Tag Archive for: staffing

How Are You Building Your Brand in 2022?

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In the fast-moving and ever-so-competitive world we are currently living in, it’s the companies with strong, regularly evolving brands that will bring in the most business and continue to grow. It’s common knowledge that the pandemic, among a variety of other factors, have forever changed consumer behavior as well as employee needs and standards. As a result, many new norms have been created. Organizations that want to continue to thrive must adapt to shifts within the market and their industry, and must consider both their target audience and their employees when implementing new and improved processes. This begins with how a company brands themselves.

Branding is the ongoing process of creating a special identity that is associated with your company, products, and/or services. When most people think of branding, they envision logos, colors, and a catchy tagline. While those things are definitely aspects of branding, they account for a small fraction of branding as a whole. In order to create a strong and memorable brand, an organization must think of their brand as the identity and reputation of their business.

Building a powerful brand is how you will generate awareness, positive associations, and loyalty to your company and offerings. They way you get your audience to perceive your company and the value that it brings is by formulating an effective brand strategy. Here are some of the top ways to build your brand in 2022:

1. Emphasize Your Mission, Values, and Culture

Despite current popular belief, there isn’t actually a worker shortage; there is a shortage of companies that meet employee needs. Job seekers are in search of companies that align with their values and are willing to accommodate needs that may not have been there prior to the pandemic. You may very well be keeping up with workplace trends and have the best business model in your industry. However, if you want to attract employees that are a culture fit, you must advertise what you are all about across multiple platforms. People today look for purpose and want to feel valued at their place of employment. Additionally, people are more inclined to partner with and buy from companies that are making a difference. Don’t be afraid to showcase current projects or feature your core values on your website and social media.

Ways to Emphasize Your Mission, Values, and Culture:

  • Have a page dedicated to your mission on your website
  • Create posts about each one of your values and how your company embodies them for social media
  • Make an effort to recognize your employees publicly
  • Showcase your company charity projects on your website and social media

2. Know What Differentiates You

Every organization has something that separates them from their competitors, but it’s not always evident to their target audience. When constructing brand campaigns, it’s crucial to highlight how individuals would benefit from choosing you. Whether it’s your pricing, your fast turnaround time, or your stellar customer service; you must underline your unique selling point to compel your audience to buy from you.

Things that Can Differentiate Your Company:

  • What you look for in employees
  • Events your organization hosts
  • Having specialty departments
  • Having access to certain data

3. Establish Your Brand’s Personality

In order to have consistent messaging, you have to position your brand with a personality. Creative, professional, and luxury are all examples of brand personalities. Once you determine the personality of your brand, you will be able to create consistency in what your audience can expect from you. Everything from the wording you use in your print collateral to the way you facilitate conversations with potential buyers should match your brand’s personality. This gives consumers a way to identify you and decide whether or not your company will meet their needs should they partner with you.

Things that Establish Your Brand’s Personality:

  • The tone in your email campaigns
  • The graphics you use on your social media pages
  • The tactics you use to promote your services
  • The “extras” you offer to your clients

4. Experiment with Your Messaging

Companies that have the most success are the ones that test multiple different tactics to see what their audience responds best to. As the market changes, so will the mentalities and needs of your ideal client/customer. It’s important that you adjust your branding to address their pain points. This is most effective when it is backed by market research. Take the time to gather data and experiment with different platforms and advertisements to see what they engage the most with. You may be surprised at what they are drawn to.

How to Experiment with Messaging: 

  • Try a combination of free and paid marketing strategies
  • Keep track of when and where you get the most responses from your ideal clients
  • Poll your audience regarding what they want to see
  • Test out marketing tactics and platforms that are new and trendy

If your company is in need of employees, we at Award are here to help. Contact us with your staffing needs.

 

What is Your Company Known For?

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If you were at a business event and someone were to ask you or anyone on your team what your company is known for; would you be able to give them a confident response?

Of course you are known for the products you sell or the services you provide, but what exactly makes your organization’s model and digital presence different from that of your competitors?

This key selling point is often one that gets missed, since the top priority for most businesses is simply to promote their company as the best in the industry at what they do.

