Updated Guide to Social Media for Recruitment and Staffing

In this article, we share the latest best practices in social media for recruitment and staffing.

Social media in recruitment has become a hub for community-building and brand-building as well as a viable place for recruiters to source candidates.

The expansion of social media along with privacy regulations continue to make using these platforms a bit of a moving target.

And there is no evidence to show that social media is going away.

According to research, 72% of the U.S. population uses some form of social media. And while Facebook and YouTube currently lead as the most common platforms, each has the potential to attract new candidates or enhance the recruitment process.

One of the biggest benefits of social media recruitment is the ability to meet candidates where they are already spending their time. People are tuned into their social platforms usually daily, if not hourly.

Make yourself (and your jobs) discoverable on social media, while also engaging with relevant groups, posts, and influencers. Through these tactics, recruiters can create more opportunity to build their network… and their placements.

With that, let’s dive into how we actually use social media for recruitment, today.

#1 Social Media Channel Demographics

The most popular of social media platform is Facebook who has made their platform the “necessity” for all platforms. And while many early adopters were younger, Facebook’s audience has grown both in size and age.

People aged 30-49 (77%) make up the most users, followed closely by 50-64 (73%) and 18-29 (70%).

The most important aspect of candidate sourcing on social media is understanding where your audience spends their time. Let’s take a look at the most common five social platforms.

Facebook Ages 18-29 (70%) Ages 30-49 (77%)

YouTube Ages 18-29 (95%) Ages 30-49 (91%)

Instagram Ages 18-29 (71%) Ages 30-49 (48%)

LinkedIn Ages 18-29 (30%) Ages 30-49 (36%)

Twitter Ages 18-29 (42%) Ages 30-49 (27%)

Source: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/?menuItem=c14683cb-c4f4-41d0-a635-52c4eeae0245

Looking at the above percentages, where is your audience spending their time on social media? Are you engaging in these places or are you elsewhere (or maybe nowhere on social media)? Work smarter, not harder. Meet candidates where they are already spending their time.

Effective social media recruitment begins with identifying the best platforms to connect with your audience and ends with consistent engagement with those candidates to build relationships.

Let’s take a look.

Facebook

Create a business page with a jobs tab for open positions. Connect with relevant industry groups, clients and candidates to share company news, blogs and insights, and open positions.

YouTube

Create a channel for your business and share employee highlights, company ads, and other engaging tips and resources in video format.

Instagram

Focused on visuals and stories, create a company page with inviting images and photos educating about the company, culture, as well as positions.

LinkedIn

Most likely you’re already using LinkedIn for recruitment purposes, but what does your content look like? Are you only talking about open positions or are you also giving insight into the company, employees, and culture? Are you speaking to all of your audiences effectively?

Twitter

Consider Twitter as a pulse of the organization with quick insights, shareable soundbites, and insightful news for both your company and your industry.

Check out more social media content ideas here.

#2 Candidate Sourcing on Social Media

Depending on your industry, various social media platforms can be an excellent media for sourcing candidates. And, we don’t mean just blasting out DM’s.

Here are some actionable ways to network on social media and make yourself (and your jobs) most discoverable.

Join Groups

Facebook and LinkedIn both have thousands of specialized groups that you can join. Some are specific to recruiters and are great places to share tips and industry news. Others will be specific to niche industries and candidate groups. By becoming a trusted member of the group, you can add value and learn about your candidates. Post jobs or resources when appropriate, but make sure you’re contributing to the conversation, too.

Post Value-Add Content

The days of easy organic reach on social media are long gone. Don’t expect people to see your content unless you are willing to put a promotional budget behind it.  When you are already putting in the effort to develop content and post jobs, putting a couple bucks behind them is a great way to optimize your effort and ROI.

I recommend varying the type of content you post on your company page as well as what your individual recruiters and team members are sharing. Personal accounts will typically get more authority in timelines, so social media is definitely a group effort.

Types of content can include:

  • blog articles
  • placement stories
  • video tips from recruiters
  • infographics
  • tips and tricks for candidates
  • client surveys
  • testimonials
  • employee highlights
  • company news
  • team photos and videos

Between candidates, clients, employees, and future hires, think about your various target audiences and post things that will appeal to each, without alienating another. You will also find that your audience distribution varies by platform, so you may want to adjust your content strategy slightly for each.

Bonus Points: Check out our friends at Paiger who automate and optimize social media for recruitment.

