While at first, it seemed like social media would have nothing to do with job opportunities, that hasn’t been the case. Social media has transformed the way we hire in many different ways.

Social media recruitment refers to the process where candidates are sourced from social media. This is often done through talent databases or job ads. You can engage, attract, and hire candidates via their social networks.

Rather than using traditional hiring methods, with social media, you can reach thousands of people. Many recruiters have started to recruit with social media and never looked back.

Why Recruit with Social Media?

Easier to source candidates

Many recruiters find it difficult to source satisfactory candidates. Finding applicants for a role who meet all the requirements requires much more work than you’d expect. This has been simplified through the use of social media.

Rather than relying on people to apply for positions, you can now use social media to go out and find them. For example, LinkedIn often contains all of someone’s work history. This way, you can see whether the person has the right experience for the role.

Nab passive candidates

Not everyone will be looking for a job when you’re looking for applicants. Don’t let that get in your way! Recruit with social media and you can find passive candidates who may not be job hunting. However, they could be interested in a new job if the opportunity presented itself.

Build your brand

There are a lot of recruitment agencies who are all competing in the same market. How do you ensure that someone comes to you over your competitors when they are looking for a job? Brand recognition.

By using social media to build a strong brand, more people will be aware of what you do. This can mean that they are more likely to turn to you when they are looking for work.

Attract young candidates

It’s no secret that younger people are more likely to use social media, and often. If you are looking to fill a role that requires little experience, it is likely to get filled by a younger person. That’s when social media can be a great place to recruit. There are more young people on there who are looking for jobs using non-traditional methods.

Which Social Media Are Used?

There are many more types of social media out there, but there are some common ones that are used for recruiting. Keep in mind that using each of these will be targeting different types of people. For example, people on LinkedIn could be more likely to be active candidates and the others passive. Also, more younger people use Instagram than Facebook. Do your research to find out what social media your ideal candidates may be using.

Here are some ideas for platforms to use to recruit with social media:

• Facebook

• Instagram

• LinkedIn

• Twitter

Tips for Using Social Media to Recruit

1. Engage with Videos

You may have never considered using videos in your recruitment process. However, when you recruit with social media, different tactics come into play.

Social media users are ten times more likely to engage with a video than they are with other content. Perhaps it’s because it is livelier than just reading text. Perhaps it’s more personal when you can read body language. Whatever the reason, videos are a fantastic recruitment tool.

Here are some video ideas:

• Behind the scenes at your company

• Message from the CEO

• Live question and answer session

2. LinkedIn Groups

Most recruiters are now using LinkedIn as part of their method to recruit with social media. You can not only create a LinkedIn profile for your company but join groups too.

Find LinkedIn groups that are relevant to your business and join them. By actively sharing your job posts in these groups, you are uncovering a whole new source of relevant candidates. They may not have even been active job seekers but on seeing a great job, may want to apply.

3. Get Your Staff to Share Content

Using your current staff to share content to their social media pages can be extremely powerful. There is nothing people like more than a personal recommendation. That’s why review sites like Yelp and Google Reviews are so popular.

Even if you get your employees to share a job post on LinkedIn, you never know who is in their network that may apply.

4. Keep an Eye on Social Media for Opportunities

It’s vital that you keep an eye on what people are saying about your brand on social media. Perhaps someone had a bad experience. Use it as an opportunity to reach out and right a wrong.

You may also find many opportunities arise when you are monitoring your company’s social media profiles. For example, reach out to people who are engaging with your brand to see if they may be interested in working for you.