Social media has become a critical tool in the recruitment world. Information (and candidates!) in this market are moving so fast that failure to utilise this platform could leave businesses at risk of the best talent ‘virtually’ passing them by.
Many businesses are recognising this and have been experimenting with some of the more unusual social media channels in order to innovate their recruitment strategy and subsequently increase the appeal of their employer brand.
At Omni, we’re huge ‘followers’ of the social media recruitment revolution and admire those who embrace this approach to talent acquisition. Our social media training courses are delivered internationally to global brands and so we’re always on the lookout for the latest innovations. Here is a list we’ve compiled of three unusual ways companies have pushed the boundaries of social media recruitment:
1. Snapchat and Likeable Media
Snapchat was the 6th most downloaded app on the iPhone in 2013 and works by allowing users to share images, text and video that will disappear after a set amount of time (maximum 10 seconds). A recent survey of 1,600 college students by college-centric marketing company Sumpto found that 77% of students use Snapchat daily, so it’s no surprise that companies who are looking to hire from the graduate talent pool are beginning to make use of this channel.
Likeable Media, a social media marketing agency in New York is finding that there is value in the photo sharing app as a recruiting tool. As an alternative to CVs, the company invited applicants to ‘wow’ their decision makers by sending creative 10 second video pitches explaining why they would be the perfect fit for the company.
Likeable media have the results to prove it can work. They received more than a dozen messages within a single month from prospective employees, with roughly a third of applicant invited for interview, proving that Snapchat can be useful when looking to reach a specific audience who might not normally engage with your careers page or other social media accounts.
2. Tinder and NEXT
The world’s most popular ‘dating app’ Tinder clocks up an impressive 750 million ‘swipes’ every single day. The premise of the app is that users can only start a conversation if there is a mutual ‘like’ swipe – which occurs over 10 million times a day.
So far, only modelling agencies (rumoured to include fashion outlet NEXT) have been making use of the superficiality of the app to recruit users with ‘model potential’.
Although not currently used for mainstream recruitment, a version of the app dedicated to ‘matching’ job seekers and recruiters was released earlier this year – so watch this space.
3. Vine and Aviary
Vines are short videos that run on a loop, making them an effective platform for sharing well-made content that expresses your company ethos.
Aviary (an app development company) are an example of a brand that did this extremely effectively by allowing users to see several members of the team enjoying themselves in the workplace, while simultaneously appealing to jobseekers for specific roles. See how they made great use of the Vine platform here.
The above examples are by no means mainstream recruitment channels, but this innovation in recruitment strategy has made the employer brands of these companies extremely appealing – so much so that it’s likely that even the most passive of candidates may have been swayed by the innovation to at least keep these companies on their radar for potential future applications.