However, with more and more companies establishing themselves on social media to beat out their competition for the top spot in the algorithm; and a market where employees and job seekers have the upper hand, standing having strategically placed qualities that set you apart is what will make the difference between a company that is remembered and one that is not.

In previous years at Award, we have had a strong digital presence, particularly on Facebook, known as the local staffing agency that has a comical and entertaining presence. Through our creative use of skits, movie characters, and themed photographs, we build a solid audience and omnipresence to a group of people, of which many would become our associates.

Over the past year, we have rebranded and with that have also reactivated an important piece of our business- our Award Cares program.

It has always been important to us that we give back to our community; which is why, as of last summer, we decided to do a company-wide service project every quarter going forward.

To enhance each of these projects, we also create a social media campaign that showcases the progress of them from beginning to end on social media

Through this, we began to see a significant increase in our social media engagement, particularly on LinkedIn.

Many of our connections have showed an interest and what we are doing and have expressed the desire to do similar things at their companies as well.

To really stand out, we experimented with the idea of all black and white photos, with a pop of color. This began during our Warming Their Soles sock drive last fall when we wanted the primary focus of the pictures to be the socks our employees were wearing and the stories behind them.

It proved to gain a lot of traction online; therefore, we decided to keep it going and to make it a main focus of our strategy. Now, when people see the black and white photos with just a hint of our green and turquoise brand colors, they instantly recognize it as a post from Award Staffing.

Implementing these things the past several months have proven to be a very effective way build a presence within our local and online communities, all while showcasing what we at Award are all about.

What is something your company does or can do to increase that recognition factor within your industry?

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If you’re company is in need of employees, we at Award are here to help. Contact us here with your staffing needs. 

Why Knowing What Meaningful Work Means to You is Crucial to Placement Success

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One of the most important things to us at Award Staffing is that both our internal and our external employees find meaning in their jobs.

When our recruiters place our associates, they do not want to simply place them in the first role that is available; they want to place them in a position that is a good fit, with a company that they can grow with and hopefully move up in that organization.

We know that a career is a person’s livelihood, and we want to see all of our employees find both success and fulfillment in the roles they are hired for.

One of the things that can help you be successful in any future role is: knowing what meaningful work means to you. We all have different definitions of what meaningful work is and by knowing what it means to you, the recruiter you are working with can help you find the best match.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when deciding what meaningful work means to you:

1. Is a relationship with my colleagues important to me?

This is a huge determining factor in whether or not a team-based role or a more individual role is a better fit for you. If you want to be with a team that you can grow with, a smaller company with a tight-knit team is likely a good match. Whether or not a team-based position is important to you is definitely something you want to share with the recruiter you are working with.

2. Is meaningful in the work or in what the work provides me?

For some people, knowing that they are assembling medical devices for people in need of them is what they need to feel fulfilled. For others, simply having a job that provides for them while still being able to spend time with their family is all the meaning they need. It is deeply personal. If you are looking for a role that directly involves contributing to the common good, don’t be afraid to ask your recruiter what types of roles like that they offer.

3. Do I want a role that will provide me professional growth?

We have some associates that have full intention of moving up to higher positions within a company and others that have been perfectly happy working the same position and the same hours for several years. It all depends on your lifestyle and personal goals. If you need a consistent schedule that is almost guaranteed to never change, there are definitely companies that match that requirement. If you have more flexibility and see yourself moving up as you learn more, communicate to your recruiter that you would like a company with plenty of opportunity for growth.

4. Do I want more experience before deciding what the best fit is for me?

The nice thing about working with a staffing agency is that there are always plenty of temporary positions you can try out before committing to something long term. It’s ok if you don’t know exactly the direction you want to go yet. Let your recruiter know that you are currently only interested in temporary positions and once you feel like you have found a fit, ask them what long-term options are available.

 

If you or anyone you know is looking for a job, we update our job boards daily. Check out our newest listings here.

How to Make Your Job Postings Candidate Centric

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In the current times, which are being referred to as a “candidate market”; job seekers have the option to choose from many different industries and positions. This has not been the case in previous times, especially not to this extent.

No matter what line of work, companies across-the-board are struggling to find and retain employees, doing everything in their power to bring new candidates through the door. This nation-wide occurrence does not appear to be going away any time soon. That being said, if businesses want to change their short-staffed situation, they must change their strategy. One way to do that is by being different.

