Hiring managers are smart, capable adults. Which is exactly why “selling the role” often goes sideways.

Not because they don’t care. Because they’re improvising.

They walk into interviews with a vague sense of what makes the company good (“people,” “growth,” “mission”) and a sharper sense of what they need from the candidate (“can they do the job?”). So they default to what feels safe: the job description, the tech stack, and a tour of the org chart like it’s an Airbnb listing.

And then—mysteriously—your offer acceptance rate looks like a coin flip.

Here’s the fix: stop hoping managers will “communicate the employer brand.” Give them a 90-second script they can repeat without thinking.

The 90-second script (3 parts, 30 seconds each)

1) The Work (what you actually do here)
Start with the honest version, not the brochure version.

  • “This team builds ___.”
  • “The pace is ___.”
  • “The hard part is ___.”
  • “What great looks like in 6 months is ___.”

If you can’t say the hard part out loud, candidates will assume it’s worse than it is.

2) The Trade (why this is worth it)
This is where most managers go generic. Don’t. Make it a trade.

  • “If you like ___, you’ll love it here.”
  • “If you need ___, you’ll hate it here.”
  • “You get ___ (autonomy/mentorship/scope/impact), but you give up ___ (certainty/slow pace/hand-holding).”

That last line is the magic. It filters in the right people and it makes the right people trust you.

3) The Proof (one believable receipt)
A claim without proof is just a hope wearing business casual.

Managers need one short “receipt story” they can tell in 20–30 seconds:

  • “Last quarter, we had a problem with ___. Here’s what we did about it…”
  • “A recent hire came in and within 90 days they ___.”
  • “We’ve changed ___ because employees pushed for it.”

Keep it specific. Names optional. Details mandatory.

How to implement it without making it weird

  • Write 3 versions of the script: one for leadership roles, one for core/volume roles, one for hard-to-hire roles.
  • Give managers a menu of proof stories (3–5 each). Let them pick the one that feels true for their team.
  • Rehearse once. Not “role play until everyone cries.” Just one run-through in a hiring manager sync.

Why this works

Candidates don’t reject offers because you didn’t mention your values. They reject because they can’t picture the job and can’t trust the promises.

This script does both. It makes the work tangible, the trade explicit, and the proof believable.

And here’s the best part: it doesn’t require a new campaign, a video crew, or a brand refresh. It’s a small operational change that turns every interview into consistent messaging.

If you want to build the kind of employer brand that managers can repeat (and candidates can trust), learn how we do it in the Employer Brand Operating System.