Recruitment agencies have always had quite a tentative ‘dip a toe in the water’ approach to social media. Preferring to post job vacancies rather than answer questions and publish content.  But it is our belief that the rewards to be had from tending to and nurturing an effective social media presence, far outweigh the negatives. This has never been more evident than it is now with the sudden rise in number of recruitment agencies taking to social media in readiness for 2014.

A good reason for this could be that there are a lot of people on social media. Everybody uses Facebook and Twitter now.  My Mum (who only recently learned how to use a home computer!) has a Smartphone and uses Facebook on it amongst other mobile apps. Now think about the number of times that social media has made it into the news in recent times. If there’s something you need to know, often the first and best place to look is on your social media timelines. For recruitment agencies, candidates and clients alike, this is proving absolutely no different.

How to write a great CV? Google it. 5 tips for building a great LinkedIn Profile? You can Google that too. But there is always room for really original, engaging content designed to answer specific user questions. Where better to ask the questions than in your social media space? It reflects positively, enhances your SEO value and offers great opportunities for free PR.

What’s great about the recruitment industry in particular, is that recruitment agencies have always had to put people first and foremost. People through the door are the lifeblood of an agency and the less of them you have flowing through the corridors, the slower the agency performs overall.

Social media should be treated no differently to your office reception. It should be viewed as a direct line to your marketplace, so knowing who is there and ensuring that you have relevant  content with which to engage these audiences is essential. If you’re a recruitment agency and presently you only use social media as a pinboard for job posts (like the image above), then flip the table and think about how you would feel if you were the candidate looking at the tweets? There is a good chance that you are turning off lots of potential candidates and customers to your messaging already, without even realising it. Sharing with a disengaged audience is a bit like playing tennis by yourself… hopeless.

“There are now more than 238 million LinkedIn members from more than 200 countries and territories. Facebook reported nearly 700 million daily active users in its second quarter 2013 results. As of March 2013, when Twitter turned a mere seven years old, users sent over 400 million tweets per day. Social media sites have gradually expanded their user base from a small group of early adopters into what now can only be described as the online user. In other words, social media is now mainstream.”

Laura Schaulat, Director, Customer Strategy and Insight, Oracle Corp

The marketplace is bigger than it was, because there are now more people in it than ever before. The rise in the use of Mobiles and tablets and the appearance of dedicated recruitment apps, have all contributed massively to the need for recruitment agencies to maintain higher levels of social engagement and sharing with their customers and candidates. The size and scope of this new arena shouldn’t be perceived as frightening and / or dangerous, it should be viewed as both exciting and challenging!

“In my eyes, the smartest recruiters will be on the pulse of social change and technology– in the areas where people move and shake. We have to retain relevancy, and be ahead of the shift in recruitment dynamics, and the intelligence of our clients. Social Media has not only provided a playing field for that but it has also provided us with the tools to make recruitment agency service truly special and rewarding again”

Mervyn Dinnen – Jobsite

More and more recruitment agencies are now beginning to realise this and are starting to really harness the power of their social media accounts. Because of that we expect 2014 to be a very successful year for the recruitment industry. We believe we will also see in the rise of the ‘social recruitment agency’; a new breed of recruiters who are out to regularly engage with their candidates at all stages of their journey, answering questions, offering advice and most importantly helping the people most important to them to make their ‘next big’ career moves. 

Read full article: 5 tips on how to use social in recruitment – Laura Schaulat