#path.to

In order to shed a little light on the topic, the Chicago Social Team compiled a few findings around recruiting via social tools. What follows are some highlights and emerging trends.

1.  Content is King: Recruiting in the social space isn’t about plugging your website career list into your social properties and calling it a day. That’s not very…social.  Job-seekers are looking for more from companies playing in this environment and organizations that do it well come off as innovative, fun and impressive (the point, right?). That’s why it’s important recruiters approach social in the same way those who do it for a living approach it for brands: develop a consistent social voice that pushes out rich and authentic content on a number of social properties.

What does this look like? At a high level it means creating an editorial calendar that aides in planning the dissemination of content as well as sharing content that job seekers want to see (case studies, campaigns, highlights of company culture). If these things are done under the umbrella of an agreed upon social voice then a company’s recruiting personnel have already set themselves apart in the social space.

2. Create an Ecosystem: Job seekers should be able to find your company regardless of the social platform they are on. In turn, once a job seeker finds your company on one social property, they shouldn’t have to look far for other environments you’re operating in.  In short, social recruiting efforts should be interconnected. Facebook should link out to all of your major social properties and vice-versa. This doesn’t mean the same content should be shared out across social networks, but rather, each network should be pushing out content that drives to other social touchpoints. If a company has developed a consistent social voice that accurately represents its workplace culture then candidates who fit that mold will be more apt to interact and engage across your social ecosystem.

3. Emerging Social Platforms are Key: In order to attract digitally savvy candidates, it’s important for a company to show they’re dialed-in to emerging social platforms. What better way to make that point than using them to recruit?

Networks like Pinterest, Path.To and Geeklist offer new and innovative ways to tap into talent pools beyond the Big Three (Facebook/BranchOut, LinkedIn and Twitter). Of these, Pinterest might offer the most opportunity of any of the networks listed to showcase company culture and values. Pinning photos of company offices, events and “things current employees love” afford job-seekers a window into the heart and soul of a company: its people. Let’s be honest, if you don’t like the people you work with, your job is a drag. The power of pins can help move recruiters beyond finding a good job title fit to finding a good company fit.

Recruiting via social media is no longer about simply having a Twitter handle or Facebook page. To attract top talent (who are only becoming MORE social media savvy) a company needs to set itself apart in the space. In order to do so, it’s important to develop rich content disseminated via an interconnected social ecosystem that includes emerging social platforms.