7 Recruitment Marketing Strategies to Attract the Right Candidates

A staggering amount of organizations are facing hiring challenges. Not only are there climbing numbers of employees quitting but it’s been even more difficult to replace open vacancies quickly. Gone are the days of simply putting a “Help Wanted” sign on the door of your business and easily filling an open position.

Inbound marketing, a methodology proven to bring in qualified leads, is the best solution to the hiring woes many businesses are facing. We’ve outlined 7 ways that you can leverage these marketing techniques to bring in the best applicants.

How Can You Improve Your Recruitment Marketing Efforts?

Before we begin, it’s important to note that you will have to invest time, energy, and resources into your recruitment efforts to produce the best results. But we want you to steward that investment well. When done poorly and you acquire the wrong candidates, hiring can become costly as you’ll eventually have to fill a position once more, putting you right back where you started.

According to SHRM, it can cost an organization, on average, $4,700 to fill an open position. How can you ensure your investment is well spent?

1) Stay Relevant on Social Media

Did you know that 90% of applicants find out about open positions via social media? That means if your social media profiles are dormant, unengaging, or poor quality, it could be costing you applicants.

Social media offers more than just real estate to share posts about your job openings. It’s an open channel of communication that allows for more unfiltered, authentic content that showcases your people, your passions, and your culture. When you neglect to post or respond to your followers, it communicates the wrong thing. People question, “Do I even want to work with these people?”

Developing a strategy that leverages promotion, education, and culture throughout your posts is a surefire way to garner leads for your business and attract the right people to your open positions.

2) Build a Trustworthy Online Experience

You’ll likely host your open job positions and applications on your website. Your website has to appeal to potential applicants and be accessible. When your website is slow, broken, or unattractive, you could be wasting your energy on recruitment.

Not only is design and functionality a consideration, but mobile accessibility is hugely important to garnering even more qualified applicants. When your online job application is mobile-friendly, applications increase by more than 11%.

Intentional user journeys are a core pillar of our website design process. This is especially important when crafting a careers page on your website. Hosting your job application is just one thing your applicants expect. Information like job responsibilities, requirements, and benefits packages will be crucial in helping an applicant decide whether or not to apply. Don’t skimp out on building a positive digital presence as part of your hiring strategy!

3) Invest in Captivating Visuals

A picture is worth a thousand words, right? You want potential applicants to see themselves working at your organization. It’s wise to invest in photography that shows off your team, space, and nature of work. Stock images can convey distrust. But when you share culture-centered photography on your website and social media, people can connect on an emotional level.

Additionally, you can connect with an applicant through compelling videos that tell your story or highlight your team members. It will feel as though a potential candidate knows you before you even schedule an interview!

4) Target Ideal Candidates with Keywords and Content

Search engine optimization is a great way to get found online for your services and keywords. But have you considered adding SEO for hiring-centric keywords?

Potential hires are searching for jobs online that meet their qualifications and desired geographic locations. If you neglect crafting strategies around these key terms, you could be minimizing the number of applicants you receive.

For example, an HVAC company looking to hire more technicians might be interested in ranking for searches like:

• HVAC technician application
• What qualifications does an HVAC technician need to have
• Average salary of HVAC tech
• AC companies hiring near me

These are all opportunities to craft content on your website around these key terms. Or, you can pursue more educational routes and craft blogs that highlight the benefits of careers in your field, like this one we wrote for Bender Transportation to explain why a career in transportation is recession-proof.

5) Protect and Maintain a Great Online Reputation

Your reputation can make or break your growth trajectory. This is true for gaining and retaining customers but also for attracting the right people to join your team. According to Forbes, 86% of employees look at a company’s reviews before they choose to apply.

If you’ve been neglecting your online reputation, it could turn away a lot of great applicants. Investing in great customer experience and responding to all reviews will prove to be valuable in your growth strategy.

6) Meet Potential Applicants Right Where They’re At

You want to reduce the amount of time and energy it takes to fill a vacant position. Only relying on a physical “Help Wanted” sign or asking friends and family to recommend you as an employer is not the best strategy to do so.

Just as you would craft a marketing plan to find your target audience for customer acquisition, you should implement the same thinking in your hiring process. Build out an ideal candidate profile for your open position(s) and then start outlining what their motivations, frustrations, and needs are. Where can they be found? Once you identify the “where,” you can build out the “how” in reaching them.

A cross-channel strategy will likely leverage both paid and unpaid channels. Determine how much you’re willing to spend on acquiring applicants vs. what it’s costing you to go without someone. Fortunately, all these questions are explored when you partner with our team of marketers.

7) Nurture Candidates with Email Campaigns

Finally, email marketing is one of the most ROI-producing marketing channels. This can translate into better qualifying and converting people in the hiring process. Adding an email automation after someone applies will prove valuable and show that you care for the applicant before you even schedule a phone call with them.

You can also implement email communications for those who are interested in you as an organization but aren’t ready to apply yet. Regular email newsletters that offer insights and culture-centered content will help to entice people to keep up with your organization or check out your open positions.

Attract the Right Talent with PHOS Creative

Hiring and retaining quality team members allows your company to grow the right way. Don’t let your recruitment strategy drain your resources or energy. Our team is ready to help you craft the best strategy to reach more qualified applicants. Let’s chat today!