At Hasseman Marketing, we believe that building a great team isn’t just about posting job openings and hoping for the best. Just as marketing plays a critical role in attracting customers, it should also be central to attracting the right talent. If you’re struggling to hire and retain employees, these four creative strategies will help you stand out, find better candidates, and keep your workforce engaged. And if you want to dive into our Hiring Playbook, you can get it here for free now. Watch the video or read more below.
1. Improve Your Company Branding Authentically
Today’s candidates, especially Millennials and Gen Z, care deeply about a company’s culture, values, and purpose. To attract the right people, businesses must develop an authentic brand that resonates with job seekers. This means more than a polished website or social media presence; it’s about living your values internally and showing the world what it’s like to work with you.
Tip:
Use storytelling on platforms like LinkedIn and your career page to showcase your culture. Highlight community involvement, employee stories, or team celebrations to show candidates what makes your company unique.
Authenticity isn’t about being perfect; it’s about being real. When employees experience alignment between the company’s external brand and its internal culture, they become your biggest advocates.
2. Build a Hiring Funnel That Works Like a Sales Funnel
Think about your hiring process the way you’d think about a marketing funnel. Just as you nurture leads through the sales funnel, you need to engage and guide candidates through the hiring funnel—from the moment they first see your job posting to their onboarding experience.
Your hiring funnel could look like this:
- Awareness: Job postings and ads introduce candidates to your company.
- Interest: Use employee testimonials, videos, and blog posts to spark curiosity.
- Consideration: Create opportunities for candidates to learn more (virtual tours, Q&A sessions).
- Application: Simplify the process to reduce drop-off.
- Onboarding: Treat onboarding as a key part of your retention strategy by offering a great first impression.
Just like in sales, each step in the funnel must be smooth and engaging to reduce friction. A clunky or complicated hiring process will cause talented candidates to drop out.
3. Engage Your Team to Tell Your Company Story (With Branded Merch!)
The best marketers for your company are your current employees. Empower them to share their experiences and love for your business. A great way to get them involved is by offering branded merchandise they’ll be proud to wear and share.
When employees wear your branded apparel or post photos with company swag on social media, they become ambassadors for your business. This organic promotion builds trust with candidates who view your employees’ stories as more genuine than formal marketing efforts.
Ideas for Engaging Employees with Branded Merch:
- Offer exclusive branded items as rewards for employee referrals.
- Host events or contests that encourage employees to share photos of their work experiences on social media.
- Provide onboarding kits with high-quality branded gear to new hires, so they feel part of the team from day one.
Not only does this create excitement, but it also strengthens team morale and attracts candidates who resonate with your culture.
4. Train and Elevate Your Team
Retention isn’t just about finding the right people—it’s about keeping them engaged and helping them grow. Employees who see opportunities for learning and advancement are more likely to stay and thrive in their roles.
Create development programs that focus on both professional and personal growth. Consider leadership training, skill-building workshops, and mentoring programs to support career development. It’s important that employees see a clear path for advancement.
Pro Tip:
Invest in regular feedback loops to help employees feel heard. Performance reviews should go beyond metrics to include discussions about career goals, challenges, and growth opportunities.
When employees know that your company values their development, they become more engaged, productive, and loyal.
Conclusion
Improving hiring and retention isn’t just an HR responsibility—it’s a strategic initiative that requires intentional branding, employee engagement, and thoughtful processes. At Hasseman Marketing, we know that marketing principles don’t just attract customers—they attract great talent too.
By authentically building your brand, creating a sales-like hiring funnel, engaging your employees to tell your story (with branded merch!), and investing in team development, you’ll be well-positioned to create a thriving workforce. These strategies will not only help you attract the right candidates but will also inspire them to stay and grow with your company.
After all, the best businesses don’t just hire employees—they build lasting teams.
Want to improve your hiring? Check out our HR Hiring Playbook! Get that here for FREE.