Bringing in new candidates begins with your job postings. It only takes twenty seconds of reading a job posting for an applicant to decide whether or not they’re going to submit an application. If you don’t engage them right away, they will lose interest and not even finish reading it.

Here are some of our recommendations for getting people to apply to your job postings.

1. Instead of statements like, “we have a great culture”, communicate your company’s culture through your tone and writing style

Do you have an office that is constantly laughing and joking around? If so, add a bit of witty humor to your job description. Do you have a very relaxed team that somehow magically never sweats the small or big stuff? Use vocabulary such as, “zen” or “calm”. Most companies try too hard to maintain an overly professional image on the outside. That approach is archaic; these days, people want to see an organization’s personality.

2. Mention Autonomy

Workplace autonomy is the number one value people have nowadays. While every company is going to offer this in different ways, it’s definitely something you want people to know about right away. Do you have a hybrid model? Do your employees choose their own hours or take lunch at whatever time they want? Mentioning these things is a sure-fire way to capture a job seekers attention.

3. Talk About Personality Fit

Companies are always so quick to list out their own needs and go into detail about the qualifications and/or experience that someone needs to have in order to be hired. One thing we know to be true at Award, is that having a team that works well together can make or break the success of an organizations operations. Plus, we’ve all worked somewhere in the past where some of our co-workers made showing up every day difficult. Personality is not something that should be overlooked when you are searching for the right fit.

4. Instead of, “depending on experience”, post the salary range.

While there may be some cases where the pay is non-negotiable, you must remember that a job is a person’s livelihood. They need to know whether or not it will be worth their time to apply and set up an interview by knowing if the pay will meet their lifestyle needs. Also, people don’t want to work for a company that is totally rigid. Making it clear that there is room for negotiation in this area communicates that there is flexibility.

If your company is in need employees, we at Award are here to help. Contact us here with your staffing needs.

How the Right Placement Can Help You Find Your Purpose

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One of the things we know to be important here at Award Staffing is that every person finds their purpose in the workplace. That’s why we feel that a big part of our purpose is connecting people through meaningful work.

We know how important it is that people feel a sense of both contribution and accomplishment doing the work that they do, as that’s how most people spend 40+ hours of their week.

It’s important to us that anyone we place, whether it’s temporary or permanent finds a place where they feel a sense of purpose. It’s then that we know we did our job well and that both our client and our associate can feel confident about working with us and the future of their career and business.

Here are just a few of the ways that finding the right placement can help you find your future:

1. You can know whether or not you want to manage and what type of manager you want to be

One big advantage about the industry we are in and the type of work we staff for is that there is plenty of room for growth and that many of the positions are very collaborative. This helps you become familiar with all departments and get to know everyone on the management team. It’s through observation that you’ll know what management style you and other employees respond to best and whether or not you are interested in taking on a management role in the future.

 2. You can find an industry that you may not have thought you would ever be passionate about

It’s usually not until someone has worked in the light industrial sector that people know what truly goes on in a warehouse or at a distribution site. Anyone in those positions can tell you that there are many moving parts. By trying out a temporary position at a site or warehouse, you can observe and decide what type of role you would do best in and what shift pairs best with your home life.

 3. You can know what environment you need to thrive/where you do best

Some people do better in a quieter more low-key environment, while others do better in a constantly going, more team-based setting. If you have already tried out working in an office or at a desk, a light industrial position could be the next step. It’s only after you try a variety of positions that you will find what you enjoy the most and where you do your best work.

4. You can know if company culture, having a team, or working individually is best for you

Because there are so many different positions in warehouses and distribution centers, you will likely be able to try out a variety of them within a short period of time. In this industry, extra people are always needed; therefore, positions are always open. While some people want to work for a company that emphasizes team work and company culture, others want a job where they can zone out on their own. If you work a few temporary positions, you’ll discover your preference and can choose what’s right for a long-term position.

If you or anyone you know is in search of a job, we update our job boards daily. Check out our current openings, here.

How to Provide Unsurpassed Service

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One of the most important things to us at Award, is that we always provide our clients and associates with unsurpassed service. As the number one staffing agency in Minnesota, as well as one of the top 175 places to work in Minnesota for 6 years in a row; we are constantly striving to improve our processes to make them easier for both sides and to let our clients know that we value them.

