How to build your employer brand from the inside out

When we caught up with Alex Her, Global Employer Brand Leader and co-founder of The EB Space, it quickly became clear why he's such a respected voice in the industry. From starting out in IT helpdesk roles to leading global strategies, Alex's career journey has been anything but traditional, and that's exactly what makes his perspective so valuable.

Why the heart of a strong employer branding starts with people

Alex's story is a powerful reminder that building advocacy isn't about glossy career pages or high-budget ad campaigns. It's about people.

"Ultimately, people want to work with people who look, sound, and think like them," Alex shared. "When you hear from the head of engineering, it resonates far more than a job description you see on a career’s page."

The research also backs this up. 80% of job applicants look up the social media profiles of current staff when applying or even considering a position (Capitalize), and employees have, on average, ten times more followers than brand accounts (PostBeyond). It's clear the real influence lies with your people.

Creating a culture where brand ambassadors feel advocacy is natural

One of the biggest hurdles companies face is fear. Fear that if they encourage employees to be vocal, those employees might get headhunted. Fear that things could go wrong. But as Alex pointed out, "yeah there's a risk, but there is also a risk that it's gonna go well, and I think that gamble is worth it.” 

The key to successful employee advocacy is trust. Employees need to feel safe to share their experiences without fear. In Alex's words, "If they think they're going to be reprimanded for speaking up, they're not going to hop on camera. It's about creating a safe zone."

This resonates so much with what we see in our own work at Tribal Impact. Happy employees, those who feel trusted, valued and supported, are naturally more likely to share their authentic experiences. 

A recent Edelman report found that optimism is a key driver of advocacy: optimistic employees are more likely to stay longer and engage positively on social media. A win-win for everyone.

Winning over technical audiences with patience and relevance

One of the areas Alex is particularly passionate about is connecting with technical audiences. It's no secret that encouraging engineers and technical specialists to engage on social media can be challenging.

"You can't just post a job description and expect engineers to bite," Alex said. "They're not hanging out on LinkedIn all day. They're on Stack Overflow, GitHub, and other niche communities."

Instead, Alex suggests a 30-60 day approach, where technical leaders share what makes their team exciting; the projects they're working on, the problems they're solving. It's about creating a consistent presence that turns a passive observer into an active applicant. The more employees feel they are part of a trusted environment, the stronger your brand will become organically.

We see a similar approach happening outside of tech too. Tribal’s CEO, Sarah Goodall, recently wrote about how traditional brands like Waitrose are reaching new audiences through frontline employee advocacy, using creative and authentic content on platforms like TikTok. Something other retailers could learn from. 

Moving from "cute content" to measurable impact

One of the standout moments in our conversation was Alex's honesty about measurement. "It's cute to put office pictures up," he said, "but what does that result in?"

Real impact comes from being able to show how employee-led storytelling translates into business results. Too often, programmes stop at vanity numbers like likes and impressions. 

Alex challenged us to go deeper:

• Look at earned media value (what would it have cost to pay for the reach you're getting?)
• Track cost per click (CPC) and cost per thousand impressions (CPM)
• Use UTM tracking to monitor source traffic and conversions

If you're looking for more advice on meaningful measurement, we recently shared our tips on how to measure the effectiveness of your employer branding.

If we can link advocacy activities to higher-quality applicants, better conversion rates, and lower hiring costs, we move from "nice to have" to "business critical."

The EB Space: building community from the ground up

Beyond his day-to-day role, Alex has also co-founded The EB Space, a global, inclusive community for brand ambassadors and advocacy champions. What started as an experiment has grown to nearly 700 members across 45 countries. 

It's a space where in-house practitioners and independent consultants can share ideas, challenges, and advice without the noise of commercial pitches.

One of the biggest topics discussed in the community? Measurement. How to demonstrate value. How to protect advocacy efforts when times get tough. These are the conversations we need to be having if we want this work to continue evolving as a strategic function, not just a "nice to have" marketing tool.

Why internal advocacy will always be the strongest brand builder

If you’d like help enabling your employees on social media, get in touch to discover how Tribal Impact can help.