The Relationship Between Employer Branding, WOM, and Fresh Graduates’ Intention to Apply Job in SMEs

Abstract

This conceptual paper explains fresh graduates’ intention to apply job in SMEs under information asymmetry using a signalling-based framework. Five employer-branding values: economic, development, application, interest, and social to operate as deliberate signals that applicants integrate into a higher-order corporate reputation, which in turn drives the intention to apply. We argue that word-of-mouth (WOM) strengthens the Reputation-Intention linkage by adding socially verified credibility at the point of action. Synthesising evidence with the Malaysian SME context, we develop seven propositions that specify a signal–inference–intention mechanism. We further discuss the relative salience among the five values and propose a measurement blueprint for future empirical tests. The paper contributes by clarifying construct roles values shape reputation, and reputation shapes intention to apply job, elevating WOM to a contextual moderator, and translating these mechanisms into actionable guidance for resource-constrained SMEs. We conclude by articulating a theoretically grounded, context-aware roadmap to help Malaysian SMEs compete more effectively for fresh graduates.

Conceptual Paper

Keywords: Employer branding; Corporate reputation; Word-of-mouth; Fresh graduates; Intention to apply job

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Aun, T.L., & Kamalul Ariffin, S. (2025). The Relationship Between Employer Branding, WOM, and Fresh Graduates’ Intention to Apply Job in SMEs. Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, 13(2), 154–187.