Recruit for the creative sector? Find and place more candidates with niche social networks full of top creative talent.

Having worked closely with a number of great agencies and freelancer professionals I have found that although most creatives have a LinkedIn profile a large number aren’t regular, active users. This blog aims to share with you three overlooked social networks designed specifically to connect you with passive and active creative candidates.

Behance

The leading online platform for the creative sector, Behance aims to “empower the creative world to make ideas happen.” Acquired by Adobe in 2012 Behance is home to over 77 million images with active users from 172 countries.

Behance users can showcase their work, availability, achievements and contact details via their free online portfolio page. If you are looking for a designer with a particular style you can filter work using the ‘Focus’ options.

In addition to the wealth of contact information and portfolios Behance also has an integrated job board that will help get your position directly in front of some fantastic designers.

• Behance: https://www.behance.net
• Behance Jobs: https://www.behance.net/joblist/about

Zerply

Zerply is a professional network for the “world’s top creative talent in TV, film and games”. Zerply aims to help creative professionals transition from one project straight into the next by connecting recruiters with great candidates.

Users of Zerply maintain an online portfolio, sharing their work with recruiters and companies looking for talent. Recruitment professionals can set up messages so when someone with a specific quality or skill becomes available they are notified. Unlike LinkedIn, Zerply does not limit who or how many messages can be sent. As a recruiter there are no contact restrictions.

• Zerply: https://zerply.com
• Zerply for recruiters: https://zerply.com/about/hiring

Creative Pool

Creative Pool works across numerous sectors from marketing to development and graphic design. Users of Creative Pool maintain a profile page similar to LinkedIn with the additional option to host a copy of their CV.

A 2014 On Rec industry award winner, Creative Pool offers a range of options to recruitment professionals including job posting, CV searching and unlimited CV downloads. Your role is matched with relevantly skilled candidates from the 137,517 (and growing) active users to ensure it gets put in front of the right people.

• Creative Pool: http://creativepool.com
• Creative Pool for jobs: http://creativepool.com/purchase/credit.php

Hopefully this blog will help you connect with some top candidates, if you know of any other social networks designed for the creative sector let us know.

For the latest recruitment news, tips and advice connect with HRS at our website: www.getHRS.com or via social media at Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Google+. Friend, follow and connect.