How to Effectively Use Social Media for Recruiting

Using the proper channels is a key element of effective recruiting. To find the right employees, you need to make sure they find your job listings.

That’s why it’s important not to overlook the value social media can play in attracting talent. Although the specific methods that work best will vary from one organization to another, the following are some ways you can leverage social media to make your organization more appealing to potential hires.

Improve Your Social Media Accounts

This may sound like a very simple tip, but it can be easier to overlook than many people realize.

Some brands and companies are fortunate enough to be very familiar to the average social media user. For example, someone considering applying for a job at Apple is likely well aware of what the company does.

That’s not always the case with other brands. People might not know what your company does when they spot one of your job postings. They may hesitate to apply if they don’t immediately understand what field of work your company is in.

To avoid this uncertainty, you can ensure your social media accounts thoroughly explain and demonstrate your organization’s purpose and mission. Though your company website may feature an About Us section, where both customers and potential employees can learn more about the organization, don’t count on all job candidates to check that section of your website. On your social media accounts, it’s also necessary to fill in all relevant sections with information about your company — this will save applicants the effort of looking outside of social media for more background information.

Additionally, it’s also a good idea to review your current social media accounts to determine if there are any opportunities to add more branding to them. Do your accounts feature brand logos? Are your posts written in the branded voice of your organization? Do you share pictures that illustrate what it’s like to work at your company?

Potential employees don’t simply want to know what your company does. They want to know what it’s like to work there. Adding more branded content can provide them with such insights.

Find out How People Perceive Your Brand

Don’t neglect your social media accounts when you’re not actively managing them or posting content. It’s also a good idea to monitor how people respond to the content you post. You can pay attention to mentions of your company on social media in general as well.

Though the people who respond to your posts or mention your brand on social media may never end up working at your company, remember that your goal when monitoring their behavior isn’t to recruit them necessarily. Instead, your goal is to get a better sense of how people perceive your brand in general. This helps you to identify problems that may discourage people from applying to jobs with your organization.

For instance, maybe you shared photos from a company event on Facebook. If the general response seems to be positive, that’s perfect. On the other hand, if comments are negative (e.g., saying the event looks too formal, the workforce looks unenthusiastic, or the overall tone of the event seems obnoxious, etc.), you’ll know you need to coordinate with other major decision-makers at the company to determine what you can do to improve brand perception. This will help you to attract more applicants in the future.

Target the Right People

It’s important not to exclude anyone when offering jobs. The last thing a recruiter wants to do is give off the impression that certain people are not welcome at the organization.

That said, it is true that many companies tend to attract people who share certain similarities. For instance, if your company’s target audience is millennials, it makes sense if many of the employees on your creative and editorial teams are millennials as well.

Keep that in mind when posting job listings on Facebook and other social media sites. You can often publish job postings in the form of ads. However, if you do so blindly, you’re randomly sharing a posting with literally billions of users. The vast, vast, vast majority of them won’t qualify for the position.

Thus, you need to use targeting tools when sharing job postings on social media. For example, maybe you want to fill a position in a certain region. You could create a Facebook Custom Audience for your posting, ensuring it’s only displayed to people who live in that area. Additionally, you can create “Lookalike Audiences” of users who share qualities with your current employees by uploading employee files to Facebook. The platform will generate an audience similar to your current workforce.

Remember to experiment as well. Using social media to attract new applicants is an art and a science. By keeping these tips in mind and monitoring your progress, you’re much more likely to attract the right people.