‘Helping’ jobseekers to apply
So you’ve perfected the engagement process and reached out to some really great candidates. Now all you have to do is sit back and wait for the applications to roll in. Job done! Or is it?
No matter how polished your initial approach, if a job seeker cannot get the information they need, or what they find is not to their liking, you will not convince them to apply. So what do you need to be aware of?
Your website – The first port of call for any job seeker will be your website. If this looks modern and fresh and gives off a feeling of professionalism, the job seeker will be one step closer to hitting the apply button. However, if your site is old, out of date or just simply un-inspiring, the chances are you have lost the job seekers interest already. Thus, you need to ensure that your company website is updated regularly, and exudes a really positive and funky vibe.
Social media – It almost goes without saying that social media is a central part of most people’s day to day life. Whether it be Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, most job seekers will be using social media to find out more about you. It’s probably worthwhile you looking at any social media accounts you have and seeing what it looks like from the candidate’s POV. The general principles of 1) grow your followers, 2) engage with them and 3) mobilise them applies in recruitment as well. If needs be, create a specific Twitter account just for your careers function and make sure your LinkedIn company page has a section on jobs, benefits, company culture, etc.
Your ‘wider’ online presence – This will cover things like articles in the press, YouTube videos, Glassdoor reviews and anything that a job seeker might be able to find out about you through a simple online search. A good exercise is to search for your company as if you were a job seeker. What do you find? Is it positive? Is it interesting? If so, great. If not, then why not? Is it something you can change or update? There will always be things that are out of your control but try to improve what you can.
Give your staff a ‘voice’
One of the best ways to maximise the application process is to give your current employee’s a voice. Make sure they have made plenty of contributions to your careers page. Quotes, videos, and Vlogs are all becoming more common. This is a great (and free!) way to let job seekers see all that is great about your company. And it will mean a whole lot more because it will be coming from the people on the ‘shop floor.’
More applications? Check! Now you need to think about how you ‘nail’ the interview process.