A credible employer seal makes people noticeably more likely to apply. In the experiment with 1,093 participants, adding the seal to a job ad raised the share of people who were likely to apply from 37.96% to 53.95%, an increase of almost 16 percentage points. The share of people who were unlikely to apply fell from 17.88% to 6.04%.

The study also shows the condition: applicants trust seals that are based on a representative employee survey and transparent award criteria. Seals that rely on self-assessment or can simply be bought offer much less credibility.