Your co-workers have an average of 350 Facebook friends apiece. That might not seem like much to go on, as you search for your next great hire. But when you multiply it by only ten employees, that’s a potential reach of 3,500 prospects. Now factor in the fact that employee referrals constitute the number one source for both quality and quantity of new hires, and you’ve got a solid chance of recruiting success based on how you are able to leverage your employees’ social media networks.
Here are a few tips to get you started right away.
Once you’ve written out the job description for the position you’d like to fill, make sure that the job post is easy to share and post with a single click on various social media networks. This makes the opening much more sharable for your employees, and anyone else in their circles who decides to pass it along.
There’s nothing wrong with a little healthy competition. Announce to everyone in the company that you’re having an employee referral contest using social media networks. Encourage the people in your office to take a look at the new job posting and the sharable link you made. Offer rewards to the employee who nets the most likes and shares on your job post. As the buzz grows, so does your chance of finding top talent.
With integrated recruitment software, you can track the referrals employees make, all the way from application to interviewing to hiring. Offer a special incentive to the person who finds the golden goose. This should encourage your employees to hone in on the right person for the job from the very start.
Until you’re satisfied with the number and quality of the applications you’ve received, continue to post a variety of clear, simple, attractive links to the job opening. Keep reminding employees to like and share the job posts with their friends. Don’t forget to announce updated stats on the sharing competition. If the situation warrants it, up the ante with even better rewards.
When friends of friends, or total strangers comment or ask questions, be quick to respond. Remember to reply directly to the comment, so that the commenter will be notified of your response. Engage with your audience as often as possible. You may need to assign someone on staff to keep track of interactions on social media networks when things start moving quickly.
Make sure your profiles, websites, and social media posts offer a positive, but accurate, picture of who you are as a company. Use professional-quality images and engaging copy. Be honest about your best qualities. Make your corporate values clear. Showcase pictures and stories of what you do best. Talented people evaluate you as carefully as you evaluate them. But it doesn’t start at the first interview; it starts the first time they click on your job post.
If you want your next recruitment outreach on social media networks to be a success, make a big deal out of every win, right now. Use your recruitment software to find out who had the best quality and quantity of social media referrals. Then make it worth their while. Use cash, food, event tickets, gift baskets… anything your people find meaningful– even time off! One reason for celebrating is to recognize the winners and encourage everyone else to participate. Another is to showcase the power of teamwork and how it contributes to the company growth. Let everyone feel the weight of their success.
When you mine talent from your employee’s social networks, you get more than an isolated worker bee. This person either has a relationship with someone already established in your corporate culture or has been referred by someone in the network who has already done the initial screening to determine the fit. And because of that, the new employee is likely to have a smooth transition into her new role. Have you ever found a talented hire through social media networks? If you are interested in learning more, request a demo of our technology to see how it can help you easily leverage social media networks for employee referrals.
Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash