How to Recruit Candidates Using Social Media

By Seowebmount,

In today’s business world, social media is more than a leisure hangout where people spout views and share information. To human resource workers and recruiters, social media is a live digital resume of potential employees, revealing their talents, skills, personality and social abilities — for better or worse. Businesses are refining their talent pools by skimming sites like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook for recruitment purposes or take the initiative and invite top professionals who haven’t even applied for a position into their boardrooms for an interview.

The following are tips on how your business can rely on social media for recruitment:

Choose the right social media site for your business 

While LinkedIn, with its job histories, educational background, resumes  and professional contacts, is a beneficial tool for finding prospective employees in any industry, there are many social media sites geared toward specific professional interests. In addition to common platforms, such as Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook, find the lesser-known social media sites that attract members based on their degree or job. Otherwise, join interest-based groups on popular sites so you find people who are personally invested in your niche.

Ask every new and impressive person you meet for their social media handle 

When interacting at business gatherings and conventions, immediately follow your new acquaintances. It’s become acceptable to take out phones and laptops to send friendship requests during meeting breaks. When passing out business cards, include several of your social media address and tell people to friend you.  Feel free to explore the friends list or follower lists of your new contacts to look for talented potential employees and choose to follow them as well. Make a habit of following current employees and scoping out their most impressive friends.

Create a social media page that is a magnet for top candidates

Many out-of-work professionals or executives looking for work investigate companies through social media. They often send out inquiries even if job vacancies are not posted. However, social media pages that are cold and lacking in detail won’t attract the eye of these candidates. Make the page worth viewing by including company videos, photos, news articles, features on employees, notes on community service and anything else that will exhibit the personality of your business. Send the message that your company has a lot of benefits to reward highly skilled workers.

Be sure to include an e-mail address where followers can send resumes  or direct them to the company’s website section on job openings.

Use status updates to discuss hiring 

Dangle job opportunities online by posting job descriptions and contact information for responding to vacancies. Ask employees with social media profiles to also announce job openings. Even when your company is not hiring, if you see a candidate who is out-of-work, encourage them to stay in touch. Then, contact them the next time a position becomes available. Don’t get too personal on a public posting, however; use private and direct messages on social media to take the job conversation to the next level.

Poll and question your audience 

Don’t simply accept the light banter on social media. To find good potential employees, you’ll need to hear thoughts on industry matters. Ask questions about how followers might address industry problems or what they think about certain industry developments. This can provide insight into leadership skills and a candidate’s decision-making skills. If the discussion is over an intense or controversial scenario, replies can give insight into crisis management principles.

Match social media profiles to resumes 

When you get letters of inquiry or resumes for open job positions, immediately go to social media sites and use the search feature to find the person. Use his or her profile to gain a greater understanding of how this person interacts with others, particularly past or current co-workers. Find evidence to support his or her background claims and achievements. Look at photos to discern how they behave when off the clock because such behavior can reflect on the company.

Follow-up interviews with social media activity

If you like a candidate, link to them through social media even if you decide to hire a better candidate. You can watch this person’s professional evolution and see if he or she will be a good fit for the company later. For candidates making the final cut, interact with them on their social media accounts before hiring them to be sure their personality fits with the company.

resource: http://www.sitepronews.com/2014/02/18/recruit-candidates-using-social-media/