Social Media is the #1 activity on the web. The number of users registering on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter are on the rise and both recruiters and job seekers find these platforms to be extremely powerful to either find the right jobs or to be found by the right companies.
Why Social Recruitment
Recent data shows that 92% of companies in the U.S, are using social media to find the right talent, and this is just the beginning of a global phenomenon.
Some of the key reasons why companies choose social recruitment are:
- Speed: Using the social media search engines, it’s much faster to find the right candidates. It’s like having quick access to an open database of candidates online.
- Quality: With all the data there is on personal profiles combined with social proof, recruiters can now easily filter out only the best candidates for a particular opening, thereby increasing the overall quality and effectiveness of their recruiting process.
- ROI: It has proved much easier and cost-effective to post job openings on social networks than any other traditional methods. And this directly impacts ROI.
How To Begin A Social Recruitment Campaign
Starting off a social recruitment campaign is not as simple as just posting job openings on your social channels. It all starts with addressing some key questions such as:
- What are your company or corporate goals?
- What’s the ideal workforce that needs to be in place to achieve those goals?
- What’s the current state of your company workforce? Where are the gaps?
- What are your key profile requirements? Immediate and long-term.
- What kind of a message will attract those particular profiles to join your company?
- Is your recruitment team well equipped to execute this campaign?
Once there’s clarity on these areas, it becomes much easier to schedule your overall social recruitment activity.
3 Step Success Formula
By following the three steps below, you can increase the overall effectiveness of your social media recruitment and job seeking activities.
- Search Engine Optimisation Of Your Personal Social Media Profiles: Make a list of keywords that you like to be found by and add them into your social media profiles. Whether you’re a recruiter or a job-seeker, the first step is in being found
- Build Social Proof: This is all about getting others to talk more about you than yourself. This includes giving and getting recommendations from people you have worked with. The better the social proof, the better you look as a recruiter or a job-seeker
- Daily Activity Schedule: Once you have the first two steps in place, then all it comes down to your daily activity on social media.
As a recruiter, your daily activity would involve:
- Searching for the right candidates
- Building relationships with them
- And regular posting of job openings
As a job-seeker, your daily activity would include:
- Searching and short-listing the right companies that you’d like to be a part of
- Building relationships with key people from those companies
Conclusion
The social recruitment phenomenon is a reality today, and is an essential part of any company’s recruitment policy. Once you learn how to use this powerful medium with an action plan to find the right candidates or be found by the right companies, you can definitely see a dramatic increase in your overall business and career growth.
