Today’s job seekers are savvy career shoppers with access to a seemingly limitless amount of information on the web. Survey your most recent round of interviewees and you’ll find that most candidates are doing their due diligence in checking you out before applying to your jobs. And they have some basic expectations of their online experience with your organization. To ensure that you are meeting these expectations and providing a good candidate experience, ask yourself three important questions:
Be authentic and transparent about who you are and what you are offering. It sounds simple enough. When we meet someone for the first time, we usually give people accurate information about ourselves, even if it’s mostly just the “good stuff.” So why does it seem so hard to do when it comes to advertising our career opportunities to job seekers?
The fact is that not everyone is the right fit for your organization and that’s okay! Companies who are great at recruiting help the right candidates get excited and the wrong candidates select out early in the recruiting process.
Be loud and proud about your culture and your organization-don’t hide it. Here are some easy ways:
Or said more simply, do you treat everyone the same? Imagine if a wealth manager used the same commercials to advertise to newly weds as to retirees? The ads wouldn’t resonate with either group, right? The same is true in recruitment. Instead of trying to be everything to everyone, identify your most important candidate targets and speak to them directly in a way that makes sense for them. What does that candidate care about?
A great example is college recruiting. Step into the next local college career fair and you’ll see many companies recruiting the same way they did in 2005 by passing out flyers that direct students to apply on their corporate website. Instead, send students to a landing page or microsite and talk to them about why your company is the right place to launch their career. Tell them what their career path could look like, or the training that you offer. Show them success stories of previous graduates from their university.
You’ve heard it before—actions speak louder than words. From the words in your job ad “no calls please!” to how easy (or difficult) it is to apply to your jobs, every touchpoint that you have with your candidates is telling them about your organization.
Here are some ways to show candidates that they matter:
If you’re not sure if your organization’s online recruiting efforts pass the the litmus test, start using your interaction with employees and candidates to help you hone your employment brand and messaging.
