Is your company’s online presence going to attract staff?

How much priority do you give your company's online presence when it comes to brand reputation?

Chances are you have a website, company Facebook and LinkedIn pages, probably Twitter, maybe Instagram or even a Youtube channel and podcasts.

If they are not a company-wide priority, new research by online job platform indeed suggests they should be.

While these may be driven by your marketing team, increasingly candidates will consider an organisation’s online presence to make their own decisions about who you are, your values and whether they feel you are a cultural fit, and therefore an organisation they want to work with.

A January 2019 survey of 1,000 Australian jobseekers by Indeed, reveals 95 per cent of job seekers read reviews of potential employers with 79 per cent saying they are sceptical of companies with no online presence.

The survey also found that more than one-quarter (28 per cent) of candidates will not “trust an employer with negative online reputation” and that 64 per cent of jobseekers will focus on companies with the best online reputations if they have access to information about the company”.

Additionally, more than 50 per cent of job hunters “will have a more positive perception of an organisation if employers respond to a negative review”, Indeed said in a blog on the results of the survey.

“We live in an age of radical transparency,” Indeed’s Employer Insights Strategist, Jay Munro, said as the company promotes its Company Pages Premium service. "While reputation has always been important for any employer, in the digital age it is increasingly vital for companies to be transparent as they bid to a tract the best talent in a competitive landscape.

“Reputation and trust have always gone hand in hand in business, and prospective employees are as discerning and thorough in their approach to a new company as customers would be. Expectations surrounding transparency have become so ingrained that an absence of online information is a major red flag for the majority of job hunters.

“The culture and expectations surrounding job search have changed forever. Employers should embrace this new culture of transparency and seize every opportunity they have to start sharing their stories online and build their employer brands.”

Jobseekers participating in the survey were asked to name their five most important considerations while they were doing online research of a company prior to submitting a job application with them. “Expected hours and work-life balance was a clear winner (58%), followed by insights around salary (45%), and insights into the stability of the company (41%),” Indeed reports in its blog. “Next up was information about staff turnover (38%) and opportunities for promotion at the company (37%).

“Online reviews aren’t just important when candidates are researching whether or not to apply to a company. They also play a vital role at the other end of the process, when job seekers are deciding whether or not to accept a job.

“Only salary information (49%), and information about the company on their website (40%), were important to job seekers when considering a job offer.

“However, more than one third (38%) of respondents named online company reviews by current and former employees as the third most important factor for making this decision.”

Is it time for you to do some research on your own company just to see what your online presence is and whether it is likely to attract or deter potential talent in future?