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Career Corner: Why Your Company Reviews Matter
Arcadia Weekly Aug 22, 2018
Online reviews of a company are helpful for applying and improving the company itself. – Courtesy photo
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Online reviews of a company are helpful for applying and improving the company itself. – Courtesy photo
By Angela Copeland
Every once in a while, I’m talking to a job seeker when something happens that I’m not expecting. It’s especially surprising with the job seeker doesn’t currently have a job and is unemployed.
I’ll say, “What about this company? They’re hiring! This looks like a great job opportunity.” Without missing a beat, the unemployed job seeker will say, “You know, their company reviews on Glassdoor and Indeed are terrible. I’m going to pass on that company. I would rather be unemployed.”
Can you imagine? Someone who is desperate to find work is so turned off by a company’s negative reviews that they won’t even take the time to apply there. Let that sink in for a minute.
It’s almost like someone driving cross-country, who’s looking for a hotel to stay the night in. They come across a hotel, and look up their Yelp review. It’s terrible and mentions bed bugs. Without a second thought, the driver decides that sleeping in their car would be a more desirable option than staying at a hotel with a bad online review. They don’t even take the time to stop at the hotel to check it out. They just keep going.
From an employer perspective, I get it. The company reviews are frustrating. Big job websites are there to help out when you want to pay to put job ads on them. But, they’re not willing to hear your side of the story when it comes to company reviews. And, not every employee is leaving fair and unbiased reviews.
I hear you. In the same way that Yelp reviews aren’t always fair and unbiased, neither are employee reviews. The good news is, most people know that. Most consumers (and job seekers) are looking for what the reviews say on average.
And, this is the thing. The big job search companies can’t edit reviews, or they wouldn’t be a credible source for job seekers. If they weren’t credible, job seekers would stop using them to find jobs, and they would never see your job ads.
The good news is there’s a lot you can do to influence the average review. Take the time to read your reviews closely. What do people like, and what turns employees off? If you find a common theme, think of it as an opportunity for improvement. It’s like receiving a performance review. It gives the company specific goals to improve upon.
But, whatever you do, don’t ignore your company reviews. They will show up online. Your future employees will read them.
Picture this. You have a number of bad reviews. Every job seeker with any alternative choice will go to another company. That means that the only applicants you’ll be left with are those who have no other options. Now, that sounds like a real nightmare.
Embrace your company reviews. They’re a place for you to showcase your strengths, and attract the best candidates.
Angela Copeland, a career coach and founder of Copeland Coaching, can be reached at copelandcoaching.com.
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