Social & platforms

Employer branding on TikTok that works for Gen Z

Gen Z on TikTok responds to honest content, not polished clips. Show what it's like to work with you, from perks and open roles to life behind the scenes, career advice and what your people say. Turn employees into ambassadors, and only jump on trends that suit the brand.

Hand filming with a phone
Laurențiu DumitrescuCo-founder & CEO, Digital Star
Published
Updated

Whether you have a TikTok account or not, you'll have seen plenty of its videos by now. Plenty of Romanian brands already have TikTok in their strategy, from clothing shops to food producers. Abroad, though, companies are already using it for employer branding, as a less formal way to show their values and culture.

01Why TikTok for employer branding

8.71mRomanian TikTok users aged 18 and over, at the end of 2025
95%of Gen Z say a company's social media presence affects whether they apply
49%of consumers have used TikTok as a search engine

The figures come from DataReportal's Digital 2026 report for Romania, a 2025 Zety study and a 2026 Adobe Express survey, the last two run in the US. Google is still where young people search first, but TikTok has become one of the places they look, and the platform keeps getting better at indexing keywords. For companies hunting for young talent, that's a big opportunity.

That's why companies such as The Washington Post use TikTok for recruitment as well as for reaching readers. The platform's quick, informal videos sit naturally with recruitment marketing if you want to:

  • Make your brand or company feel more human
  • Reach a bigger audience
  • Show off your company culture
  • Build awareness among potential employees and beyond
  • Recruit young people

02What to post

The trick is to make videos that sit naturally in the TikTok feed and keep them simple. Whatever you post has to feel authentic and native to the platform. If your videos are entertaining or relatable and get across the company's values or benefits, you're on the right track. A few content ideas for employer branding:

  • Company culture. Fun videos in which employees show what makes the company different and what they enjoy about working there.
  • Company benefits. Flexible hours, private healthcare, welcome gifts, gym memberships or the coolest office in town: there's bound to be something your team values that would catch the eye of future colleagues too.
  • Career advice. People starting out, or hoping to work in your field, will appreciate tips on finding a job, writing a textbook CV or getting through an interview.
  • Testimonials. It all feels more real when employees talk about their working life, show a day at the office or explain what the job involves.
  • Behind the scenes. An office tour, a teaser of the latest project or product, clips from the production process, or employees having fun at work or doing challenges.
  • Internships and new roles. You'll find young people keen on an internship, or happy to send the openings you post on to their friends.
Meetings
@lifeattiktok: "We are in a serious meeting now – discussing new hashtag challenges". TikTok shows that meetings can be #fun.
A day at work
@lifeattiktok: "A day in the life of a TikTok SMB account manager!"
Recruitment
@washingtonpost: "Imagine telling someone a few years from now that this TikTok led to your job at the Washington Post"
See @lifeattiktok on TikTok

03Trends, picked with care

Lots of companies also ride the platform's trends for extra awareness. Picked carefully, so they're relevant to your audience and right for the brand, they get you discovered by more people and show a relaxed, modern way of working. As well as borrowing clips from other popular videos, you can use:

  • Popular songs. TikTok keeps growing its music library for a reason. You can also use original, funny or topical sounds to make your content more entertaining.
  • Trending hashtags. Use hashtags that are popular on the platform, and find promising ones in your niche in TikTok Creative Center.
  • Challenges. Viral dances or lip-syncing show that people at your company get a bit of time for fun and that the place isn't stiff, which matters to Gen Z.

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04Your people are your best ambassadors

You can't talk about employer branding without brand ambassadors. The Washington Post's TikTok account was built over several years by a handful of employees who appeared in its videos again and again, and it now has over 2.1 million followers. When you promote your people as well as the company and get them involved in recruitment marketing, you get:

  • Relatability. Your audience will find it easier to relate to an employee's working life and challenges than to a team leader's or CEO's. With ambassadors from several departments, viewers see more sides of the organisation.
  • Colleagues in the spotlight. Employer branding isn't only about hiring: people thinking of joining you also care whether staff stay. Celebrate your colleagues' achievements and your long-serving people, and you show that appreciation is part of the culture.
  • Ideas. Nobody knows better than your current team which content and benefits matter to future hires. Ask them for video ideas and for their views on your employer branding strategy.

TikTok's own account has a good mix of content that follows a lot of the advice above.

05It doesn't have to be perfect

Your company's clips don't have to be perfect. In fact, steer clear of elaborate shoots and show what you have to offer in a genuine, relaxed way.

And since employer branding and TikTok are a match made in heaven, especially for Gen Z, we'll sign off with a funny clip for everyone out there making this kind of content: @yellowexpressau, "Brace yourself boys!!".

Let's make your brand the obvious choice.

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