With the pace of technological advancement keeping the world at an edge – constantly reforming through its traditional ways of being to those that are modern and more efficient – many processes along the way have undergone transitions. It is not new to your knowledge that our “worldly” affairs are now conducted through another proxy (an alternate world that operates constantly, as we speak) form that was given rise to when the Internet came into being and we’re all quiet fond of it, (considering you came here instead of opening an old fashioned book on job-searching) – simply put, Social Media is now the norm. With a growing number of the social media communication platforms being built with the purpose of enabling global connectivity, an important process has been re-explored in the process i.e., providing connectivity between an employer and a potential candidate.
Whether you are part of a small home business or a big company, your potential employees are using social media, and to vise-versa this statement, if you are a newly graduate or someone who has been in the job market for a couple of years, recruitment managers are on social media keeping an eye out for candidates matching their job requirements.
Getting Recruited through Social Media
Social Recruitment is a concept that emerged following the idea of job advertising on social media platforms that have succeeded in providing the ideal space for both: employer companies to market jobs, and individuals for personal branding. Ever since, many pre-existing social media platforms reshaped themselves to cater to the requirements of social recruitment, including Facebook and Twitter, at the same time, giving rise to the creation of new platforms dedicated to serving the global professional sphere such as Linked-In. A growing number of companies recruit by screening candidates on Linked-In alone, which means that in order for you to become privy to the online screening processes, you must take to social media to develop an ideal online personal brand.
Your profile on social media is a representation of who you are. This is not limited to your existence on professional sites; it also applies to the content you chose to keep public on your personal accounts. Managers who deem the further exploration of their potential employee necessary are likely to end up on your other social accounts. In light of the matter, it is important to be conscious of the information you display on your personal sites that are visible to the public eye, this can include hardline political views, improper conduct in visual content or anything considered inappropriate in today’s growing, politically sensitive environment. Other than that, to become more visible to hiring managers on professional platforms, make sure you give in the time and thought required to create a professional image that is consistent with the trends of the platform and is an embodiment of your resume.
If you do link your main profile to other sites, make sure you filter through the information presented there. You might have to dive in to a slightly awkward timeline of teenage posts, but linking other platforms that somehow highlight your talent or achievements to your main profile can be good in the way that you get to pick and chose the information you present. It will also allow recruitment managers to make the most out of one search, without needing to further look into other social media accounts.
Job advertising through Social Media
Recruiters from many companies have turned to professional networking platforms to advertise for vacant positions or just to screen through to find users matching their description and reach out to them directly. Platforms such as Linked-In allow recruiters from different companies to post jobs and contact people they are not directly connected to. Such platforms contain special features that are directly related to the functions of recruitment, such as the Recommendations feature of Linked-In which is an archetype of ‘References’ as it allows users to endorse other people profiled on linked-In that they have worked with in the past.
In order to make good use of the features offered by these social media platforms, you must make sure that the recruiting company is taking the right steps with firstly, projecting the company’s image onto the platform appropriately and secondly, creating a job advert that rightly compels the targeted audience from an influx of existing users operating on the platform.
Integral to the process of social recruitment is for a company to select the right social networking site and know its audience that they intend to connect with. Before selecting the social media platform to advertise, understand the special features offered by the networks and use them strategically. Write a compelling description for the job that tells potential candidates exactly what the job will offer and target your audience appropriately. Your company’s profile, description, signature and the people affiliated with it on the site will appeal most to candidates while looking to apply. Your signature is also an important element that appears on each of your posts; make sure it is precisely written with information enough to briefly introduce your company. If the site allows you to share visuals relating to or of your offices, employees working their shifts, etc., on your page, avail the opportunity and provide a glimpse of your office environment and the people that make up your company. Your social media marketing efforts also come into play here, have your recruitment manager work with the marketing and social media executives to create a suitable strategy, customize your adverts, update your social media linking it with the main forum targeted for recruitment and keep updating posts that reflect your company’s projects or involvement in events.
