Recruiting qualified applicants can be a major challenge for any business, but the right marketing goes a long way toward attracting top talent. The process looks a lot like enticing customers to purchase a product, and recruiters can use many of the same, familiar techniques to encourage job seekers to apply. It’s all about advertising and engagement.

8 Best Practices for Recruitment Marketing

In today’s world, it’s not enough to just advertise a position through word of mouth or even on a job board. The internet is saturated with job listings, so recruiters have to get competitive.

1. List the Salary and Benefits

A 2022 Gallup poll found that 64% of employees cite pay and benefits as a very important factor when taking a new job, compared to just 41% of workers who had the same opinion in 2015. In fact, pay and benefits held the top spot on the list of priorities for job seekers.

Many people won’t even click on listings that don’t disclose how much the job pays. That’s why it’s crucial for recruiters to be transparent about wages. It’s also a good idea to include benefits in the listing description, such as paid time off, dental insurance or a 401(k). If the job allows for a strong work-life balance or encourages diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in its guiding principles, recruiters should highlight these attributes.

2. Advertise on Social Media

As of 2021, over 4.2 billion people used social media, accounting for a full 53% of the human population. This statistic means most adults worldwide use social media, which makes it the perfect place to advertise. The vast majority of organizations advertise on social sites, with many marketing job openings on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter.

Social media advertising also makes it easier for recruiters to keep track of important metrics, like how many people clicked an ad, how long they stayed on the page and whether they followed a call to action. Making note of these metrics is a crucial part of SEO and online job marketing.

In addition to ads, it’s important to have a strong social media page that provides regular updates and showcases your brand. Social media makes it easy for job seekers to engage with the company in an organic way, whether through likes, comments or direct messages.

3. Create an Employee Referral Program

Employers should encourage current employees to refer qualified candidates for job openings. Staff members often maintain a social network with professionals and former coworkers from other jobs, making them a valuable resource for recruiting new hires. A referral program is a cost-effective strategy that helps businesses quickly find external talent.

It’s important that employees use a variety of recruitment methods to maintain diversity in the workplace. They should look for candidates from all races, genders, religions and other backgrounds, and recruiters should evaluate employee-referred candidates with the same criteria as they do for other people.

4. Feature a Career Page on the Site

Company sites often include a career page for job seekers. Using a solid SEO strategy built around brand keywords helps people land on the correct part of the site. This page should include all current job openings, potentially allowing candidates to sort through the listings based on location, category and whether they include remote work. It serves as a first impression for people familiarizing themselves with the company.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ) sections are also useful. Candidates may want more information about what the job entails, whether they need a degree or specialized training, when the job posting closes and what the company values include. If they can find the answers to these questions online, they’ll be encouraged to follow through with the job application. It also cuts down the number of back-and-forth emails and phone calls recruiters must make to answer common queries.

A third feature many people find useful is a “day in the life” snippet, which details just what it sounds like. It’s even better if this summary of a position’s daily responsibilities takes the form of a video, since marketing studies have found that people engage with videos longer than photos or text. Provide a visual tour of the office or include interviews with current staff members in the video.

All webpages should be optimized for mobile. It’s important that the site loads quickly, is easy to navigate and features working call-to-action buttons regardless of device.

5. Manage Online Reviews

Former employees often leave reviews about their experience working for the company. Most job seekers will research the company for which they’re applying and may come across these critiques, which can lead them to form snap judgments about the workplace.

Although these comments aren’t always positive, it’s vital for businesses to engage with them, leaving feedback and thanking workers for their time. It may be possible to clarify why the employee left a negative review or even remedy their complaints.

6. Use Video Marketing

Video ads are perfect for recognizable fields like firefighting, teaching and health care. But even for less visually exciting careers, video marketing can grab people’s attention. Whether on social media, the company website itself or TV, recruiters should use this medium to their advantage.

When creating video ads for job postings, it’s important to include subtitles for greater accessibility. Make the first few seconds really count by highlighting what makes the brand great and why people should apply for the job. A video can also quickly convey information about deadlines and how to complete an application.

7. Include Contact Information and Instructions

Should job seekers apply through the website or do they need to get in touch with somebody first? Is email, phone or an online portal message the best form of communication? Job listings should make contact information clear and easy to find. They should also clarify the best way to apply and who candidates need to speak to, if anyone, about the position.

8. Be Responsive

Too many job applicants send their applications into the void, never to hear back from the organization. Others wait months just to be turned down. This poor communication is both disrespectful to candidates because they may be in desperate need of a job and damaging to your company if the applicant has multiple career offers on the table.

Although some recruiters may be swamped with job applications, they should strive to get in touch with candidates as soon as possible. Even an automated reply thanking people for their application can help, indicating that the recruiter takes people’s time seriously. Recruiters can utilize customer service chatbots to help shoulder some of the workload. They can answer repetitive questions, get a better sense of candidates’ skills and sort them accordingly.

Attracting Top Talent

Recruitment marketing is all about encouraging prospective employees to apply. It involves promoting the organization, job culture and specific career listings through the power of advertising and a strong internet presence.

Recruiters should highlight each position’s salary and benefits. Additionally, they should make an effort to be more communicative, provide clear instructions for applying and utilize multiple forms of advertising. The job market is competitive, but there’s a perfect candidate for every role.