Whether you are a client based company or a customer based company, there are a number of good ways to provide unsurpassed service. Here are our top recommendations for how you can provide your clientele excellent service.

1. Treat Your Employees Well & Create a Stellar Company Culture

You may be wondering what this has to do with your clients, and the truth is; everything. Good service starts with people who are excited to come to work every day and perform their best. If you are understanding about your employees’ needs and intentionally create a culture that they want to be a part of, it will create a trickle-down effect and in-turn, they will go above and beyond for clients. Showing concern for the well-being of your employees will also result in fewer call outs and less tardiness, meaning there will be consistency in which staff member your client is working with.

2. Be Timely and Responsive

There is nothing more frustrating from a customer’s perspective than trying to reach someone with a pressing question or concern, and not hearing back for days or weeks at a time. If a client is trying to get ahold of you, it’s for a reason. Being timely in your responses and on-time for meetings/events shows professionalism and that you respect your client’s time. Remember, your clients have more than one option for who they want to work with; if you want them to keep using your services, being timely and responsive is essential.

3. Show Up in Person

This is particularly important if you are local. In the current digital age, nothing compares with human-to-human interaction. If your client is having an issue, meeting them at their location to discuss how it’s going to be resolved will set you apart from other companies in your industry. It also shows your client that you genuinely care. Making an effort to do this regularly will also build a trust factor between you and your client, as they will get to know you on a more personal level.

4. Go Above and Beyond

Although it is a business relationship, if you want to be the company that your clients refer out, you’ll need to do something beyond just the duties that they hire you for. Every year, we at Award give our clients flowers and holiday cards, and we often provide lunch for our longest partnerships. This is what will separate you from your competitors and make your clients want to leave you good reviews. Any company can do what they were hired to do, but it’s only a select few that choose to take it a step further.

5. Communicate

Keeping in regular contact with your clients and checking in with them to see how everything is going is an important habit to get into. Even if everything seems like it’s going fine, keeping them updated and asking how everything is going is good practice. There is enough ghosting in this world as it is, don’t sign a new client, complete the job, and then disappear. Especially if you are a staffing agency that has associates working at your client’s sites.

If your company is in need of employees, we at Award are here to help. Contact us with your staffing needs here.

How to Provide Meaningful Work as an Employer

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Nowadays, people don’t work solely for a paycheck. While that is most certainly the biggest driver of why people have jobs; when people go to work every day, they want to feel like there is more meaning behind what they do than just making a living.

As we are currently in a candidate market, and people currently have the option to be particular about where they work, it is important that companies provide a meaningful work experience to their employees.

When in search of a new job, people no longer simply choose the one offering the highest pay, the one closest to home, or the one that is the most relevant to what they went to college or trade school for. They search the companies that want to interview them via their website and social media pages to see if there is something they stand for.

It’s very important that companies not only advertise a meaningful workplace to get people through the door, but also demonstrate and maintain that meaning so that employees choose to stay with the company in the long run.

Here are 5 ways employers can create meaningful work for their employees:

 

1. Give Employees the Chance to Contribute

In today’s world, it is more important than ever for people to know that they are giving back; especially to the local community. By making service and/or charity a part of your business model, employees will take pride in where they work. This shows that the company values things other than revenue generation and publicity and that the organization cares.

It is important to note, that any charity or service project that the company hosts should take place during work hours. This enables all team members to participate and shows that you know that your employees have a life outside of work.

2. Take Action on Feedback

If an employee comes to you with constructive feedback that you know could benefit the company, find a way to implement their suggestion and recognize them publicly for it. This will show them that they are listened to and that their input is considered and valued. Be sure to give the employee credit when you announce the implementation to the rest of the team. This will encourage others to speak up about processes that can be improved and will show the employee that they are seen for who they are and not just a number in the company.

3. Find Evidence-Based Ways to Live Out Your Company Values

Nearly every company has a set of core values, but very rarely do they get put into practice. Many companies have a core value of fairness, but almost all the time, favoritism is seen and felt in the office. Appreciation may be listed in the employee handbook, but appreciation goes far beyond thanking someone for that little extra they did. If your company values communication, than the proper channels, such as: slack, regular meetings, and timely email responses must be provided and enforced.

