Brand Is What People Say When You’re Not in the Room – with James Whitelock of ThinkinCircles
In this episode of RecTalk, Nitin is joined once again by James Whitelock, MD of ThinkinCircles – a recruitment marketing agency that lives and breathes brand clarity, consistency, and credibility. This conversation is a must-listen if you think your logo is your brand. Because it’s not. They go deep into what actually shapes your recruitment brand – and spoiler alert – it’s every interaction your business has. From candidate conversations to client dinners. From LinkedIn posts to internal behaviour. From AI usage to how your team acts at networking events. Nothing is neutral. 💥 What We Cover: 🔹 Why brand is built through daily behaviours, not websites 🔹 The 3 C’s of recruitment branding: Clarity, Consistency & Credibility 🔹 Why silence online is just as loud as noise 🔹 The danger of “fits and starts” marketing 🔹 How internal culture dictates external perception 🔹 Why size doesn’t buy authority anymore 🔹 The risks and realities of AI in recruitment marketing 🔹 Why guardrails matter when your team is representing you 🔹 The “Nickelback Effect” and public brand perception 🔹 Building in public vs. pretending you’ve already “made it” James makes it clear: You don’t dictate your brand. Your behaviours do. Every candidate rejection. Every email. Every automation sequence. Every beer at an expo. They all move the needle. 🎯 The Big Takeaway If you want to be seen as consultative, embedded, strategic and premium… you have to behave that way. You can’t “design” your way into authority. And if your marketing is only active when your desk is quiet? You’re not building a brand. You’re firefighting pipeline. 🔗 Connect with the guest James Whitelock: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameswhitelock/ ThinkinCircles: https://www.rectools.io/product/thinkincircles/ 🔗 Connect with the host Nitin Sharma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/ Discover recruitment tools and services: https://www.rectools.io/ New episodes of RecTalk (including Founder Diaries and Talking Talent) currently drop on Wednesday and Friday. Look out also for new episodes of The Mixed Grill — the official podcast of the Recruitment Curry Club — dropping on Thursday. https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/ Listen on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/ 🔗 Get in touch with these recommended suppliers Ascen: https://www.ascen.com/ ThinkinCircles: https://thinkincircles.com/ Infinity Staff Global: https://www.infinitystaffglobal.com/ The Marketing Junction: https://themarketingjunction.com/ Konquest: https://konquest.io/
