Yes, your mining company does need marketing to attract the right talent. Surprised? That makes sense.
After all, there are plenty of job-seekers looking to join the mining sector – it’s a thriving, necessary industry with a continuous customer base. It isn’t about to die anytime soon. Careers in the sector are safe and protected; they’re not going to become obsolete in the near future despite automation. What’s more, jobs in mining pay well and come with heaps of benefits.
Marketing may not sound like something that needs to be prioritised.
However, there is a lot of competition between mining companies for qualified, talented candidates.
What’s more, the fact is there are more successful, massive mining companies, and smaller miners. These big miners are more likely to draw talent.
The secret? It isn’t just that these companies have cornered the commodities markets and superseded their competition in terms of production and sales growth that makes them attractive to job-hunters. It’s the way that these companies market themselves. Effective marketing doesn’t just bring in more customers, but also more candidates.
Why mining companies need to have effective marketing to attract better candidates
Great marketing creates a company that people want to be a part of
Think of one of the world’s most successful companies, Google, and how many people want to work there. It is an extremely popular career prospect for jobseekers, attracting talent not just from its base in the US, but also from overseas.
Google has nailed its marketing strategy, which helps it to attract customers and talent by evoking emotions in them. Here’s how it does this, and how your mining company can do the same.
Using visual marketing tools to produce a specific (attractive) company image
When we look at a company’s logo, brand colours, and images of its offices, we see the company image it is trying to portray, and the ‘feel’ of the company.
For Google, the visuals that it markets make it ‘feel’ and seem fresh, young, uncomplicated, fun, playful, dynamic, friendly, unserious…
The logo is bright and crisp with a clean feel, like Google’s workplaces.
As well as this, the primary colours in the logo and offices, as well as images of pool tables, cool, modern furniture, sleep pods, and more, remind the audience of childhood – a time when you could play and when life was simple.
What’s more, Google’s company office photos include laughing staff members dressed casually, looking like happy employees in an environment that is dynamic and not serious. It shows them relaxing in comfy chairs, playing ping-pong during their breaks, and enjoying free food. And who wouldn’t want to work in a place like that?
Mining companies can employ these tools and incorporate the image they want to portray into their logos, websites, advertisements, company branding, and more.
For instance, a diamond mining company may want to look powerful and evoke the feeling of wealth and success associated with diamonds. It can do this through its visuals, such as choosing certain colours. Gold, for instance, creates the feeling of grandeur – wealth and success.
You might also include photos of a variety of employees in your promotional branding and websites who work in different positions in your company to show that there are diverse roles people can take on.
Marketing your company to consumers = success and growth = more candidates seeking to join you
Everyone knows that Google practically runs the internet and is one of the biggest, wealthiest companies. This likely means many job opportunities available there, career growth possibilities, and decent pay. Not to mention, its success and fame make it an exciting company. It is no wonder it draws so much talent.
Large mining companies that have grown to become leaders in the industry also attract talent in a similar way. But first, to become successful, they had to grow their sales and customer base by attracting clients.
To appeal to customers, mining companies need to find a way to make prospective clients notice them and then retain their interest long enough to secure them as customers.
Marketing is where this is done. From the visuals and advertisements to the company’s Public Relations strategies, communications, websites, and social media platforms, miners need to make the most of these different aspects of marketing to get people to notice them first, above other companies.
Speaking of PR and communications…
Use marketing to promote your company’s ESG, community, and safety values
Prioritising health and safety and meeting ESG criteria have become vital for mining companies in recent years, with mining companies transforming their operations and implementing more health and safety measures than ever before to meet regulations as well as social expectations.
It is well known that mining can devastate the environment around mine sites and negatively affect communities that reside close to them.
ESG and H&S requirements have come about as a way to minimise the impact of mining on the environment and nearby communities – and even give back something – as well as to make mines safer to work in and reduce mortality rates.
Your PR and communications strategy, social media posts, websites, and blog posts should regularly refer to the way your mining company prioritises these things.
What’s more, you need to communicate this in a way that shows your company truly cares about miner safety, the environment, and the wellbeing and development of local communities.
This makes you not just an ethical mining company, but a company with a heart. This is another thing that targets the emotions of your audience and makes you appealing to job-seekers.
We’ve just scratched the surface of how far marketing can take your mining company and pull in top candidates, but these are just some of the things miners can implement in their marketing strategies.
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In need of a recruitment expert for your company in Africa? CA Mining specialises in identifying best-fit candidates for mining projects around Africa. We find the top talent from a pool of local, diaspora, and foreign professionals and have a proven placement success rate.
We provide a suite of tailored recruitment solutions for our clients. Find out about our Mining Contingency Placements and Executive Search services, and contact us to see how we can assist you.
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