If your company runs off of certain systems such as EOS, you must have weekly team L10 meetings and set rocks every quarter. As the saying goes, practice what you preach.

4. Provide a Social Space and Host Social Events

Everyone wants to feel comfortable with the people they work with, since there is so much time being spent together. Work will also feel more meaningful if there is a strong component of both teamwork and support. People will be much more excited to come in every day if they enjoy their colleagues. By designating a certain area for employees to socialize whether during lunch or just in between meetings, they will have the opportunity to interact more often. This can look like a lounge area, a game room, a break room, etc. It’s also beneficial to host company outings every so often whether they are after-work happy hours or team lunches.

 

If your company is in need of employees, we at Award Staffing are here to help. Contact us here with your staffing needs.

Six Reasons to Search for Employment through a Staffing Agency

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If working with a staffing agency is new to you, it’s understandable why you may not see the benefit in it right away. You’re likely thinking, why would I go through an agency when I can just apply to the jobs I want myself? While that’s a fair thought, there are several perks to finding work through a recruiting company that you’re more than likely not aware of. Not only will it be much more convenient, but having a reputable recruiter there to promote you will surely be to your advantage.

Here are just a few of the reasons that working with a staffing agency will do you good:

1. They know the local market very well

Especially if they have been in their position for a while, they have many connections and relationships in the local area. This means they have already built rapport with multiple companies that trust them to send quality candidates. They know what specifically is important to each company and can pitch you and help you tailor your résumé in a way that makes you ideal for the position. 

2. It will likely get you a job quicker

Remember, it is in a recruiter’s best interest to fill positions as quickly as possible while still choosing the best people. Additionally, when companies contact recruiting agencies, it’s because they are in current need of employees and have the goal of getting qualified people through the door sooner rather than later. Since the recruiter processes all of your new hire paperwork instead of the employer, you won’t have to worry about coordinating a time to go and take care of it with the company. It’s a common thing for candidates to have interviews and then be able to start working the next day when you go through a staffing agency.

3. They’ll be able to share with you opportunities that you wouldn’t otherwise know about

Did you know that some companies find their people exclusively through staffing agencies? There may be positions near you that you didn’t know were available because the company doesn’t advertise online or through job boards. Also, though you may know your surrounding areas very well, there are always hidden and new businesses that the staffing agencies are the first to know about.

4. You can ask specific questions about culture, environment, management, etc...

When you apply for and accept a job through the company directly, outside of the impression you get from your interview, you won’t know much about the company prior to starting. Agencies on the other hand know the companies through-and-through. Before they are able to start sending candidates to the client, they have thorough conversations with leaders in the organization and have often toured the facility to see what the atmosphere is like. This allows you to ask questions to be sure it’s a good fit before committing to any position.

5. You can be more specific

Especially in the Light Industrial and Warehouse sectors, there are shifts of all kinds being offered. Overtime, half days, part-time, full-time, overnight, early morning. When a company publicly advertises a position, they typically have set shifts that they are looking to fill. When working with a recruiting agency, you can tell them what your preferred hours are and they can try and match you with a company that fits well with your schedule.

6. Saves time

Instead of having to apply to numerous companies through their websites, you can simply submit your résumé to the staffing agency you’re working with and they can send it off to the companies for you. You also won’t have to worry about scheduling interviews with each company individually; you can simply give the recruiter your availability and they can coordinate the details for you.

If your or someone you know is looking for a job, we at Award Staffing are here to help. Check out our latest opportunities here. 

 

What Is Your Company Known For?

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Today, as some of our team was in a meeting discussing things we would like to roll out early next year, a very simple but profound statement came up; “We do two things, we sell and we hire”. It’s true, here at Award Staffing, we sell our services to local businesses and we help local residents find work (at those companies). Sure there are many moving parts to this, and they are not the only things we do per se, but those two things are our primary functions; they are what we are known for. That being said, if someone were to ask you what your company does, would you know what to tell them without giving a long, drawn-out explanation?

