Yes, it’s a bold statement I know but for a time poor organisation the usual recruitment strategy is a cheeky seek advert and a cross of the fingers that the right applicant is sitting in the old inbox 24 hours later.
Given the June 2022 ABS stats have unemployment at 3.5% I’m betting, most businesses are on struggle street for applicants let alone quality ones. I’ve spent a significant amount of time working in candidate poor market conditions and I know it’s no fun when the bottom of the barrel is reached. So here are a few tried and tested ideas to get your creative recruitment juices flowing.
1. Social Media
Aaahhh yes I can hear the quick inhale at the thought of using Facebook / LinkedIn / Insta / Tiktok and I understand the hesitation (and I have another post dedicated to the topic of handling key board warriors coming shortly) however this is truly one of the best ways to capture both a passive and active audience for FREE. Who doesn’t love for free! Below are a couple of quick ways to use social media on a budget.
Post Job on Facebook and LinkedIn
Do a quick job summary no more than 200 characters for LinkedIn and Facebook with link to the seek advert and post it to your company profiles, then ask everyone in the company to share the ad with their network (it goes without saying but I am going to say it anyway, that you should refer to their own social media company policies when posting or requesting staff to post / like / share company social media content). And for goodness sake make sure you highlight the perks of the role. I am a fan of detailing the salary from the get-go, so you don’t waste your time or the applicant’s time. It might also prompt some commentary which is useful feedback for hiring managers.
Use Facebook Groups to promote your role
Think about the profile of the candidate that you are looking to attract and look for Facebook groups that might be interested in the job you are advertising.
E.g. you are recruiting for a nurse in Brisbane, check out whether there are any nursing groups in Brisbane and post to their Facebook groups. I love this because it is a targeted and engaged audience. You should take the time to respond to any commentary, people will be reading the comments and again this will boost the engagement with the post.
Use Facebook Ads for Passive Candidates
You can also whip up some Facebook adverts to attract a passive audience. The targeting features within Facebook provide excellent filters and worthwhile exploring. If you don’t have a marketing department, Canva is a great place to create your own advertisements.
2. Referral Program
Get the managers in a room and agree on a referral program. Doesn’t need to be fancy, but it does need to be effective. Maybe its $250 gift voucher for a referral who meets the three main criteria of the job advertisement and another $250 gift voucher if the applicant gets the job and sticks at it for three months. You know your organisation best however as the old saying goes, 'keep it simple stupid (KISS)'. It should be so simple you can explain it on a napkin and your employees can act on it quickly.
Follow through
There is no point in putting together a referral program and then not advertising it to the staff and bringing to their attention for the next couple of weeks. There’s a marketing saying that goes something like this – ‘it takes a person 7 times to view an advertisement that appeals to them before they take action.’ So with this in mind make sure your referral program is front and center by:
· Promoting at staff meetings,
· Signs in the lunchroom,
· An email detailing the referral program and link to advert
· Maybe even snail mail, how nice it is to get a letter in the mail these days!
3. Out of the Box Ideas
Call a quick white board meeting and brainstorm ideas where you might find groups of the people with the experience/skills/qualifications you are looking to attract. Then think about local businesses that might be able to promote your role. A couple of examples of how this can work:
Training Courses
If you are looking for a candidate with a specific training course, approach local RTOs that offer that course and tell them about the role you are recruiting for. Provide them with some value in sharing your role with their students.
Local Coffee Shops
If we use the nurse scenario again, maybe you partner with the local coffee shop outside a major hospital and provide free coffees to anyone that’s a nurse along with a flyer about the role.
4. Three Top Tips for Writing better Recruitment Advertisements
I notice that companies get so caught up in constructing extremely professional recruitment advertisements, making sure they've ticked all the corporate boxes and added every last responsibility into the advert. Sometimes I read these adverts and think to myself - this sounds more like a prison sentence then a job you'd actually like to do.
You should write the recruitment advertising copy like you are talking to your new favourite colleague. Best way to do this is, reread the advertisement and then shut your eyes and ask yourself - would you want this gig? Does this sound like a good working environment? If you are not sold on it, chances are the prospective candidate isn't either.
A good rule of thumb is 50/50. 50% about the role and responsibilities and 50% about perks of the role and the company.
All marketing is story telling. Think about the company's story and the story of how this role has come about. Weave these stories together so the reader feels like they would be going on a new adventure with you/company. Just like a story you need a beginning (company history), a middle (plot challenge which is the role) and an end (conclusion & solution, which is them and how to apply).
If you just implement this last recommendation, you will see an uptick in applications.
Well, I hope that’s got you thinking about how you can change things up in the future and boost your job applications. I’d love to hear what original ideas have worked for you in the past.
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