Recession. (Booo!) It's the most obvious issue affecting employer marketing today, particularly in the UK where everywhere you look projects are getting back-burnered, agencies and clients are facing redundancy and you can't turn on the TV or internet without seeing Robert Peston. (Say what you will about him, he's having a good war.)
As background, I found this on YouTube. It's a proficient explanation of what the Credit Crunch actually is. (It's also part of a burgeoning genre of cheaply animated expository films that are often quite brilliant. Very de nos jours - intelligent and creative but with zero budget.)
So where does global financial meltdown leave creativity in employer marketing? The short answers is that it screws it entirely - let's not complicate the matter. And I've been racking what's left of my brain to think of what those engaged in the field can do to improve their lot. What follows may be a skinny little effort, but it's all I have, and share if you know better than I.
- Many clients will use the downturn to re-examine their existing supplier relationships. They'll probably be looking for cheaper agencies (fair enough) and opening up previously closed rosters in order to auction for best-price on upcoming projects. Creatives in agencies should be working hand-in-hand with business development to make the most of whatever opportunities they can find - particularly with reference to sectors that are likely to be most resilient over the next two years.
- Existing clients will still need to recruit, even when they're making redundancies elsewhere. Make sure you know exactly what the best low-cost/no-cost channels are, and strongly suggest that they are used. Many clients will find it hard to justify using consultants for common-or-garden roles at the moment, so make it as easy as possible for them to move into direct hiring.
- Organisations will need to keep remaining employees engaged during the downturn - those left in organisations will see colleagues getting axed and will probably have to do more work as a consequence of those colleagues leaving. So ask yourself: what do you really know about internal comms? can you act as a credible expert? Could you explain the the rules of good internal comms?
- Look at the collateral that has fallen down the back of your client's corporate sofa. Is there value to be had in revising it? The budget for the web site might have been ditched, but what about looking at the job specs, induction packs and internal job boards?
- Can you instigate a conversation between HR and Marketing (or Brand) in which they discuss sharing budgets to achieve mutual goals?
- Failing this, go to night school and learn hairdressing, pawnbrokery or funeral direction.
More light-hearted japes soon.
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