#3 Posting Jobs on Social Media

Posting jobs is likely going to be top priority for your recruiters, and for good reason. Just be sure that your social feeds do not become job boards or it will just read as noise to your audience.

Target job postings accordingly by putting money towards the posting and scheduling it to an ad group targeted specifically to that specialty/job type.

Also, when possible vary up your imagery for job postings with location or specialty unique photos, infographics, and more. There are tons of templates on shutterstock.com!

Checklist for Posting Jobs on Social Media:
  • Keyword focused Title / Headline
  • Link to Job Posting Landing Page
  • Use Engaging Imagery (Ad, Location Pic, Gif)
  • Make Sure Your Link Populates a Card
  • Amplify thru Engagement
  • Boost with Targeted Ad
  • Track Source of Applications with ATS and Google Analytics

Tip: Follow the 80/20 rule when posting content. This means 80% should be about adding value to your audience (think tips, asking questions, sharing highlights, news, etc.) and 20% should be specifically sales-focused (job positions).

In addition to how often you post a new position, it’s more important to ensure they have easy access to apply. Linking back to your job posting on your website is simple.  Typically you can include links within a post, a comment, a specific job posting, a profile, etc. Just make sure you update it once the position is filled.

#4 Brand Building with Social Media

Each social platforms allows companies to build their brand in a different way. From posting news and updates on Facebook to employee highlights on Instagram to service videos and inside peaks through YouTube, each post and upload helps candidates connect to your brand, as well as your open positions.

Additionally, social media can help build relationships with other industry leaders and drive traffic to your website. Further, social media sites can help you stay on top of trends and industry news. All of which you can use to promote and connect your brand to your various target audiences.

Building Recruiter Branding

Whether you chose it, or it chose you, your area of specialization is what forms the basis of your personal brand. Most your placements might happen to be in finance, or you may have already been an expert in marketing when you started recruiting professionally. There are countless recruiters in the industry, but there’s only one with your exact education, experience, and skill set.

It’s not enough to simply have a Facebook account or a LinkedIn profile page – you need to master these platforms from a branding point of view to get the full benefit of their power.

To ramp up your social media presence, add some of these strategies to your routine:

  • Update regularly
  • Have accounts on all appropriate platforms
  • Engage in conversations with other users AND groups
  • Stay current
  • Post valuable/interesting/funny content
  • Use variety
  • Don’t make it all about you
  • Show your personality & be genuine
Building Your Firm’s Brand

Your employer brand is, simply put, your agency’s reputation as an employer, both for internal and external candidates. It also tells your clients how they can expect to work with you.

If you wish to attract top talent and top clients to your firm, it’s vital you have a strong and attractive online brand. Without one, not only will you struggle to attract candidates and clients, but you’ll have a hard time attracting good employees, too.

  • Define and articulate your brand
  • Look for brand disparities and improve
  • Examine your digital assets for branding
  • Get active as a brand on social media
  • Ramp up content and resources to audiences
  • Create a great online experience for candidates

Your firm’s brand is how people (candidates, employees, clients, Joe the plumber… everyone) think, feel and share about your recruiting agency. Start paying attention to your company brand, if you haven’t been. Showcase what make your firm special. If you’re not actively cultivating an attractive brand, they just might draw their own conclusions.

#5 Social Media for Referrals

It’s important to note, that for most firms, referrals still have the best return for high quality candidate sourcing, according to a recent report. Using current employees and their social platforms is a winning combination for sourcing potential candidates. This means networking with candidates, employees, and top contractors to advocate for your firm, your recruiters, and your positions.

For more insight on recruitment referral strategies, check out this article from our friends at Staffing Referrals.

In Summary of Social Media for Recruitment

For the foreseeable future, social media will continue to be an important channel for staffing and recruiting. While each platform certainly attracts different uses for different purposes, leveraging the right platforms for your audience will grow your recruitment network as well as your brand (and job posting) awareness.

If you’re not currently utilizing these strategies across your social properties, it’s time to reconsider, focus, and build a plan. Get even more tips with our articles on 5 Tips for Using Social Media and 10 Social Media Recruitment Strategies for Faster Growth.

About Tracker

Trackeris an inclusive and integrated recruitmentandapplicant tracking softwaredesigned for recruitment and staffing firms of all sizes. Our industry-leading technology will improve both your recruitment speed, process and quality. With over 15 years of experience, ourATS Systemis built with you in mind. 

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