Five steps to a convincing EVP that brings in candidates

In the war for talent, a strong employer brand is your secret weapon and that starts with an Employer Value Proposition (EVP). Without a clear message, candidates will not be retained and will drop out before they even consider applying. But how do you come up with a powerful EVP? In this second part, we will show you in 5 concrete steps how to go from a blank start to an EVP that does move candidates.

EVP as a must-have

An EVP is no longer a nice-to-have. It forms the basis of your entire recruitment marketing. Without a clear message, candidates will not stick around and you will lose them before they even take action. Research shows that almost three quarters of candidates are more likely to choose an employer with a strong EVP and that employer image is decisive when deciding whether or not to apply. So it is simple: those who do not develop an EVP fall behind in the battle for talent.

In part 1 of this blog series you can read in detail why an EVP is indispensable in 2025.

Five steps to an EVP

Right, so you need an EVP. But how do you go about creating one? Is it just a matter of sitting down with the management team and jotting down a few core values? Maarten Reeders, an independent employer branding strategist, says: “Drawing up an EVP is an enjoyable and creative process, but it shouldn’t be underestimated. If you want to do it properly, you need to take a thorough approach. One or two sessions with the board and management won’t be enough. It takes more than that!”

Step 1: create support for the EVP process

It all starts with support. As a recruitment (marketing) professional, you may know that an EVP is an absolute necessity, but your colleagues are not always aware of this. Underestimation or a cursory process without real research is common. Maarten says: "It sometimes happens that I enter an organisation to start drawing up an EVP and that the management thinks it can be done in no time. I regularly have to go into convincing mode first: why do you need an EVP? And why do you need to invest time and money in it?"

It's not about having an EVP. It's about it working for you. An EVP must be authentic, distinctive and forward-looking. Above all, it has to be alive, so the stories circulating about you match who you really are as an employer. "You already have an employer brand - from the first day your organisation exists. After all, that is what people say about you. At parties, after a working day, when forwarding a job offer. As Jeff Bezos nicely puts it: Your brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room. With an EVP, you link strategy to your employer brand, so that you tell your story well and appeal to the right people," says Maarten.

Gaining support and securing funding for recruitment plans and innovations isn’t always easy. With tips and tricks from Robine de Graaf and Jaap Konter, you’ll be well prepared. Watch the webinar here.

"Your brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room." - Jeff Bezos

Step 2: looking inwards

This is the most important step in building a strong EVP. Listen to your employees. What do they tell their friends and family about their work? What are they proud of? Why do they like working for you? If you don't know what is going on in the workplace, how will you tell your unique story?

That is why you need to talk to your employees - in all layers of the organisation. Create an open and safe environment in which they can share what is going well, but also what could be improved. The effect of looking deep inside is twofold:

• By paying sincere attention to your staff and really listening, people feel seen and heard. Job satisfaction increases, they stay with you longer and... they recommend you to others. They become ambassadors and you don't get better channels to spread your unique employer story.
• You bring out the real story. By extracting the common thread from these conversations, you can name the emotions people have with you as an employer. A story that matches reality. That is authentic and distinctive. That is felt by your employees. This makes employer branding so much easier.

"People do not want a cosy ping-pong table or a poster with core values. They want to be seen. To be heard. So just start by listening. Really listening. And then watch what happens. How employees start talking positively about your employer brand and spreading their pride like an oil slick to other people." - Ingrid Ravensbergen on Frankwatching

In addition to interviewing employees, in this phase you can extract a lot of valuable information from employee satisfaction surveys and exit interviews.

Step 3: what does the outside world think?

After extensive internal research, take the step outside. Research your current image - how do people talk about you now? You will also research your target group. What do they find important when choosing a job and an employer? What are their push and pull factors?

Finally, take a look at your competitors. How do they position themselves? If you want to come up with a unique EVP, it has to be different from what similar employers in the region are promoting. A tour of your competitors' fields is therefore a must during an EVP process.

Step 4: formulate your EVP

Now comes the climax: you bring together all the collected input and use it to draw up an EVP. If you have carried out the previous steps carefully, you will arrive at an EVP that is distinctive, consists of 80% reality and 20% ambition and resonates with your employees. Above all, be very keen with each other on those unique factors. Dare to choose. Your EVP must absolutely not become a 13-in-a-dozen story; that will not win you the war for talent.

How do you deal with points for improvement that emerge from your internal analysis? Or with topics that are high on your target group's agenda, but in which you do not yet excel? Maarten answers: "It is very important that your EVP reflects the honest picture. You can include points on which you want to improve as an ambition in your EVP. For example, if you do not yet have a very diverse workforce, but diversity and inclusiveness are among your priorities, you can include striving for this in your EVP. In fact, I think this is very powerful because you are being honest and setting a clear ambition."

A common pitfall: immediately distracting your EVP from your corporate brand. "There is definitely a connection between the corporate brand and the employer brand, but you can't adopt it 1-to-1. The corporate brand is aimed at (potential) customers, the EVP at current and potential employees. Two different groups, although a customer may become a potential candidate in the future and vice versa. Yet they have different interests and needs in their orientation process. So take care that the corporate brand does not overshadow the EVP process too much," Maarten says.

Step 5: translate it into employer branding campaigns and more

After this extensive process you will have a well thought-out EVP. And now what? After a final check with your internal organisation for validation and support, the final phase follows: the translation of your EVP into a creative concept and then your employer branding campaigns, candidate journey and onboarding. By incorporating your EVP from A to Z in your communication with candidates and employees, you put yourself on the map with a clear message. One that sticks, because you use it consistently and because it is unique.

In the third blog in this EVP blog series we zoom in on this step and give inspiring examples. A sneaky tip from Maarten: "An employer that perfectly translates its EVP into labour market communication is Defence. They clearly address their target group with core values and reinforce their message with photo and video content. An example of a powerful EVP and good translation!"

Continuous: involve employees in the process

You can load your EVP with campaigns, a new job site and fresh expressions, but it is your own people who tell your story most convincingly. In short, you want to turn your employees into ambassadors. They are the ones talking about you along the line of the football pitch or liking and sharing a great social media post. Without this extra push, your employer branding will have much less effect.

If you involve your staff in the EVP process on an ongoing basis, they are much more willing to share this story at a later stage. They are behind it, their input is included and they are proud of the end result. Maarten says: "Don't just interview your staff and then leave them dangling. Keep them informed about what is happening with their input and what the outcomes are. Test something with them from time to time and include them in the whole process. Then they will turn out to be ambassadors and you will benefit a lot from that!"

Annual tests

With this EVP you are on course for a strong employer brand, but don't let it get dusty. "After an EVP process you often see that people go back to business as usual. Nevertheless, I recommend reviewing the EVP every year. As an employer and organisation, you change over time. So talk to your people, look at the MTO results, check in with newly started employees. That way you can quickly see where you need to make adjustments, for instance if a new target group requires more attention," says Maarten.

A thorough but valuable process

Developing an EVP takes time and attention, but also delivers a lot: a story that rings true, employees who feel heard and an employer brand that really appeals. This will ultimately impact your recruitment process, both in terms of candidate experience and in KPIs such as time-to-fill and cost-per-hire. With these 5 steps, you have all the building blocks for an EVP that does not end up in a drawer, but gives your recruitment a lasting lead.

In part 3 of this blog series, we’ll take a closer look at how to translate your EVP into creative campaigns. Keep an eye on our knowledge base and social media channels, so that you’ll soon not only have a strong EVP on paper, but also know how to communicate it effectively.