Social media is a powerful tool that companies all over the world use. Building your online brand is considered a necessity across all industries, and social media opens up a gateway into your business.
Most companies see the value of having a social media presence, being able to share its messaging, promote its brand and engage with its audience on a more personal level is vital in a modern society. It has a variety of benefits:
Build brand presence
Identify groups and connections to engage with
Listen - ‘hear’ what businesses are saying and doing online
Competition - you can see what the competition is doing and the engagement it is getting
Recruit - Targeting a select group of people that have the ideal skills and experience that you are looking for is invaluable.
We at NRG use social media platforms LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to advertise roles, promote our brand and engage with our audience, colleagues, and stakeholders.
Building a brand
Social media promotes the culture of a business, it gives potential employees a window into the world of the company.
For a company that is in the recruitment industry, ensuring that our content is engaging and informative demonstrates that we are a company on the pulse and not stuck in the mud.
According to the agency central, the primary reason that recruiters and recruitment agencies use social media is to build a brand.
From a recruiter's point of view being consistent across all the platforms elevates your brand and ensures transparency and professionalism for future employees.
Social media engages young talent
Engaging emerging talent is a challenge for recruitment agencies, especially in industries that are experiencing skill shortages. 99% of 16-24-year-olds use social media, the 2018 Communications Market Report, produced by Ofcom, has shown that social media is indeed ubiquitous amongst school and university leavers.
The power of linkedIn for candidates
LinkedIn is an important tool for recruiters, firms and candidates to all be involved in. According to the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC), LinkedIn is the preferred network for recruiters, with 94% using it to source candidates.
LinkedIn serves as a complement to traditional recruiting methods. Utilising LinkedIn is vital for recruiters and applicants. Having a presence on the platform will allow candidates the opportunity to stand out amongst the hundreds that would have applied for a single job.
According to LinkedIn, applicants with a referral from an existing employee are four times more likely to be hired. For professionals who lack connections at their company of interest, LinkedIn offers an opportunity to make them happen.
Engaging multiple platforms
Although LinkedIn lends itself to job searching and recruiting, there are other social media platforms, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter that allow companies to advertise jobs or for candidates to contact businesses directly about vacancies.
Most professionals will be present across a variety of platforms, so ensure that when you are applying for a job your social media presence is professional and won’t tarnish your future company’s reputation.
Social media screening
From an applicant's point of view, social media is of course important to demonstrate to potential employers your professionalism. Companies have started to screen potential candidates, this means they would check your social media presence to understand if you would be a fit for their culture.
In a 2020 survey by The Harris Poll, 70% of the employers who responded said they believe every company should screen candidates’ social media profiles during the hiring process. Moreover, 78% of employers believe that current employees should maintain a work-appropriate social media profile.
It is evident how important social media is in a candidate securing a role. The study found that 55% of employers who use social media screenings said they have found content that caused them not to hire a candidate.
A voice from an expert
Social media and digital marketing agency, Allies Group understands the landscape of social media and how it has impacted recruitment.
David Stubbs, Creative Director from Allies Group describes how social media has impacted the world of recruitment. “From an agency perspective, we can see how much social media has impacted the way clients engage with prospective employees and brand their business.
Traditional companies that in the past would have opted to advertise their vacancies either via their website or on a job board such as Indeed are now seeing social media as an avenue to engage and attract new employees.
We tell businesses that social media is a window into their business, even if you are not advertising a vacancy, a passive candidate may not be actively looking for a job but could be wooed by an enticing job offer that is presented on social media. Up to 82% of employers recruit passive candidates successfully on social media.”
How have we adapted to the power of social media?
As the recruitment industry has undergone significant changes, NRG has adeptly adapted to the evolving landscape, emphasising the power of social media as part of our recruitment strategy. By leveraging social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram, We have successfully amplified our online presence and reached out to a broader audience. Social media is utilised to promote job openings, disseminate industry news and updates, and connect with potential clients and candidates.
Sajida, one of our lead marketing recruitment consultants, acknowledged the significance of social media in the recruitment process, stating that "Social media has become an indispensable tool for us in the recruitment industry, and NRG has seamlessly integrated it into our recruitment strategy. We utilise social media to connect with potential candidates, advertise job openings, and keep track of industry news and trends. It has enabled us to contact a wider pool of potential candidates and interact with clients in a more personalised manner, resulting in greater successful hires.
To conclude, we have seamlessly adapted to the power of social media by incorporating it into our marketing strategy. The use of social media has enabled us to connect with a broader audience, interact with candidates on a more personal level, and advertise our services to potential clients.