58

Recruitment is a high-stakes operation for SMEs. They are structurally disadvantaged compared to large companies in the competition for talent. In this context, employer brand management (the definition and communication of a value proposition) can offer an opportunity to develop the attractiveness of the company that is still insufficiently exploited by SMEs. This article aims to provide SMEs with concrete ways of dealing with this issue. It suggests to test the impact of two employer branding signals interpreted by candidates as elements of attractiveness for SMEs, by acting on the definition of the value proposition (the presentation of the advantages offered by the employer) as well as on the communication of this value proposition (via the virtual hospitality of the website). An experimental study conducted with 1,545 employees or job seekers shows that these two elements influence in a differentiated way the anticipated organizational support of the candidates and their intention to apply. The results underline the importance for SMEs of communicating their employer brand, as well as the effectiveness of transposing the concept of virtual hospitality from marketing to recruitment. At the managerial level, this article highlights the role of the institutional website as a communication tool for promoting the attractiveness of SMEs.