5 Ways For Upskilling Recruitment Marketing | #hrmanagement #hrexecutive

One of the goals of the human resource (HR) department is to source top talent for your company. You can take the business to the next level by acquiring a pool of top performers.  

You can achieve this through recruitment marketing with the help of your in-house marketing team. It leverages the power of digital networking platforms to attract new candidates. Recent studies reveal that 79% of job seekers use social media for their job search. 

However, it doesn’t mean you can just post job ads online and expect prospective employees to apply. It’s about using content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) to reach potential applicants. You may even consider outsourcing digital marketing professionals from a specialized marketing agency. They can give your employer branding a unique voice that resonates with the target audience. 

Upskilling your recruitment marketing gives you an edge over other companies in your industry. In short, attracting highly skilled candidates is possible. Here’s how you can do it: 

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1. Meet With Your Marketing Team 

Brainstorming with your marketing team is the first step in building a recruitment marketing strategy. At this stage, you discuss what you hope to achieve through recruitment marketing. It also includes how you plan to realize your goals and who will be responsible for each campaign task. This meeting sets the tone for your overall recruitment marketing strategy. 

Your marketing team will work on social media postings and employer branding. They are also responsible for the creation of complementary materials like applications and brochures. The HR team will help in crafting job descriptions and ads and track review sites. They will also be funneling the candidates and carrying out the whole interview process.  

By merging the expertise of marketing and HR teams, you can ensure that your recruitment marketing campaign aligns with your company’s objectives. 

2. Optimize Openings On Job Boards 

After discussing the details of the campaign with your marketing team, it’s time to start advertising openings on job boards. This is essential as it helps reach a wider pool of job seekers 24/7, meaning you’ll get more applications daily. According to a report from Statista, job boards accounted for almost 50% of global job applications.

Optimizing postings is essential because you’ll want your vacancies to rank high on search engine ranking pages (SERPs). If they do, your post stands out and attracts more candidates who will apply for the position. The following are the steps to optimize your job postings: 

• Ensure that the job description matches the one you post on the job board. 
• Optimize the keywords in your job title so that it ranks higher in SERPs. 
• Make sure the keywords match those in your description and include relevant skills and competencies required for the role. 
• Use specific keywords related to industry-related news topics that can help boost traffic on your page. 

With job board optimization, you can better target suitable candidates. 

3. Manage Your Employer Branding On Review Sites 

When you advertise vacancies on job boards, reading feedback about your employer branding is essential. If previous employees leave negative reviews online, potential applicants may not consider sending their applications. In fact, studies show that 55% of job seekers wouldn’t proceed with a job application if they read a bad review about a potential employer.

Thus, managing your employer brand is crucial for the success of your recruitment marketing. You should determine whether or not your branding is positive or negative based on the feedback of current or past employees. 

Maybe previous employees complained about how they were treated at work or didn’t get along with co-workers and supervisors. Although there’s not much you can do for past employees, you can adjust your policies to improve the working experience, which can ultimately attract more suitable talent. 

4. Encourage Referrals From Existing Employees 

Did you know your current employees can also be a good source of applicants? With enough incentives, they may be willing to refer their friends and family for job openings at your company. Their peers may be as competent and skilled as they are.  

Incentives may include a cash bonus or an extra day off for a successful referral. You can try offering a gift card or voucher for a restaurant or retail store. 

Employee referrals can be an excellent source of candidates because they’re more likely to know their peers’ skills. To get the incentive, they’ll recommend someone qualified for the position who can fit into your workplace culture. 

5. Leverage Social Media To Attract Diverse Candidates 

Modern employees are now more particular with diversity. When a company implements diversity and inclusion, it encourages workforce engagement. Team members who feel a sense of belonging will go the extra mile for the organization. And with inclusive policies, you can decrease employee turnover by around 50%. 

So, how do your recruitment efforts become more inclusive? Start with highlighting employee inclusivity in your campaigns to attract diverse candidates. For instance, upload videos interviewing employees from different races, genders, and religions. You can even include workers who have disabilities so that applicants know that there’s no workplace discrimination in your company. This, in turn, encourages them to participate and consider sending their applications. 

Wrapping Up 

Recruitment marketing allows your organization to reach out to potential candidates. It’s about making them aware of the opportunities available at your company and showing them why they should choose you over other organizations. Thus, upskilling your recruitment marketing efforts is vital. If you can partner with an in-house team and an outsourced digital marketing agency, you can further boost your efforts. Your employer branding gains a positive image, making attracting top talent easier.