Recruiting as an industry is notoriously behind the times when it comes to leveraging social media for their business.

With millions of potential jobseekers on social media sites, social recruiting is a no-brainer for any headhunter or Talent Acquisition pro. Something I always found interesting, as a marketing person, is the fact that recruiting blogs seem to talk ad nauseam about different tactics and tools to use in order to help find candidates, however no one seems to discuss the power these tools also provide when it comes to branding your business.

Contrary to what a lot of people think, branding is more than just a slogan and/or logo. Branding is perception. And the simple question you need to ask is: How do you perceive your company, and how can you translate that perception to others so that they look at it the same way?

You may not realize it, but the way you handle your social recruiting can have a major impact on your overall brand. Here are some tips to build your brand through social recruiting:

1.    Promote Your Unique Workplace Environment

Your jobs should post all the essential information like salary and benefits, but your social programs allow you to pitch the experience of working there! Most people want to work in an environment that is lively, fun, and interesting, so promote what makes your company unique. Take pictures or video of people having fun around the office, describe company outings, and add a certain energetic language to your tweets or posts to give your followers an idea of what the vibe of their potential place of employment could be.  This will not only help with resume flow, it will also give your audience an idea of who you are as a company as well.

2.    Go Viral

The beauty of social media is that it’s…well…social. Posted jobs that are seen on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter all offer sharing functionalities that open your audience to not just your followers, but to your follower’s followers as well! That being said, it’s important to make sure that whatever you tweet or post positively reflects your brand, and the message you want everyone to see. How do you do this? Make sure every person posting jobs has a quick and effective company description that not only sells your company as a great place to work, but just as a great company in general. Who knows, maybe your next customer could be looking at that job description!

3.    Q+A Response

We’ve all at one point been on the job search. How many times have you felt that when you’ve submitted your application online or in the mail it essentially went into a black hole never to be seen or heard from again? Well you’re not the only one, so being available to passive or active job seekers online through career branded Twitter profiles, or Facebook company pages can be a helpful tool for follower retention. Job ads are often ambiguous by design; however some people may not choose to apply if they don’t know enough about the job or company. Also, you may want to monitor Q&A sites like Quora, Yahoo Answers, and LinkedIn Answers to see if people are asking questions about what it’s like to work at your company.

Having a vehicle online to address any questions or concerns candidates may have not only takes pressure off your HR or Staffing team, it also shows that your company is dedicated and available to its audience, which is certainly rare nowadays.  

4.    Attract Hot Candidates Through Thought Leadership

In the talent game, there’s a great deal of competition. Believe it or not, for a lot HR and staffing pros, the biggest problem is attracting candidates. Where a person works is a big deal, so candidates need to be absolutely convinced that working with you is going to the best possible fit for them. So how do you demonstrate how good of a choice working for/with you would be? Show candidates that you know your stuff!  You shouldn’t always be tweeting jobs openings. It’s important that you show your base of potential job applicants that you have your finger on the pulse of your industry. Tweet industry specific-news, or post blog articles written by your company on your branded Facebook Timeline, or upload videos of your executives speaking at public events to your Youtube channel.

5.    Promotion Tool

This article is talking about building your brand, so as a marketer you should always be thinking about new ways to promote your business and services. Your social community may be following your recruiters because they’re interested in working at or with your company, but keep in mind they are still an audience. If your company is running a special promotion, or hosting an event etc. you should be utilizing every available avenue to broadcast to as many people as you possibly can, which means your talent community shouldn’t be off limits. Some of your best customers can be people whose attention you’ve already captured; just another benefit of running a well-oiled social-recruiting program. 

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