Where are brands finding new talent? Hint: It’s not LinkedIn

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There’s been talk about ‘Quiet Quitting’ and the ‘Great Resignation’ over the last two years, which means brands wanting to fill positions and needing employees have to take a good, hard look at what they’re offering how they’re reaching potential candidates.

Of course, there are always the usual avenues.

Indeed and LinkedIn have seen major upticks in usage. Still, between navigating the corporate bros and never-ending spam, most candidates are fed up and looking elsewhere for their next position: social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

Finding talent outside of LinkedIn

Let’s start with this: LinkedIn is a good resource for brands and candidates. But it’s not the only place brands should focus on when looking to fill a new position.

With billions of users on social media, thinking outside the box and looking for ways to reach an even bigger audience off conventional job search websites is helpful. Why?

The potential job pool is larger.

Depending on when a user hops on LinkedIn, they might not see your brand’s posting through all the other posts. For the average user, it can also be argued that these job-searching websites are frustrating to use, hard to filter for the right role, and overwhelming at best.

In addition to posting about an opening on LinkedIn, consider using social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and even YouTube to upload content related to open positions.

Another advantage to including social media in your recruitment strategy? Even those who aren’t actively looking for a job could find the content and consider applying.

Social media lets you breathe life into your brand.

During an era where people want to work for brands that align with personal values or offer unique benefits and perks (aside from fair pay), creating content on social media helps your brand with exposure and gives potential employees an inside look at what life is like working with the business.

Glossier is one example of giving users a peek behind the curtain with how the brand operates and what it’s like to be a part of the community.

Alternatively, Goop frequently creates content that uses the team (and the founder, of course!) that gives followers a glimpse of what a day in the office might be like.

Roles could be filled much quicker

Just the sheer volume of eyes on your brand’s content could mean filling a role in a matter of days.

This also goes back to the larger job pool – if your brand is in a competitive space, advertising an opening on social media where your ideal candidate spends time (Reddit? or TikTok?) is a good way to engage with exceptional candidates.

Don’t just throw a posting on LinkedIn or Indeed and hope the algorithm connects you with the right person. Instead, utilize social media to make the brand stand out and get the talent it needs.

You want the talent. Here’s how to attract them.

Finding good candidates is usually a challenge for most brands.

As conventional as job search websites are, a good portion of the workforce is looking beyond them for their next role.

Here’s another point to consider: millennials and gen Z will account for most of the candidates interested in a job as the workforce ages forward. That said, they will be more apt to find something they like on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.

To maximize the potential, brands need to figure out what they’re looking for before posting online.

Identify gaps in the current operations.

For example, what areas are lacking with the current team in place, and how would a new employee fill that gap (what do they bring to the table)?

This helps keep messaging in the advertisement clear and concise without overwhelming a candidate. Browsing the #hiring hashtag on Instagram, it’s easy to see which posts attract attention and which don’t.

Some posts simply state they’re hiring and require potential candidates to go to the link in a bio for more information. This drastically reduces the amount of interest because so few leave the platform to go to another website. Instead, some brands are placing details in the actual content.

Want to let your current employees advocate for the brand? Highlighting testimonials in posts could attract like-minded individuals to apply.

Showing the team in and out of the office is another way to make the brand more approachable and authentic.

Candidates, this is for you.

We live in an era where most of us are chronically online.

But, for those looking for a new position, here’s a reminder that whether it seems fair or not, employers often look at potential candidates' social media profiles.

DeeAnn Sims-Knight, the founder of Dark Horse PR, explains that employers do it to get an idea of what a candidate might be like outside of a resume. If you don’t want your profiles being perused by a future employer, it’s a good idea to set them to private.

Deleting social media isn’t the way to go, either, because even if you delete the profile, accounts and images might still appear in a Google search.

Dana Case, the director of operations at MyCorporation, recommends separating personal content from a professional profile. That way, you can easily set your account to private and leave professional content in the open.

There’s always the standard advice for candidates, too:

• Don’t complain about colleagues or employers.
• Avoid posting anything that could be offensive. If you wouldn’t post it at your desk and work, it shouldn’t be on a public social media profile for potential employers. 

Want to get ahead of anything potentially embarrassing? 

Google yourself every few weeks, or before you start the job search – that way, you can figure out how to improve your social media profiles to get noticed (or see what a potential employer might find).