Just over a month ago Facebook launched the use of #hashtags across their platform. What does this mean for you as  a recruiter? It does not mean a whole lot to your recruiting strategy however the proper use of hashtags can prove to be extremely valuable, so let’s take a look at 7 great ways to leverage hashtags on Facebook.

Please note:  I will strongly urge you to not waste your time developing your strategy around this. This is a neat little tool that is not a game changer. Some may argue that point. At this time it’s not scalable, therefore not the center point of a well thought out strategy. This statement is repeated at the end for good measure.

Here are 7 effective was on how to use hashtags with Facebook:

Be unique / descriptive: Although #hashtags are popular among many social networking sites that are used for sourcing and recruiting they are still a relatively new tool when it comes to content organization and search.  The more creative you are the better the chance that your content will spread. Why? This is because readers of social media have an eye for unique content. As quickly as a recruiter can look at a resume and say “No Thank You”… you can trust that the reader can determine if your content is worth reading. The more descriptive the #Hashtag is the better the chance readers will find your nugget.

Stalk / Listen / Learn:  Recruiters can be scary people on social media. (Not in a bad way) We are followers, we’re lurkers. Be sure that you are using this skill properly. You all know the saying: “A great sales person speaks 20% of the time” So what are they doing for the additional 80%? They are listening. Using a descriptive #hashtags will generate conversation between other within your interest group. As they talk; you listen.  Monitor the conservations and use your influence to control the conversation and convert the potentially qualified leads into applicants.

Be Relevant: A recruiter’s time is extremely valuable. Wasted time on social media is worth a lot of money.  You need to move swiftly and with purpose. You need to be sure that your #hashtags are relevant to your audience. Identifying the proper hashtag to use is not difficult. You can use Hashtagify.me or hashtags.org to run a few comparisons on the most active and value hashtags.

Lurk in “Real Time”:  Real time targeting, Real time marketing, whatever you call it…just do it. Using #hashtags within your search capabilities will open a new world of immediate social reach getting your content and jobs to the proper leads and candidates in a short amount of time.

Hashtag Robbery: Do you remember domain squatting? You are proper still doing it. Recruiting with domains was popular circa 2007 and it has proven to be a great financial return for those that landed great domains. Hashtag robbery (in my opinion) will work the same way. You don’t buy hashtags but if you use your thinking cap you can certainly take over a well-used hashtag in your target skill set area. Why do this? If done successfully you will undoubtedly open your call for talent to an entirely unexpected audience. This is how content goes viral. In your case as a recruiter, going viral can mean a significant payout on a great placement.

Catch the wave: Twitter is steaming hot today. G+ (Google Plus) is right there with it in popularity. So why use Facebook? It’s not just because of the user base. It’s because of data. Facebook has an obscene amount of data which churns their engine and makes shareholders happy. Some of the industry’s largest and most renowned mergers in 2013 happened because of data. The use of hashtags not only increase the amount of data and conversations taking place on Facebook; it also creates a new level of marketing ability to reach entirely new demographic of skillset and interest that was previously unavailable. This is the goldmine for recruiters.

Set it / Nurture it / Search it: One of the biggest returns on a viral or heavily used hashtag is that once the tag is created it’s automatically linked. Why is that important? Let’s say you have bumped (Using a hashtag that is popular for an entirely different meaning) the hashtag #softwareengineer. Let’s assume that over the course of a week 100 additional comments have been generated on you topic of employment which is outside of the current topic on that hashtag which is covering a much more techie conversation. All you will need to do is click that hashtag and you will be presented with the conversations, the people taking part and the actual content of the conversation.

Here is the repeat warning to all recruiters: With all of this said, I will strongly urge you to not waste your time developing your strategy around this. This is a neat little tool that is not a game changer (yet). Some may argue that point. At this time it’s not scalable, therefore not the center point of a well thought out strategy.