What is social recruiting and how does it work?

Social recruiting refers to the process of recruiting candidates through social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and other websites, including online forums and job boards. Initially this was used to supplement more traditional recruitment techniques, however, as the world becomes increasingly digitised, it has fast become the primary way for organisations to reach the best talent.

This is largely because social media is where the bulk of candidates spend their time, with 86 per cent of job seekers claiming that they use social media for their job search. For those recruitment teams who use social media as a communication channel, the vast majority use LinkedIn (79 per cent) and Facebook (71 per cent) – and with roughly 40 million people looking for jobs using LinkedIn every week, it's easy to see why.

What does social recruiting involve?

Social recruiting goes beyond simply posting about new vacancies on LinkedIn; it encompasses any activity that might encourage an applicant to apply for a job. That could be providing supplementary information about a specific role that might be appealing, like a perk or benefit, but also details about the organisation and brand itself. For instance, shouting about business news that demonstrates growth and success, or employee life at the company via a virtual tour of the office or employee testimonials.

This activity doesn’t need to originate from the company profile – in fact, in many scenarios it would be more powerful coming from an employee’s account. Employee advocacy is a crucial way to give a more human voice to your recruitment strategy. Whilst the attractiveness and suitability of a role plays the biggest part in hiring success, ultimately people recruit people. Potential employees want to hear from a person why the role/organisation/perks are fantastic, not from an impersonal business account.

This not only gives communications a sense of legitimacy, but it also allows organisations to offer a variety of voices that are likely to appeal to a wider range of candidates. If you are a young woman applying for a role, for example, you are more likely to listen to someone like you speaking about the benefits of a role, than you are a middle-aged man.

Reaching the perfect candidate

Social media recruiting also involves the active pursuit of candidates. Platforms like LinkedIn offer employers the ability to search for talent in the local area, for example, as well as to cross-check information provided by current applicants such as credentials and referrals.

However, there are far sharper tools available, such as LinkedIn’s ‘Advanced Search’. With over 55 million companies and 875 million members using LinkedIn, it can be challenging to find precisely what you are looking for. Advanced Search allows the user to filter members down to a granular level from countless angles, such as:

• Connections – while a basic search allows you to see first connections to a company (previous employees for example), Advanced Search allows you to find second and third connections.

• Years of experience – search by how much experience people have in a certain position or business.

• Seniority level – Search by CEO, intern, and everything in between.

These filters allow users to achieve very specific search results, pinpoint ideal candidates and tailor their approach accordingly, removing some of the guesswork from the process.

So why use social media recruiting and how easy is it?

Sourcing candidates via social recruitment practices is exceptionally cost-effective compared to traditional methods of recruitment, and it is the direction driven by the up-and-coming workforce – a study found that 73 per cent of millennials (25 – 40 age group) found their last position through a social media platform.

When carried out effectively, social media recruiting is a highly effective hiring method that boasts a high ROI, but it isn’t a one-time fix. For social recruiting to work in the long term it needs to be structured, strategic and maintained constantly – and to get the process off the ground it will take a healthy investment of time and energy.

Recruiting via social media requires your organisation to build a foundation in the form of a strategy and a strong network of followers. There is no use in posting about a new job to ten people – as with any marketing activity you need to ensure that you are reaching the right audience with the right message regularly. It won't happen overnight – building momentum takes time, patience and consistency.

This is where the services of recruitment specialist can come to the rescue. Think of them as an extension of your team, with the capacity, expertise and network to communicate your available roles to the best people. Recruitment specialists have already completed the heavy lifting of building a large network of candidates on social media who know to expect a constant flow of job openings to explore.

That means that they are also able to target the hard-to-reach pool of candidates who are not actively looking for a new role but may be passively following a recruiter’s LinkedIn profile. Passive candidates make up 70 per cent of the candidate pool and can easily be the difference that makes a successful hiring campaign.

And don’t forget recruiters build relationships with candidates too, so anyone previously placed by them will likely come back to them for their next role, allowing you to benefit from the goodwill they have already built.

Our experts know the industry inside out and will help you to find candidates that match your organisational need and growth aspirations. Speak to the Robertson Bell team today.