Links of Distinction 🐯🦊🐭 EBH

And a compelling question for you...

“It was excellent. Never thought about looking at content and EB this way. It's given me renewed energy.” - Last month’s attendee

That’s what someone said about Rachel Kennedy’s and my last $25 webinar on LinkedIn content creation. This month, we’re talking about the other side of LinkedIn: maximizing content reach through advocacy. That is: content only gets you so far. It’s how you leverage all your other resources that grow your audience. July 19th. Yes, we’ll send you the recording. Yes, it’s worth the money.

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Before we get to the links, I just want to check in with you. What would make this newsletter so good you’d be crazy not to share it with your peers, your boss, and your network? It’s a high bar, but I just want to publish the best newsletter possible.

Below are some of my initial thoughts, from breaking a brand down (what seems to be working, what doesn’t), to running live or async Q&As. What would be the biggest value add to you? And if you have a different idea, reply to this email. I’d love to hear from you!

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HOW TO BUILD A BRAND?
🐯 I’m gonna come in a little hot here, folks. There is no one “right” way to build an employer brand. There is no one idea that must build on. There is no magical form it must take. If you have a narrative based on your long history of making tough decisions as the core of your brand? Great. If you brand is grounded in how you treat each other, that can be effective. If you have three pillars and an overriding purpose, that works. If you have the dying words of your founder as your brand? Fine. Hearing someone say grounding the brand in mission is the only way to make an “authentic” brand is garbage. It’s like if I drove to Madison and got a flat tire and decided the city didn’t take care of its roads.

Why do I get so steamed by this kind of thing? Because someone you know (and maybe decides if you get paid) will point you to this article as the “right” way to build, putting you in a pretty crappy position.

BETTER CONTENT
🦊 What’s the formula for attracting more interest in your content? EEAT.

HOLDING HANDS
🐭 Branding needs marketing and marketing needs branding. And they both need to understand service design. You might need to do a bit of mental translation here, but it’s an interesting article.

ROAST IT
🐯 This is a great video series of a content marketing pro breaking down what other people are posting on their blogs. If you’re not learning a lesson in each video, you must have the sound turned off or something.

EXPERIENCE IT!
🦊 Most people when they talk about “employee experience,” they picture the same kind of white glove, abundant perks and tools, hanging out in the break room with their friends kind of experience. Yes, that is A postitive employee experience, but not the recipe for everyone. That’s why I liked seeing this article on the subject which breaks employee experience into core ideas som you can help build something authentic.

DEI + EB
🐭 Your employer brand should be supporting your DEI initiatives. Not because it helps you check some boxes, but because it allows you to leverage people’s cynicism around DEI initiatives to build credibility and connect your company’s “why” to your DEI “why.”

BRAND PIVOTING
🐯 How does a “mature” brand like cosmetics giant Elizabeth Arden compete against a wave of far cooler brands from pop stars and influencers? By going back to its roots. (Further proof that your branding raw materials can come from many different places.)

HILARIOUS?
🦊 Jason Seiden mentioned to me a few weeks ago that he recommends books on comedy to people who want to pitch their ideas better. Here are some lessons in that same vein of using comedy to communicate better.

🎪The link archive is about to hit 2,000!

The things we fear most in organizations –
fluctuations, disturbances, imbalances –
are the primary sources of creativity.
- Margaret J. Wheatley

Free consulting? Yup! Just email me (hit reply) and give me three questions you’d like me to answer about your brand, your work situation, your goals, your obstacles, and I’ll give you an hour’s worth of free advice. We’ll record the conversation and share it down the road. What a deal!

If you’re interested in learning how to increase your offer acceptance rates, fill your pipeline and maybe fire your RPO agency, reach out! EmployerBrandLabs.com

***This Newsletter Contains No ChatGPT***

-James Ellis [LinkedIn] [Website]

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