History
In 2014, I noticed that Google searches of a friend’s company routinely produced negative Glassdoor reviews on Page One of search results. I mentioned it and the CEO dismissed it, saying Glassdoor is the notorious destination of all angry and venting ex-employees. While that was and is true, I wondered what would happen if a company didn’t leave their Glassdoor reviews exclusively to ex-employees. At the very least, Glassdoor is a free company page on a website with a high Alexa score, which means any postings there benefit company SEO. And with 73% of job candidates stating they research a company on social media before an interview, they might just obtain a higher class of job candidates, too.Star Ratings ImageI pitched my pro-active Glassdoor idea to another client that was about to embark on a major recruiting effort. He adopted my suggestion and even took it a step further, purchasing an account on Glassdoor to post jobs, despite the surprise of the Glassdoor account reps, who told him they rarely got sales from companies with less than 200 employees.
The Result:
The effect was immediate and positive: the company statistics soared with the CEO’s simple suggestion to employees that if they felt so inclined, please post a review there, and be honest. The company achieved a 93% approval rating of the CEO and a 95% rating overall in a matter of months. Meanwhile, in job interviews, candidates repeatedly cited the page as increasing their interest in the company. Three years later, the measure has had multiple, unanticipated and positive results too, including:- Management awareness of employee issues and the ability to talk about them in anonymous forum, preventing unwanted resignations.
- A growth in company pride: employees routinely post and point out the page to friends as evidence of their strong company culture.
- First forays into corporate leadership and supporting non-profits rewarded with features, encouraging more.
- Statistics on the site provided favorable data for winning multiple company awards.
- Active usage provided numerous referrals to the website, boosting SEO.
- Thought leadership articles on human resource challenges had a home on Glassdoor’s highly-trafficked website.
The company was so active and so successful in using the site that last year Glassdoor awarded them an “Open Company” designation popular with recruits. That same year, over 40% of the staff surpassed the Bureau of Labor & Statistics average lifespan at a job, many having turned down higher paying job offers elsewhere. While that must be attributed to great management, management utilized Glassdoor as a trusty tool to engage with staff.
Tips for Better Results
Whether you purchase the right to post jobs there, or simply adopt Glassdoor as part of your social media strategy, there are some ways you strengthen your results:- Dress your page: awards, community leadership, all help with recruiting efforts.
- Imagery is critical, so if an employee captures a “moment” from a company event on video, or pics of the Christmas party, share them.
- Never demand employees post a review: an unwanted chore will not produce strong results. But if you know an employee is happy, perhaps due to a promotion, that’s a great time to suggest a review would be appreciated.
- Never seek out an employee who has said something negative. Your audience is much wider than one unhappy individual. Listen to what they have to say and respond. You can always “drown out” a bad review with positive ones later.
- Good or bad review, ensure management checks the page from time to time and responds to all reviews, as this will boost your rating with Glassdoor itself and unlock additional rewards.
