It has long been the case that a full feed of (any) posts will guarantee the desired effect on the audience. Authentic, visually appealing, professional yet friendly - that's how content communicated by recruiters on social media should be, according to research by the Content Stadium platform.
The 2022 and 2023 survey of the visual content creation platform, Content Stadium, involved recruiters and HR specialists who work for companies in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, and the UK. When asked: What content works for recruiters on social media? The most common answers were: be authentic and creative, create high-quality branded visuals that stand out, keep up with the latest trends, portray your employees faithfully, bet on brevity and simplicity, keep profiles active, define a strategy, choose a professional and friendly approach, ensure you have a competent person/team to manage your networks, and don't forget about the entertainment.
Don't pretend to be someone you're not
Authenticity was the most inflected concept of the survey regarding the content presented to the public. Respondents used the term to describe being themselves on social media, being honest, authentic, trustworthy, and transparent. Avoid exaggerated claims that portray you as a company in an unrealistic light. Remain objective and present your company with its negatives and positives. Focus on the positive aspects to show the best of your business without giving people illusions.
Lovable at first sight
Don't underestimate the aesthetic side of your posts, that's what gets the attention first. Many survey respondents highlighted the power of photos and videos.
Keep the following in mind when creating your social media visuals:
- Create engaging content that stands out on the feed. Highlight important text in bold. Go for bright colors, videos and dynamic content that catches the eye.
- Support the brand by creating a consistent and recognizable style. It's like a signature on your visuals that will always make respondents rank it in an abundance of social media posts.
- Pay attention to the quality of your photos and videos. Invest in a quality camera and lighting.
- Always deliver original, creative messages that users will want to dive in.
At the pace of the times
Recruiters in the survey recommend staying up to date with trends when working with social media and tailor the content presented accordingly. In practice, this means that newsletters don't come out a month late, contain accurate information about vacancies that are current and still available. Nearly 30% of social media users are trying to stay updated on current affairs.
How to render employees?
According to the survey, 61% of respondents agreed that if they publish photos of employees, it brings them more engagement. Several said they would reach for real employees rather than actors for campaign videos and photos, as followers are interested in unique employee experiences in addition to company news. In the videos, they portray employees in a way that shows the positive dynamics of the team.
Give space to employees
In addition to photos, the specialists we spoke to recommend employees being in the spotlight. Give them space to tell their story, literally. A great format for this is Instagram Stories. On a regular basis, employees from different departments of the company can provide a behind-the-scenes look and show what it's like to work for your company. Survey participants have also found it helpful to post articles from employees portraying their role in the company and videos showing them in different situations, how they handle different tasks, their impact on the company and how they work as part of a team.
Few words, imaginative messages
According to the survey, simple and concise content works well for recruiters. Avoid using complex words and long sentences to keep respondents' attention. Especially, young people don't have the patience to read extensive texts because of their extensive usage of mobiles. Posts with the point, imaginative with clear, catchy text - that's what gets attention!
Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Another useful tip that emerged from the survey is to stay active and add posts on a regular basis. Some recommend posting content daily, others as often as you can. Active communication includes prompt feedback. Always respond to comments below posts. To keep accounts alive, it's a good idea to set a consistent strategy, defined topics, and also prepare your posts in advance.
I have a plan...
Before you set a social media account or start actively filling it with content, it's a good idea to think about the meaningful content you'll be feeding it with.
- Think about your target group you want to reach. Tailor profiles to the target audience to deliver relevant, value-added content using adequate resources.
- Define your EVP (employee value proposition) - the employer's value proposition (defines all the financial and non-financial benefits that an employer offers to its potential and existing employees in return for the effort, commitment, and loyalty it expects from them, author's note). Set rules to deliver consistent content and speak in appropriate language, considering the chosen EVP.
- Choose appropriate communication channels, considering the age of the target audience you would like to reach.
- Stick to the set goals and KPIs (key performance indicators).
- The survey shows that only 30% of teams work with a specific manual defining the style of employer branding. They do not realize that this is important in terms of consistency and building a recognizable employer brand.
The message of each post should aligned with the chosen strategy and its objectives. Don't add posts just to fill the feed. Track the effectiveness and return statistics of the posts and evaluate their success. Adapt your strategy to them.
Professional, but not cold
Survey participants demand the need to be friendly and professional at the same time, ideally striking a balance between these aspects. Publish business-oriented posts but remain friendly and approachable.
Put a competent person in charge of it
Hire someone competent and experienced to manage your social networks. Alternatively, delegate a suitable person from your team to manage the networks and invest in quality content production tools and training. The "man hours" in the team will be saved by a suitable recruitment management platform.
In Nalgoo ATS, you can easily design modern and original ads in line with your employer branding, personalized for each position with the option to add a video or prescreening form.
You can then share them via social media not only by you, but also by employees to different communities.
Mainly positive
Humor and a certain lightness of the contributions were often mentioned in the survey. Funny content attracts users' attention. They are more likely to be commented on and shared. More than 30% of social media users search for funny content on social media.
Energy efficiently spent.
Well-populated profiles take time and energy, but for many recruiters in the survey, it's the most effective tool because it allows you to reach a large audience at a relatively small cost. Don't underestimate the power of social media, as with the right content it can make a huge impact.
How to choose the right platform?
When communicating, choose the appropriate channel. Consider the total number of users and the proportion of the chosen age group you want to reach. Almost 75% of Slovaks are active on social networks. Data from the US Transparency Report from October 2023 shows the number of active accounts (the number does not coincide with the number of users, one user can have multiple accounts, author's note) of the largest social platforms in Slovakia. YouTube leads with 4.3 million accounts, followed by Facebook with 3.2 million accounts, Instagram with 2.3 million accounts, TikTok registers 0.9 million accounts, Snapchat 0.592 million accounts, X (Twitter) 0.272 million accounts and LinkedIn 0.2 million accounts.
Some useful statistics
The following figures might help you choose the right communication strategy. According to statista.com's January 2023 statistics, people aged 18-24 and 25-34 use Instagram the most. Facebook is strongly dominated by the 25 - 34 age category, followed by the 18 - 24 age category and with very similar numbers the 35 - 44 age group. According to Go4insight's research, LinkedIn is predominantly used by those in their thirties (39%) and younger people in their forties (31%). Most valued is keeping in touch and access to news in the business they are in.
For the older generation, consider other platforms.
The Digital 2021 Global Overview Report survey reports that the average internet user spends nearly 2½ hours a day on social networks. According to the statistics, women spend more time on social networks than men, and social networking use among the older generation is declining across all age categories. Therefore, if you want to effectively reach your target audience over 45, consider traditional offline forms of communication apart from social media.
Author: Adriana Hergott