Abstract
Competition for qualified personnel will intensify within the next 10 years as recent estimates indicate. Organizations need to challenge these difficulties by implementing innovative recruitment methods to sustain in the war for talent. Two types of movies were used to analyze if an evaluation of these movies is related to perception of the symbolic facet of perceived employer brand image (PEBI) and ultimately related to application intentions and positive word-of-mouth (WOM). A cross-sectional online study with students from different universities throughout Germany was conducted. Positive relationships between attitude towards the ad (A2ad) and the symbolic facet of PEBI as well as between the symbolic facet of PEBI and application intentions and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) were found. Argument-based videos were shown to be predictive of the symbolic facet of PEBI and had a direct impact on application intentions. Evaluation of affective-based videos showed no significant effect on application intentions but was also predictive of the symbolic facet of PEBI. Results help validating the relevance of communicating job- and organization-specific information to potential applicants. While organization-specific information is likely to be predictive for a positive evaluation of PEBI, only argument-based information generates attitudes related to application intentions.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allen, D.G., J.E. Biggane, M. Pitt, R. Otondo, and J. Van Scotter. 2013. Reactions to recruitment web sites: Visual and verbal attention, attraction, and intentions to pursue employment. Journal of Business and Psychology 28 (3): 263–285. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-012-9281-6.
Allen, D.G., R.V. Mahto, and R.F. Otondo. 2007. Web-based recruitment: Effects of information, organizational brand, and attitudes toward a web site on applicant attraction. Journal of Applied Psychology 92 (6): 1696–1708. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.6.1696.
Allen, D.G., J.R. Van Scotter, and R.F. Otondo. 2004. Recruitment communication media features: Impact on prehire outcomes. Personnel Psychology 57 (1): 143–171. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2004.tb02487.x.
Baron, R.M., and D.A. Kenny. 1986. The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 51 (6): 1173–1182. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.6.1173.
Baum, M., and R. Kabst. 2014. The effectiveness of recruitment advertisements and recruitment websites: Indirect and interactive effects on applicant attraction. Human Resource Management 53 (3): 353–378. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21571.
Blum, K., and S. Löffert. 2010. “Ärztemangel im Krankenhaus“[= Shortage of physicians in hospitals]. Düsseldorf: Deutsches Krankenhausinstitut.
Bourhis, A., and R. Mekkaoui. 2010. Beyond work-family balance: Are family-friendly organizations more attractive? Industrial Relations 65 (1): 98–117. https://doi.org/10.7202/039529ar.
Breaugh, J.A. 2008. Employee recruitment: Current knowledge and important areas for future research. Human Resource Management Review 18 (3): 103–118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2008.07.003.
Cable, D.M., and D.B. Turban. 2003. The value of organizational reputation in the recruitment context: A brand-equity perspective. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 33 (11): 2244–2266. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2003.tb01883.x.
Cable, D.M., and K.Y. Yu. 2006. Managing job seekers’ organizational image beliefs: The role of media richness and media credibility. Journal of Applied Psychology 91 (4): 828–840. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.4.828.
Caudill, L.E., and D.L. Diab. 2019. Digital word of mouth and organizational attraction: Focusing on message characteristics and time. Corporate Reputation Review. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-019-00077-x.
Chandy, R.K., G.J. Tellis, D.J. MacInnis, and P. Thaivanich. 2001. What to say when: Advertising appeals in evolving markets. Journal of Marketing Research 38 (4): 399–414. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.38.4.399.18908.
Chapman, D.S., K.L. Uggerslev, S.A. Carroll, K.A. Piasentin, and D.A. Jones. 2005. Application attraction to organizations and job choice: A meta-analytic review of the correlates of recruiting outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology 90 (5): 928–944. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.5.928.
Cheung, G.W., and R.B. Rensvold. 2002. Evaluating goodness-of-fit indexes for testing measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling 9 (2): 233–255. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328007SEM0902_5.
Cober, R.T., D.J. Brown, L.M. Keeping, and P.E. Levy. 2004. Recruitment on the net: How do organizational web site characteristics influence applicant attraction? Journal of Management 30 (5): 623–646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jm.2004.03.001.
