The race to recruit top talent is more difficult than ever. Competition is fierce, budgets are small, and qualified candidates are hard to find.

But staying on top of industry trends can help you beat out the competition.

Here are the top recruiting trends that will continue to impact hiring in 2015.

Social is increasingly significant

Social recruiting is on the rise. In 2014, fewer recruiters found talent on traditional job boards alone and more cited professional social networks and niche job boards as important sources of hire, according to a report from CareerXroads.

As job seekers turn away from general job boards in favor of networking and niche sites, target skilled workers on industry-specific job boards in the new year.

In addition, social media is also an increasingly essential part of the recruiting process. Understand which outlets your target candidates are using so you know where to invest your time.

What’s more, 46 percent of U.S. companies surveyed by LinkedIn said social professional networks are one of the most important sources for quality candidates, followed by employee referral programs, company career sites, online job boards, and internal hires.

Passive candidates are gold

A majority of professionals are open to switching jobs, creating a large opportunity for recruiters to pick up high quality talent. About 75 percent of professionals surveyed by LinkedIn identified themselves as passive job seekers, and 72 percent of U.S. employers said finding these candidates is a top priority.

But intending to hire passive candidates is not enough—you need a specific strategy. Although a majority of recruiters feel hiring passive job seekers is a priority, only 21 percent of companies surveyed by the Novo Group modified their recruiting practices to attract them.

Adapting trusted strategies for a new audience of job seekers is time consuming, but the results are worth the effort. Among companies who saw at least 11 percent top-line growth last year, 63 percent changed their recruiting process to target passive candidates.

Mobile usage continues to rise

More job seekers are using mobile devices in their job search, and the technology will continue to play an important role in recruiting in 2015.

In 2014, 38 percent of companies surveyed by Linkedin said a lot of candidates learned about their job openings on a mobile device, up from 20 percent in 2013. What’s more, 28 percent said they have seen a lot of candidates apply for positions from mobile this year, up from just 16 percent last year. Recruiters are responding to this trend by optimizing their career websites and job postings for mobile.

Companies who don’t embrace mobile optimization will miss a large chunk of potential candidates.

Culture is key

As the competition for skilled talent increases, recruiters are placing more value on promoting corporate culture.

About 75 percent of respondents to the LinkedIn survey indicated that how job seekers view their work environment has a significant impact on their recruitment efforts. Fewer respondents, however, indicated they had a strategy to promote the company culture.

Recruiters are turning to social media and professional networking sites to showcase culture. About 61 percent of companies felt promoting culture on professional social networks sites was effective, and 47 percent felt social media was an effective tool.

Companies who do promote their culture through these outlets are reaching job seekers. About 23 percent of candidates surveyed by Jobvite screen an employer’s company culture on LinkedIn, while 19 percent use Facebook and Google+.

Although recruiters are bound to face more challenges in the coming year, those who are prepared for the changes and barriers will be more capable of securing premium talent. Focusing on the wants and needs of skilled candidates will help to attract the right professional for the right position.

What other recruiting trends are on your radar for 2015?

Robyn Melhuish is the Communications Manager at MedReps.com, a job board which gives members access to the most sought after medical sales jobs and pharmaceutical sales jobs on the Web. Connect with Robyn and MedReps.com on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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