Most employer branding campaigns in the mid-market sector share a problem that no amount of budget can fix: they are polished to the max but empty. Drone shots of the production floor, smiling people in safety shoes, and a slogan so generic it could apply to anyone—and therefore resonates with no one. Young people scroll past them just as they would an insurance ad, and that’s the generous interpretation.
The reason for this is uncomfortable, but it’s no tragedy. Most talent can smell a staged production from a mile away. They’ve grown up with it, every single day, on every single channel. Anything that is slickly produced but hollow at the core falls flat; the expensive production just makes the whole thing more costly.
In that sense, the situation is actually quite good. The solution doesn't cost more money; it costs more honesty. And honesty, when told properly, is a discipline.
What really drives this generation
In the major surveys of recent years, four things appear consistently. A fruit basket is not one of them.
First, purpose. But make it concrete, not just marketing fluff. Young people want to know what their work actually achieves. For an industrial company, this is often a goldmine that half the staff is sitting on without even realizing it. If you manufacture components for medical technology, the energy transition, or clean drinking water, you have a story that other industries would kill for. Yet, it’s usually buried in a data sheet.
Second, security. After a few turbulent years, this value has returned with a vengeance. This plays directly into the hands of the industrial mid-market, yet hardly anyone is leveraging it. Stability has become quite attractive lately; you just have to actually talk about it.
Third, development and genuine responsibility. This is where it’s decided. We don’t mean the vague promise of "further training" found in job ads, but visible prospects, a named mentor, and the chance to make a real impact early on. If you have that, show it. If you only claim it, you’ll be found out during the first internship.
Fourth, leadership. The most common reason people leave is their own boss. It sounds harsh, but it’s well-documented, and it has a consequence that is often overlooked: an employer brand doesn't end at the job interview. It is fulfilled every Monday morning—or it isn't.
Channels, without the usual knee-jerk reaction
As soon as the topic of skilled labor shortages comes up, someone eventually says, "We need to be on TikTok now." Sometimes that’s even true. Most of the time, however, it’s the fastest known way to burn through a budget. What matters isn't the platform itself, but what it actually does for you.
Instagram is the workhorse. Culture, faces, everyday life—exactly the kind of stuff no job portal can invent. LinkedIn captures qualified profiles, university graduates, and career changers; for demanding roles, it’s almost unavoidable. YouTube is underestimated by many: it’s great for explaining job profiles and providing insights—films that don't disappear into a feed after three days, but can still be found two years later.
TikTok can indeed move mountains, but only with a real face and real commitment. Half-hearted efforts do more damage than having no presence at all. Kununu and Glassdoor, meanwhile, aren't optional. Trust or distrust is built there long before someone applies, and anyone who ignores this stage is simply letting others tell their story. And then there are university partnerships, often with the best return of all: internships, theses, and a direct line to the next generation while the competition is still writing their brief.
The whole truth about channels fits into one sentence: two done really well are worth more than five done half-heartedly. Trying to be everywhere at once without the capacity for continuous engagement is not a strategy.
What actually works
Real people beat models, every single time. Employees explaining their own jobs are the most effective lever you have, and the cheapest one, too. Credibility wins over production value without even trying.
Open up your job profiles. Hardly anyone outside the industry knows about the truly exciting roles in the industrial mid-market. Mechatronics, process engineering, technical sales—those who make these worlds visible attract people the competition doesn't even have on their radar. And get your apprentices in front of the camera. No one reaches their own generation more credibly, quickly, or affordably than they do themselves.
Then there’s the application process, often treated as a tedious formality and therefore a wasted stage. Fast feedback, clear steps, decent treatment. The candidate experience is brand communication in itself. Three weeks of radio silence after an interview ruins more than any campaign could ever build.
The point where most people get it wrong
So much for the visible part. Now for what really makes the difference:
Before you even start using a single channel, you need an answer to why someone should work for you instead of two industrial parks down the road. This answer is your employer brand, or in professional terms, your Employer Value Proposition. Without it, every measure becomes arbitrary, every post interchangeable, and every euro spent a little more meaningless.
This is the core idea we want to share with you. An employer brand is not a recruiting task; it is brand work. It grows out of what defines your company at its core, translated into the language of those you want to attract. It requires the same discipline used to position a company, just with a different audience.
However, an employer brand that promises something on the outside that no one lives on the inside will not work. It’s that simple. But if the promise is kept, campaigns gain a lasting power of attraction.
What this means for you
The shortage of skilled workers shows no signs of disappearing. It will become more challenging in the coming years, starting with the industrial mid-market. The bright side: those who build an honest, clearly articulated employer brand now will secure an advantage that money alone cannot buy.
You can tackle most of this yourselves. Show real people, open up job profiles, consistently manage two channels, and don’t mess up the application process.
There is one area where an outside perspective is worth it, and we say this without false modesty: the foundation. Extracting the Employer Value Proposition from your DNA, aligning it seamlessly inside and out, and building a repeatable system rather than a flashy one-off campaign requires someone with a brand-focused eye. Not because you couldn't do it, but because an outsider reliably finds what remains invisible from the inside. Operational blindness is not a weakness; it is simply human.
If you suspect there is more to your employer story than what is currently being told, let’s talk. We bring out the best in your company, and that often starts with the simple question of why the best people should join you. We have a method for that. And we’re eager to put it to work with you.