Collins, C.J. 2007. The interactive effects of recruitment practices and product awareness on job seekers’ employer knowledge and application behaviors. Journal of Applied Psychology 92 (1): 180–190. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.1.180.
Collins, C.J., and J. Han. 2004. Exploring applicant pool quantity and quality: The effects of early recruitment practice strategies, corporate advertising, and firm reputation. Personnel Psychology 57 (3): 685–717. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2004.00004.x.
Collins, C.J., and C.K. Stevens. 2002. The relationship between early recruitment-related activities and the application decisions of new labor-market entrants: A brand equity approach to recruitment. Journal of Applied Psychology 87 (6): 1121–1131. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.87.6.1121.
Connelly, B.L., S.T. Certo, R.D. Ireland, and C.R. Reutzel. 2011. Signaling theory: A review and assessment. Journal of Management 37 (1): 39–67. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310388419.
Conway, J.M., and C.E. Lance. 2010. What reviewers should expect from authors regarding common method bias in organizational research. Journal of Business and Psychology 25 (3): 325–334. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-010-9181-6.
Dineen, B.R., J. Ling, S.R. Ash, and D. DelVecchio. 2007. Aesthetic properties and message customization: Navigating the dark side of web recruitment. Journal of Applied Psychology 92 (2): 356–372. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.2.356.
Earnest, D.R., D.G. Allen, and R.S. Landis. 2011. Mechanism linking realistic job previews with turnover: A meta-analytic path analysis. Personnel Psychology 64 (4): 865–897. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2011.01230.x.
Forret, M.L., and D.B. Turban. 1996. Implications of the elaboration likelihood model for interviewer decision processes. Journal of Business and Psychology 10 (4): 415–428. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02251778.
Frasca, K.J., and M.R. Edwards. 2017. Web-based corporate, social and video recruitment media: Effects of media richness and source credibility on organizational attraction. International Journal of Selection and Assessment 25: 125–137. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.12165.
German Federal Statistical Office. 2016. Studierende an Hochschulen: Wintersemester 2015/2016 [= Students at universities: Winter term 2015/2016]. Wiesbaden: Statistisches Bundesamt.
Golovko, D., and J.H. Schumann. 2019. Influence of company Facebook activities on recruitment success. Journal of Business Research 104: 161–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.06.029.
Gomes, D., and J. Neves. 2011. Organizational attractiveness and prospective applicants’ intentions to apply. Personnel Review 40 (6): 684–699. https://doi.org/10.1108/00483481111169634.
Hayes, A.F. 2009. Beyond Baron and Kenny: Statistical mediation analysis in the new millennium. Communication Monographs 76 (4): 408–420. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637750903310360.
Henseler, J., C.M. Ringle, and M. Sarstedt. 2015. A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 43 (1): 115–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8.
Holmes, J.H., and K.E. Crocker. 1987. Predispositions and the comparative effectiveness of rational, emotional and discrepant appeals for both high involvement and low involvement products. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 15 (1): 27–35.
Jones, D.A., C.R. Willness, and S. Madley. 2014. Why are job seekers attracted by corporate social performance? Experimental and field tests of three signal-based mechanisms. Academy of Management Journal 57 (2): 383–404. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2011.0848.
Kirch, D.G., M.K. Henderson, and M.J. Dill. 2012. Physician workforce projections in an era of health care reform. Annual Review of Medicine 63: 435–445. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-med-050310-134634.
Kumar, A., and K. Möller. 2018. Extending the boundaries of corporate branding: An exploratory study of the influence of brand familiarity in recruitment practices through social media by B2B firms. Corporate Reputation Review 21 (3): 101–114. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-018-0046-7.
Larsen, D.A., and J.I. Phillips. 2002. Effect of recruiter on attraction to the firm: Implications of the elaboration likelihood model. Journal of Business and Psychology 16 (3): 347–364. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012816822546.
