers on Glassdoor seek company reviews and ratings before making a decision to apply for a job. More tellingly, six in 10 (there’s that percentage again) say their perception of a company improves after seeing an employer respond to a review.
The importance of monitoring your employer brand can’t be overestimated. Studies have shown that 69 percent of job seekers would not take a job with a company that had a bad reputation, even if they were unemployed. But 84 percent would consider leaving their current jobs if offered another role with a company that had an excellent reputation for as little as 1 to 10 percent more compensation (Corporate Responsibility Magazine / Allegis Group Services Study, October 2013).
From a recruiting perspective, thoughtful interview experiences, documented in reviews from candidates, can motivate other job seekers to apply and come in more prepared for an interview. For employers, monitoring feedback about the interview process is free, actionable advice to upgrade the most important component of the hiring process.
Mistake 4: Not asking your employees to be your advocates
More than half of job seekers trust content provided by employees as a source of information on a company, according to the Edelman Global Trust Barometer Survey, 2015.
Are you engaging your employees to leave reviews about the place they spend much of their waking hours? Nine out of 10 job seekers on Glassdoor say it’s important to work for a company that embraces transparency, which includes offering an inside look at an organization’s culture, work/life balance and view of leadership. And who better to provide it than those who know best what it’s like to work at your company - your employees?
Speaking of engaging, according to a 2015 Aberdeen report, companies with employee engagement programs achieve 26% greater year-over-year increase in annual company revenue, compared to those who do not have formal programs.
If you’re not already, it’s time to get engaged with your workforce. Encouraging new hires, veteran employees and job candidates to leave candid, honest reviews on your Glassdoor Profile, including “Advice to Management,” are fair and welcome ways to not only engage your employees but also take the pulse of your culture and workforce. For helpful tips and pre-built email messages, download Glassdoor’s 8 Employee Engagement Templates.
Mistake 5: Ignoring the data
Who’s visiting your Glassdoor profile? Are pageviews trending up or down over the past year? Who are your nearest competitors for talent? What are the candidate demographics of job seekers checking out your profile?
Dive into your account’s Glassdoor Employer Center to uncover a wealth of talent analytics and employer branding analytics about your organization, the background of job seekers visiting your profile (and what they think of your management), the state of your interview process, and your most popular jobs by title. You can use this branding insight to see where your company ranks competitively and also to improve your interview process and reputation by highlighting the “act now” items for recruiting or marketing to handle.
Get Started With Glassdoor
From employer branding and job advertising to employee engagement, Glassdoor is becoming an essential resource for HR, recruiting, talent acquisition and marketing. To get started, sign up for Glassdoor Free Employer Account at: http://www.glassdoor.com/employers
(Glassdoor statistics taken from a U.S. Site Survey, 2016)
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