Find Your Next Employee Through Social Media
As the economy starts rolling back to normal, your own business is probably seeing more activity. If you're ready to hire new employees, turn to social media to find the best candidates.
Job Hunters Search Online for Work
Even if you personally have little time to be online, the best employee candidates are using social media to look for work, make new connections and read up on business news and trends. According to CareerGlider, almost half of all job hunters are "very active" on social media.
Most advisers and headhunters tell job seekers to look at online job boards on sites such as CareerBuilder, Glassdoor and Monster. It's easy, though, for a small or even midsize company to get lost on these sites. They tend to be dominated by large corporations and headhunters. The responsibility falls to job seekers and employees to define parameters to match them up. They may not be a good fit for your company.
Improve Your Company's Online Visibility to Job Seekers
Since the job seekers are online, look for ways to make your online presence attractive to them. Because you may well be competing with industry giants for the best employees, showcase your employee-friendly chops.
- Feature your team on your website. Don't just include bios; add photos (with their permission) of them hard at work. If you're hiring professional staff, it's a given that you provide sick and vacation leave. Instead, list interesting employee benefits that help you stand out like flex time, education support, telecommuting and so on.
- Use your corporate blog to showcase your expertise to potential employees. Apple Rubber, which makes rubber seals and o-rings, has a pretty technical blog to excite engineers and others who work in the field. It's bright, has nice graphics and is easy to read on a smartphone. No doubt some of its readers are students and engineers with work experience looking around for new opportunities.
- Adjust your LinkedIn business page to showcase your corporate culture. Demonstrate the human side of your company; it'll boost your visibility on the site and can attract the right job candidates. List company news, such as who helped win a contract or earned a new degree or other academic or professional distinction. Be sure to also include a "Follow" button; chances are, some of your followers are hoping for an opportunity to work for you.
Advertise Your Job Openings on Select Social Media Sites
LinkedIn is particularly good for small businesses looking to fill positions, according to Business News Daily, which calls it a "treasure trove of qualified candidates" to help you grow your business. You can upgrade your account to Premium Recruiter, which provides advanced tools like search alerts and better filtering or create highly targeted ads and sponsor them. Another tactic is to join a LinkedIn group where candidates are likely to be found.
Craigslist is another good source for finding local candidates. Fees are low (sometimes free), and you can create filters here as well. Entry-level and nontechnical workers, such as sales staff, often search Craigslist for leads, as well as those looking for temporary work around the holidays.