We’re getting quite predictable, you and me. We use our consumer behaviors to shop for just about anything, be it a new dishwasher for our home, a software tool for work, or even our next job opportunity. Don’t believe me? Answer these questions.

What do you do first when you need to buy a product or service? You go to the internet to research the problem that you need to solve, and you learn about the options available to solve it.

When do you usually contact a company that you have put on your short list of possibilities? You probably don't want to talk to anyone until you have a pretty good idea of which direction you want to go.

Many businesses now realize that it's vital to create online interactions to guide people towards a purchase decision, but when it comes to recruiting talent and building a candidate pipeline, they’re missing the mark. Read on to learn why recruitment marketing is a growing trend not to be ignored

Definition of Recruitment Marketing

Recruitment marketing is the use of marketing tactics that are applied towards the achievement of recruiting goals. These tactics include:

• Blogs and Website Content
• Employee Case Studies and Testimonials
• Video Marketing
• Email Marketing and Lead Nurturing
• Social Media and SMS
• Advertising

Why Recruitment Marketing is a Trend You Can't Ignore

You don’t have to be involved in the talent search business to know that competition for labor is intense. It takes a whole lot more effort to attract the attention of your ideal candidates, and then guide them towards a decision than it used to.

It’s no longer enough to rely on job postings alone. You have to sell your company as if it were a product. Selling the opportunities that your company can offer future workers means that you have to provide online interactions that allow them to get a feel for what it’s like to work at your company, and build their relationship with you.

Candidates are looking for this content on your website and in your social media channels. If they’re not finding it, then you could already be falling behind in the competition for talent.

Use Employee Stories to Get Started with Recruitment Marketing

It’s one thing for you to say that you are a great employer. It’s quite another to have your employees say that about you. In fact, LinkedIn’s Ultimate List of Employer Brand Stats pdf says that “candidates trust the company’s employees 3 times more than the company to provide credible information on what it’s like to work there.”

Employee stories are the first step in getting started with recruitment marketing because they nurture trust and give candidates confidence that they're making the right decision - whether it's to accept an offer or to submit an application.

Employee stories feed your recruitment marketing tactics with loads of raw content for your recruiting messages on your website and social posts, and they help you to discover what your employer brand truly is.

When you interview employees to capture the story of why they work at your company, their stories will answer questions that candidates need answered. Publishing stories on your blog helps candidates get to know you and turn their interest into an application for one of your jobs.

Paint a Picture of Your Company with a Careers Blog

Starting a careers blog is a simple way to consistently publish articles that answer candidate questions and develop their relationship with you. What’s more, your careers blog makes it easier for your employees and referral network to put your name in front of the people they know because your articles give them a reason to talk about you.

You can publish your employee stories on your careers blog, but there are other types of content that will help you illustrate the value you bring to your employees such as:

• Day in the Life – Briefly walk through a typical day for each of your positions.
• Behind the Scenes – Tell a story of how an internal team works to serve customers.
• Kudos and Awards – Publish announcements about employee certifications and company awards, and don’t forget to send a press release to your local media.
• Philanthropy – Share how your company and your people help others.
• Programs and Professional Development – Share stories about programs that you have to help people to reach their potential, such as internships, training, goal-setting.
• Employee Spotlights – Let employees communicate what’s important to them.

Stepping Up to the Next Level

Publishing is just part of recruitment marketing strategy. Once you have committed to taking the first step to creating the online interactions that your candidates are looking for by publishing new content, where do you go from there?

• Promotion and Distribution of your content – use of social media, email marketing and advertising to get your stories in front of people.
• Lead capture and nurturing – Getting permission to communicate with candidates before they’re ready to apply, or influencing their decision when they’re in later stages of your process.
• Create a video strategy to bring your company to life.

Get Started with Recruitment Marketing

If you want to take the first step towards becoming more proactive with recruiting, start by publishing a few employee stories on your company blog. You’ll be amazed at the way that your people paint a picture of how your company lives out your values, and how eager they are to help you get that story out to their own networks, where your next employees are waiting to hear about you.

Contact me to have a chat about how I can help you get started with Recruitment Marketing.