One of the things I have noticed over many years is that people tend to underestimate how important their reputation is to their company. I think they get the idea that it is vital for protecting a brand, but they don’t understand how much it leaks into the everyday operations of the company, impacting people throughout the company…including your salespeople, your purchasing agents, your media relations people…and, yes, your recruiters.

Reputation tends to be thought of as a negative: what’s the cost of a bad reputation? That’s a defeatist mindset. Try this: what are the rewards of a good reputation?

Many employers say that finding good employees is their biggest challenge. McKinsey called it the “war for talent.” TalentNow says that 84% of prospective employees say a company’s reputation and 50% would turn down a pay raise when offered by a company with a bad reputation.

Which means…that company with the bad reputation either has a limited pool or has to pay even more.

The idea of an employer brand has gained currency in recent years and it is an important part of maintaining an unbroken StrategicCircle™.

The good news is that much of what you already do for your reputation applies here. The positive stories—whether through the media or through your own channels—should be showing up on Google and on your website and social channels.

You need to enrich that content with a focus on your employees. We don’t need platitudes or processes. We need real stories about employees doing great work. Show don’t tell. Job Seekers told LinkedIn that they believe actual employees 3x more than recruiters when it comes to evaluating a company. Let your employees tell their own story. By the way, this is content your customers, the media and your community love to see. It reinforces your entire StrategicCircle.

So…you say…what about all those message boards out there? We don’t have any control over those. And that’s true. But there is influence. Which is why engaging employees effectively is the most important thing we do for a variety of reasons, including keeping them from anonymously griping on message boards—a sure sign of a disaffected and dis-empowered employee.

Behind all this is a simple idea. Companies who earn good reputations and do a good job telling their story are more effective in countless ways and companies who do not find the crud seeping into the nooks and crannies of their organizations.