At least 28% of employees check their smartphones during downtime.

For recruiters, this means that the pool of passive candidates is increasingly on-demand.  Leveraging text messages, email, and mobile-accessible websites can be a powerful way to engage these passive candidates who are consistently accessing their smartphones and tablets.

Just One Problem…

Until very recently, there has not been an easy way for candidates to apply to jobs on their smartphone or tablet.

Imagine filling out an online application via your touch-screen keyboard.  It’s frustrating enough to fill out online applications on your desktop computer, much less on a palm-size screen, one letter at a time.

Likely, if you came across a job you wanted to apply to while browsing on your smartphone, this is going to be your drop-off point.  Maybe you’ll forward yourself the link to apply at a later date.  If you are browsing on a job search app, you might be able to save the job to your favorites list, and access it from your desktop or laptop later.  But both of these scenarios leave a big chasm between the interested candidate and the actual applicant.

Closing the Gap

The LinkedIn Apply button lets candidates apply with the information that is already available in their LinkedIn profile.  This means that with one click – or one touch – a passive candidate can become an applicant.

Adding the LinkedIn Apply button to your job postings connects mobile with the job search process.  Now, passive candidates can scroll through their Twitter feed or Facebook news feed, see a job you posted, click on the link, and apply with one click using the LinkedIn Apply button.  They never need to leave their smartphone.  The loop is complete.

The Downside?

In his article, Linked in profile vs The CV: Face off…  Gareth Jones used a CV rating service to rate his CV against his LinkedIn profile.  The results were in favor of the CV.

Resumes are a bit cumbersome when it comes to the application process.  However, in terms of content, the Resume is much more flexible.  The #1 rule of the job search process is to tailor your resume to the job description.  And this is where LinkedIn falls short, because the job search process is not conducive to a one-profile-fits-all solution…

A Good Start

As Jones points out, LinkedIn will most likely adapt as their “Apply” button picks up steam.  Perhaps LinkedIn will allow their users to easily maintain multiple profiles, each tailored to a specific purpose.

LinkedIn Apply is not the perfect solution to linking mobile with recruiting, but it’s a good start. It creates a jumping point for recruiters to capture a passive candidate’s information, reach out to them and ignite their interest enough to move forward with the process. Whether the applicant’s next step is sending a resume, replying to an email, accepting a phone call, or coming in for an interview, will be up to the recruiter.

p.s.  “Apply with LinkedIn” is now available through the Sendouts website integration!

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this post originally appeared at www.sendouts.com