Brand Activation Materials
Recognition only becomes employer brand value when people see it and understand it. The guidelines and templates below will help you build your Certification story, activate it internally and promote your impactful announcement with momentum throughout the year.
Brand Activation Session webinar recording
Getting started
Creating an activation checklist to ensure a successful Certification announcement
An activation checklist turns good intentions into a plan: it makes sure your story is chosen before the channels are filled, that employees hear the news first, and that nothing important is left to the last minute.
Working through the steps in order also helps you plan backwards from the embargo lift as well as share ownership across HR, talent acquisition and communications. Use it as a working tool as well as a guide: Adjust to suit your outcomes, tick items off as you go, adapt the wording to your organisation and use it as a reference throughout the year.
How to Use Your Top Employers Certification Seal
Participating organisations are obliged to use the Top Employers Certification Seal to represent their status. It is how you share and celebrate your achievement, with candidates, employees, clients and partners, across both digital and offline channels. Because the seal is only given to organisations that have met the Certification criteria, using it consistently and throughout the year, not just at announcement time, keeps that recognition working for your employer brand
The guidelines apply to all four seal types: Country/Region, Regional, Global and Enterprise. Use the seal consistently, in the correct colour, font and shape, across digital and offline channels and throughout the year.
All seals are available in the Branding tab of the Portal to download. Below you will find the Certification Seal guide for the non-dynamic seals in 2027.
Internal activation
Share the news with employees: email templates for your Certification announcement
Your employees are your most credible advocates, so they should hear the news first. Help them understand what the Certification is, why your organisation earned it, and what it means for them. When people know the story behind the Seal, they feel pride and share it in their own words – throughout the year.
We have created five ready-to-use email templates to help shape the internal messaging. Three are for the embargo lift/seal usage announcement moment: a full announcement from leadership, a short, shareable version for busy or frontline teams, and a story-led version that goes beyond “we’re proud to announce”. The other two keep your Certification visible all year by linking it to HR days such as World Mental Health Day or International Women’s Day. Each template links to an FAQ, available in the materials below. You can also adapt them for your intranet, messaging channels, newsletters or noticeboards, wherever your people are most likely to see them. Placeholders are highlighted so you can add your own details, results and links.
Help your people understand your Certification: employee FAQs and one pagers
Your people are more likely to share news they understand. Before employees can speak about your Certification with confidence, they need clear answers to a few simple questions: what is the Top Employers Certification, how did we earn it, and what does it mean for me? Getting these right builds trust in the Seal and helps employees feel pride in what it represents.
We have condensed this information into a list of internal FAQs and one-pager summaries. The FAQs can be added to the email templates provided, shared via an HR channel/notice board, or even used in internal campaigns for the Certification where these FAQs are included.
The one-pagers can be turned into assets such as infographics, posters, intranet banners, or digital screens.
Promote your status
Align your Certification announcement activities with key notable HR calendar dates
An HR calendar built around your Certification turns a single announcement into a story your people and your future talent hear all year. It gives you a clear view of when to prepare, when to announce, and when to amplify. Without a calendar that aligns your Certifications activations to HR moments throughout the year, impact can peak during embargo lift times and then lose momentum as the year progresses.
Use this template to map your Certification activity across the year, from preparing in the months before your announcement to sustaining momentum long after it. Plot key dates alongside your existing HR and employer brand moments, assign owners for each activity, and plan content and leadership involvement ahead of time. Start with the moments that matter most to your people and your future talent, then build outward so your Certification stays visible and your story keeps moving.
Share your news with confidence: Top Employers 2027 press release templates
A press release takes your Certification beyond your own channels. When media, industry publications and local press pick up your news, you reach candidates, clients and partners who may never have seen your careers site, and it shows the market that your people practices have been externally validated, not just described by you. We’ve created four templates, one for each Certification level: Country, Regional, Global and Enterprise. Choose the one that matches your Certification, add your organisation’s details and your own story, and use the built-in terminology and CEO quote.
Please note that the key numbers for 2027 will be shared after 20 December. Press releases and everything in them are strictly confidential until the embargo lifts on 14 January 2027 at 5am CET, so please don’t share anything before then. You can prepare your release and line up media contacts beforehand, so you’re ready to go on the day.
Extra materials
Additional resources