3 Social media marketing trends to help you recruit your best talent

HR and Marketing are working together more as social media becomes the top platform for finding talent

Universum recently released its 2017 survey on Employer Branding, which surveyed 2,500 HR managers, talent acquisition, marketing managers, recruiting and resourcing managers from 35 different industries and 50 different countries.

Social media has proven to be critical to recruitment drives, here are 3 trends to help you recruit your best talent.

  1. Highly Targeted Messaging

Being in tune with your target audience is absolutely key to a successful recruitment drive. Here are some of the specific findings:

  • Almost 60% of the World’s Most Attractive Employers (WMAEs) have developed different campaigns for graduates versus experienced hires. Small businesses are getting on board as well. 20% now develop different campaigns for these audiences.
  • 30% of medium and large businesses tailor communications to different countries; 16% of small businesses do the same.
  • Across the board, about 30% of companies tailor their communications to different regions.
  • Almost 40% of companies now tailor their communications to different functions/ job families. For small businesses, that number is about 30%.
  • 25-30% of medium and large businesses are now developing different diversity campaigns. About 13% of small businesses are doing the same.
  • Less than 35% of companies now have one global communication strategy.
  1. Advanced Social Strategic Planning

Company social media strategies are now essential for sourcing and connecting with the best talent and planning in advance is imperative to make these strategies be successful. It’s no longer just about brand building and brand management.

  • 44% of WMAE companies surveyed plan their content for social media channels 2-3 months in advance.
  • 17% of WMAE companies plan 6-12 months in advance.
  • Only 39% of WMAE companies do no advanced content planning.
  • The survey also confirmed that people have different content expectations for each channel, so it’s no longer effective to simply post the same thing on each channel.

“An employer branding strategy designed for Twitter might not be successful on Facebook, and vice versa. The content needs to be tailored to suit the nature of the channel as well as the user base,” said Universum branding expert Claudia Tattanelli.

  1. A Focus on Visual Content

Visual content is the most important and effective type of content across all social media channels. People love to see the faces behind the brand.  Employee photos and videos moved to first place in terms of the most deployed employer brand content among the WMAEs.

  • 77% of WMAEs are now using video and photos in their social media strategies. Approximately 60% of medium and large businesses across the board are using photos and videos, and 36% of small businesses are using them.
  • Employee testimonials are the next most effective use of social media content. 75% of WMAEs use testimonials; about 65% of all medium and large businesses use testimonials, and 44% use them.
  • The third most effective type of social media content is “inside stories” in which companies share what it’s like to be an employee. This really gives the candidate a real insight to what its really like to work within the company. 74% of the WMAEs use this strategy; 60% of large business, 49% of medium sized business, and 36% of small businesses use them as well.
  • Regarding platform usage, YouTube and Instagram saw a 15% increase in usage compared to 2016, followed by Facebook at 8%.

The integration of HR and Marketing has arrived. Targeting your message, planning your postings, and knowing exactly what to post where are essential strategies for connecting with the top talent that your company needs to keep growing.

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The British Institute of Recruiters is the Professional Body operating The Recruitment Certification Scheme

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