Many times in college marketing classes, students who are about to go out in search of their first real job, are taught how to craft an Elevator Pitch about themselves. An elevator pitch is a statement or description of a product or company that explains the concept in a clear way within a matter of seconds. Essentially, if you only had one elevator ride to tell someone what you did, what would you tell them? Although you may do a variety of things, this pitch is meant to highlight what’s most important so someone can decide if they are interested in working with you or your company. Truthfully, you never know where you’ll meet an ideal client or future employer or how much time you’ll have when you do. Therefore, being prepared for when that opportunity comes will put you at an advantage. Remember, though you and everyone at your company may be experts at what you do; the rest of the world isn’t as well versed. In order to market your company as one that others would want to work with, it’s important to be able to communicate your expertise in a prompt yet efficient manner.

There are a number of reasons it is important to explain what you do succinctly:

1. Your Website

People tend to have very short attention spans. When they are checking out your digital presence, you want to be able to capture their attention and understanding right away. If they can get an idea of what you do from reading just a few short sentences, you will give the first impression that you truly are experts, building a trust factor right away.

2. Conversation

Not only do you not know how much time you truly have to explain yourself when you are first meeting someone, but you also want the chance to make the conversation a dialogue. If you’re doing all of the talking in order to explain what you do, the other person won’t have a chance to ask questions or gage their understanding of what you do. You will look much more credible if you can explain what you do quickly and confidently.

3. Marketing

No matter what the medium, when you are marketing your company, product, or service, you need to be able to get your message across swiftly. Think of all of the most successful marketing and advertising campaigns out there…you likely remember them for their brevity and wittiness. A single quote, a new concept, a rising trend…Whether it’s the verbiage on a billboard or the 30 second pop-up advertisement, things are much more memorable when they are kept sharp and clever.

If your company is in need of employees, Award Staffing is here to help. Contact us here.

Why Now Is a Good Time to Consider a Rebrand

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It’s no secret that as a result of the pandemic, over a year and a half later we have shifted into a new world in many ways. As we’ve discussed in past blog articles, one of the most important things you can do as a company is keep up with modern times as this is how you become seen as a leader in your industry.

Well similarly, it is also imperative to keep your brand up-to-date. If a rebrand is something your company has been considering for a while, now could definitely be an advantageous time to do so, as many things are newly different as we come out of the pandemic.

What comes to mind when you hear the word brand? Most people associate brands with their logo and colors, but branding goes far beyond a person or company’s visual representation. Rebranding is all about altering how your product/service and company is perceived, which means that doing so will require a good amount of research and strategy. If well thought out, a rebrand has the potential to bring you more clients at higher rates, increase engagement & publicity, and build loyalty with both employees and clients.

Here are some signs that it may be time for a rebrand:
1. You haven’t rebranded in 5-10 years
2. You have changed your business model, services, or products
3. Your brand has expanded significantly
4. You blend in with your competition too much
5. You want to fix your reputation
6. You want to connect to a wider audience/change your audience

When you decide it is officially time for a rebrand, here are some of the most essential things to do:

Upgrade Your Logo

To keep potential clients interested and to stand out, it is important to use fonts and colors that are reflective of modern times. Although you don’t have to necessarily change your colors, opting for different shades that are brighter or trendier can make all the difference.

Determine Your New Messaging 

Chances are, things within your industry have significantly changed since your launch or your last rebrand. Is there anything you want to be known for that you haven’t been associated with in the past or anything that no longer suits your brand/company that you want to let go of. This will be a big determining factor in how you promote your company going forward.

Rewrite Your Copy

This goes for your “About Us” page, your services overview, your marketing materials, and anything in between. Use new vocabulary that is more in-line with modern language and talk about some of the new strategies you have implemented since your launch or last rebrand.

Re-evaluate Your Company Values

If they have remained the same, brainstorm ways that you can deliver them in a new, revamped way that will appeal to your target market. If there is anything that has been added to your list of core values, be sure to include that to keep your audience updated.

Re-design Your Website & Social Media Strategy

The types of images you use and the pillars that are frequently discussed in your new strategy must be reflected online. This is the first place competitors, clients, and job seekers will search for you, therefore, you want to make a good first impression and be sure that everything from your positioning to your graphics are parallel to your new brand identity.

If you company is in need of new employees, Award Staffing is here to help. Contact us with your staffing needs, today.