Building a Strong Brand: How to Attract Top Talent in the Trades
30 April 2025
You need a strong Brand and good company culture to attract - and keep - the best employees. Here are some tips.
The best employees don't just work for a paycheck - if money's all that matters, they'll jump ship every time another employer offers them a little bit more. No, the employees who will stick with you, and help your business grow, aren't just about the money. Consider intangibles like recognition for hard work, pride in a job well done, prestige, camaraderie, and excitement about the Brand they're representing. This is especially important in the Trades for residential service providers, where your technicians act as Brand representatives every time they enter a client's home. Their alignment with your Brand can make all the difference to the customer experience and ongoing success of your business.
Today's focus is on how to build your Brand to attract the top talent, giving you the best opportunity to develop enthusiastic Brand representatives.
Tip #1: Make sure the basics are covered.
It'll be hard to attract any employees, especially good ones, if you're not competitive with compensation plans and benefits packages. While money isn't everything (and it's usually not the main reason people stay at or leave a job), the usual reason people look for a job in the first place is to earn a living. So make sure you're providing that, at a minimum.
Tip #2: Use social media to your advantage.
When you post to attract potential customers, you become visible to potential employees, too. So use social media to demonstrate how great it is to work at your company. Share real photos of real employees, not just stock images. Celebrate real accomplishments, whether it's highlighting new hires, employee anniversaries, top performers, photos of a job well done, or whatever else you have to work with.
Tip #3: Network. Even if you're not actively hiring, you want to get your Brand out there on a consistent basis. If you already participate in the community to attract new clients, consider who else your networking and involvement may attract. Many of the best employees aren't actively looking for new jobs, and the more people you connect with, the greater chance of someone recommending you to their friend/spouse/cousin/neighbor when the time is right. Meet people, do good work with the community, and show your Brand in a positive light so top talent can easily find you.
Tip #4: Address employee issues swiftly.
This might not seem like a recruiting tactic, but stay with me here. When good employees know you won't allow toxicity to fester and grow, they'll be more loyal and more likely to promote your Brand positively. On the flipside, if your current employees are doing a poor job of satisfying customers, or grumbling about their job on social media or with their buddies, that's a red flag for potential recruits... even before you post for an open position. Maintain a strong company culture by enforcing the rules and it'll go a long way towards building your Brand.
Truly, the secret to attracting great talent is to become a great place to work. Take the time to build your Brand and showcase it proudly, and half your recruiting work is already done.
A guide to the types of employee drug testing: Pre-Employment, Post-Accident, Random Selection, and Reasonable Suspicion.
Employees can be your greatest asset... or your biggest frustration. When issues come up, here are some steps to make sure you respond appropriately instead of just reacting from emotions. Trust us, you'll get much better results this way.
Hold your employees to the standard of being PROFESSIONAL representatives of the Trades, not just technical experts, and you greatly minimize the risk of getting hit with an EEOC settlement. Here's why.
Written warnings can be key in managing employees, so you need to know both the art and the science of doing them correctly. These tips for what to include - and what NOT to include - in your written warnings will help you to communicate clearly to your employees, and get you set to defend yourself in a potential legal claim against you.
From Labor Law Posters to Safety Manuals – everything your staff needs to boost compliance and morale, in one dedicated spot. Having an up-to-date and complete Employee Resource Center will give you the peace of mind to run your business without worrying about compliance.
Reasonable Accommodations in the workplace are no joke - you can get into serious legal trouble if you don't comply with the ADA. Yet here's a case study on a company who terminated someone for an issue directly related to their disability and was not held legally liable. Check out the details of how this might apply to your business.
Home services companies might be tempted to classify workers as independent contractors, but we STRONGLY advise you to hire them as W-2 workers instead. And it's not just because the government might fine you (big time!). Read more for tips on why it'll be in your company's best interest.
Listen to The H.R. Guy explaining the nuances of HR for the Trades in 2025, with tips on common HR pitfalls and how to avoid them, the value of Stay Interviews, key mistakes with performance pay, and the ultimate goal of "Representing the Brand."
You thought you were rid of that toxic employee, but now he's causing you even more problems - posting negative Google reviews and refusing to return company property. Why is this happening?
As a residential service provider, you might not think you're in the construction industry, but the Department of Labor has its own definition... and regulations. If you're in HVAC, plumbing, electrical, garage doors, or roofing, here are some things you need to know.