The final year students won’t want to admit it, but graduation is coming.

Over 500,000 new university leavers will soon be entering the job market – are you ready for them?

To understand how you’re going to attract this next wave of unemployed Millennials, you first need to understand who they really are – and what they really want.

Today’s job seekers – moreover the younger they are – are increasingly becoming “job shoppers”. As corporations move away from the financial crash of ’07-’08, and the anti-establishment, anti-greed attitudes that followed, Millennial job hunters are putting transparency of values at the forefront of their priorities. And they’re not afraid to shop around to find a company that aligns with their own mentality.

2017 graduates won’t want to work for faceless organisations. Having a strong employer brand and message has never been more important.

A clear, attractive employer brand could be the difference between top talent applying for your roles and looking elsewhere. Employer branding is certainly not new, but as Millennials become the largest workforce demographic, shouting about your employee value proposition (EVP) should be your top priority.

But what is an employer brand, and how can you ensure yours is up to scratch?

An employer brand is how you present yourself to – and are perceived by – potential candidates. It doesn’t matter if you have 10 employees or 10,000, your employer brand should honestly reflect your culture, what you can and can’t offer new hires, and ultimately show what it’s truly like to work for you.

Deconstructing your EVP is crucial when establishing a strong employer brand. You can do this by empowering your current graduates; find out what they liked and didn’t like about the application process, what they like and don’t like about working for your organisation – allow them to be honest, and then talk about the things they highlighted when communicating your job openings.

GradTouch has been helping companies do this for five years

We’ve filmed over 1,250 employees and allowed them to communicate their employer’s brand message on their behalf. After all, who are new graduates going to relate to more than your current graduates?

According to PwC , young would-be employees in 2017 are primarily looking for culture, honesty (we’re looking at you, undisclosed salary) and values that match their own. If you tick all these boxes, the 2017 graduates will be lining up at the door.