Using Social Media in Your Recruiting Efforts
According a 2013 Social Recruiting Survey from Jobvite.com, an overwhelming 94% of recruiters use or plan to use social media in their recruitment efforts over the next year. As established social media networks continue to grow, and new ones sprout up, the frequency in which candidates are sourced through them is sure to increase as well.
Social media is a powerful tool for finding and vetting candidates but many recruiters still have questions on how best to utilize these social networks and what they should be looking for.
Below, we list some of the top questions about social recruiting.
Which social networks should recruiters look to?
LinkedIn (94%), Facebook (65%), and Twitter (55%) are currently recruiters social networks of choice, with LinkedIn at the top for searching, contacting, vetting, and keeping tab of candidates. Both Facebook and Twitter’s recruiting strengths include showcasing the employer’s brand, generating employee referrals, and posting jobs. However, other social networks including personal blogs, YouTube, Google+, and Instagram are also starting to gain popularity as channels used to source talent.
What should recruiters look for in a candidate’s social profiles?
Before the rise of social media, recruiters relied on resumes followed by interviews to gage a candidate’s professional and cultural fit within the organization. Now with a few clicks and strokes on a keyboard, they can see even more information right in one place (on their computer screen). For looking up and verifying a candidate’s professional experience including length of tenure and specific skills, recruiters favor LinkedIn, which offers a clear structure for candidates to provide this information via their online profile. When it comes to investigating a candidate’s cultural fit, some of the other networks including Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ become more popular options.
How can social media improve recruiting efforts?
Because of it’s vast reach and relatively low cost, social recruiting generates strong ROI for recruiters with 43% reporting they spend less than $1,000/month on it. However, 60% estimate the value of their hiring through these social media channels to actually be greater than $20,000/year. Recruiters report social recruiting has improved the quality of candidates (49%), quantity of candidates (43%), time to hire (33%), and quantity and quality of employee referrals (32%).
For more information on social recruiting, check out Jobvite.com. For help with your company’s recruiting efforts, contact The Overture Group and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.