Levy, S., and I.D. Nebenzahl. 2008. The influence of product involvement on consumers’ interactive processes in interaction television. Marketing Letters 19 (1): 65–77. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-007-9020-3.
Lievens, F., C. Decaesteker, P. Coetsier, and J. Geirnaert. 2001. Organizational attractiveness for prospective applicants: A person-organization fit perspective. Applied Psychology: An international Review 50 (1): 30–51. https://doi.org/10.1111/1464-0597.00047.
Lievens, F., and S. Highhouse. 2003. The relation of instrumental and symbolic attributes to a company’s attractiveness as an employer. Personnel Psychology 56 (1): 75–102. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2003.tb00144.x.
Lievens, F., G. Van Hoye, and F. Anseel. 2007. Organizational identity and employer image: Towards a unifying framework. British Journal of Management 18 (S1): S45–S49. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2007.00525.x.
Lievens, F., G. Van Hoye, and B. Schreurs. 2005. Examining the relationship between employer knowledge dimensions and organizational attractiveness: An application in a military context. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 78 (4): 553–572. https://doi.org/10.1348/09631790X26688.
Lis, B. 2012. The relevance of corporate social responsibility for a sustainable human resource management: An analysis of organizational attractiveness as a determinant in employees’ selection of a (potential) employer. Management Revue 23 (2): 279–295. https://doi.org/10.1688/1861-9908_mrev_2012_03_Lis.
Lyons, B.D., and J.H. Marler. 2011. Got image? Examining organizational image in web recruitment. Journal of Managerial Psychology 26 (1): 58–76. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683941111099628.
Marchand, J. 2010. Attitude toward the ad: Its influence in a social marketing context. Social Marketing Quarterly 16 (2): 104–126. https://doi.org/10.1080/15245001003746782.
Petty, R.E., and J.T. Cacioppo. 1986. The elaboration likelihood model of persuasion. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology 19: 123–205.
Petty, R.E., and J.T. Cacioppo. 1984. The effects of involvement on responses to argument quantity and quality: Central and peripheral routes to persuasion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 46 (1): 69–81.
Petty, R.E., J.T. Cacioppo, and D. Schumann. 1983. Central and peripheral routes to advertising effectiveness: The moderating role of involvement. Journal of Consumer Research 10 (2): 135–146. https://doi.org/10.1086/208954.
Podsakoff, P.M., S.B. MacKenzie, J.-Y. Lee, and N.P. Podsakoff. 2003. Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology 88 (5): 879–903. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.5.879.
Roberson, Q.M., C.J. Collins, and S. Oreg. 2005. The effects of recruitment message specificity on applicant attraction to organizations. Journal of Business and Psychology 19 (3): 319–339. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-004-2231-1.
Rosseel, Y. 2012. lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling. Journal of Statistical Software 48 (2): 1–36.
Salfeld, R., S. Hehner, and R. Wichels. 2008. Modernes Krankenhausmanagement [= Modern hospital management]. Berlin and Heidelberg: Springer.
Sobel, M.E. 1982. Asymptotic confidence intervals for indirect effects in structural equation models. Sociological Methodology 13: 290–312.
Shinnar, R.S., C.A. Young, and M. Meana. 2004. The motivations for and outcomes of employee referrals. Journal of Business and Psychology 19 (2): 271–283. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-004-0552-8.
Simeaner, H., M. Ramm, and C. Kolbert-Ramm. 2014. Datenalmanach Studierendensurvey 1993-2013: Studiensituation und Studierende an Universitäten und Fachhochschulen nach Geschlecht [= Data almanac students survey 1993–2013: Gender differentiated study situation of students at universities and universities of applied sciences], Hefte zu Bildungs- und Hochschulforschung, vol. 75. Konstanz: Arbeitsgruppe Hochschulforschung.
Spector, P.E. 2006. Method variance in organizational research: Truth or urban legend? Organizational Research Methods 9 (2): 221–232. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428105284955.
Spence, M. 1973. Job market signaling. The Quarterly Journal of Economics 87 (3): 355–374. https://doi.org/10.2307/1882010.
Tajfel, H. 1981. Human groups and social categories: Studies in social psychology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Tajfel, H. 1978. Differentiation between social groups: Studies in the social psychology of intergroup relations. Oxford: Academic Press.
Tavassoli, N.T., A. Sorescu, and R. Chandy. 2014. Employee-based brand equity: Why firms with strong brands pay their executives less. Journal of Marketing Research 51 (6): 676–690. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.13.0435.
Tellis, G.J., D.J. MacInnis, S. Tirunillai, and Y. Zhang. 2019. What drives virality (sharing) of online digital content? The critical role of information, emotion, and brand prominence. Journal of Marketing 83 (4): 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022242919841034.
Turban, D.B., and D.W. Greening. 1996. Corporate social performance and organizational attractiveness to prospective employees. Academy of Management Journal 40 (3): 658–672. https://doi.org/10.2307/257057.
Van Esch, P., and M. Mente. 2018. Marketing video-enabled social media as part of your e-recruitment strategy: Stop trying to be trendy. Journal of Retailing & Consumer Services 44: 266–273. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2018.06.016.
Van Hoye, G. 2012. Recruitment sources and organizational attraction: A field study of Belgian nurses. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 21 (3): 376–391. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2011.573146.
Van Hoye, G. 2008. Nursing recruitment: Relationship between perceived employer image and nursing employees’ recommendations. Journal of Advanced Nursing 63 (4): 366–375. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2008.04710.x.
Van Hoye, G., T. Bas, S. Cromheecke, and F. Lievens. 2013. The instrumental and symbolic dimensions of organisations’ image as an employer: A large-scale field study on employer branding in turkey. Applied Psychology: An International Review 62 (4): 543–557. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-0597.2012.00495.x.
Van Hoye, G., and F. Lievens. 2009. Tapping the grapevine: A closer look at word-of-mouth as a recruitment source. Journal of Applied Psychology 94 (2): 341–352. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014066.
Van Hoye, G., and F. Lievens. 2007. Investigating web-based recruitment sources: Employee testimonials vs word-of-mouse. International Journal of Selection and Assessment 15 (4): 372–382. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2389.2007.00396.x.
Van Hoye, G., and F. Lievens. 2005. Recruitment-related information sources and organizational attractiveness: Can something be done about negative publicity? International Journal of Selection and Assessment 13 (3): 179–187. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2389.2005.00313.x.
Walker, H.J., H.S. Feild, W.F. Giles, A.A. Armenakis, and J.B. Bernerth. 2009. Displaying employee testimonials on recruitment web sites: Effects of communication media, employee race, and job seeker race on organizational attraction and information credibility. Journal of Applied Psychology 94 (5): 1354–1364. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014964.
Walker, H.J., H.S. Feild, W.F. Giles, and J.B. Bernerth. 2008. The interactive effects of job advertisement characteristics and applicant experience on reactions to recruitment messages. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 81 (4): 619–638. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317907X252487.
Walker, H.J., H.S. Feild, W.F. Giles, J.B. Bernerth, and J.C. Short. 2011. So what do you think of the organization? A contextual priming explanation for recruitment web site characteristics as antecedents of job seekers’ organizational image perceptions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 114 (2): 165–178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2010.11.004.
Williamson, I.O., J.E. King Jr., D. Lepak, and A. Sarma. 2010. Firm reputation, recruitment web sites, and attracting applicants. Human Resource Management 49 (4): 669–687. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.20379.
Zaichkowsky, J.L. 1985. Measuring the involvement construct. Journal of Consumer Research 12 (3): 341–352.
Zottoli, M.A., and J.P. Wanous. 2000. Recruitment source research: Current status and future directions. Human Resource Management Review 10 (4): 353–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-4822(00)00032-2.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank one anonymous reviewer and the Editorial Team for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hoppe, D. Argument-Based Versus Emotion-Based Videos During the Early Stages of Recruitment: Effects on Perceived Employer Brand Image, Application Intentions, and Positive Word-of-Mouth. Corp Reputation Rev 24, 31–47 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-019-00089-7
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-019-00089-7