Marcus Sheridan once said that “great content is the best sales tool in the world”, and you can see why he believed that. Content is an opportunity to go beyond basic advertising and actually tell a story or create something that is genuinely engaging for your audience to help build long term relationships. It’s no wonder then that companies are recognising this and using content as a huge part of their consumer marketing strategy, but what IS surprising is how many companies don’t do the same for their recruitment marketing.
The main reason for this? Those tasked with candidate attraction (such as HR / Recruitment) for their organisation are often not expert marketers. Creating content can seem like a mammoth task, but the reality is everyone can do it (and chances are you’re already doing it without realising!). Here are 6 examples of content you can create to help attract candidates to your organisation:
Job Posts
A prime example of something you are probably doing already! If you’re posting a job advert then you are posting content, so you need to make sure what you write is going to be engaging and attractive for a potential candidate. It’s easy to regurgitate the job description, with paragraph after paragraph of the skills and experience you need the candidate have, but does any of this sell you as a prospective employer? Probably not! Keep your adverts concise but include the detail a candidate will want to know such as the working environment, the type of projects they’ll work on, the cool benefits they can expect when they join. You’ll stand out from the hundreds of mundane adverts plastered across the job boards and you’ll have a better chance of someone hitting that apply button! If you’re sharing a link to an advert across social media then don’t forget to add an image to the post as according to Hubspot visual content is 40 times more likely to be shared on social media!
Company News
If something exciting is happening in your company then you want to promote it – either through a press release to the media, a newsletter post or just to share on social media! It may be that your organisation is taking part in “Tough Mudder” to raise money for your favourite charity, or you’ve just won an award for your latest work! If something happens then write about it and share it as much as you can! It will help raise awareness of who you are to more people.
Blogs / Articles
Candidates aren’t always going choose to read posts solely about your company so if you want more people to read your content then you need to post something that actually interests them! So if you’re a tech company looking to hire IT professionals you might post a guide / review of the latest software release, or if you are a fashion retailer looking to hire a personal shopper then you may post an article about Autumn Winter trends. Each of your employees will have a certain expertise, so reach out to them and see if they are interested in writing a one off article / blog for you to share across social media. You can always include a link back to your own website or a “recruitment twist” at the bottom of each post to increase conversion rates, just make sure it’s relevant and you’re not just promoting yourself within each article for the sake of it!
Employee Stories
Your employees are your best asset when it comes to demonstrating what it’s like to work for your company, so tell their stories through content! You could carry out a simple interview Q&A, or showcase “a day in the life of” employees from different departments. You want to give an authentic look into what life at your company is really like, showcasing the people that make it what it is! Increase engagement levels and shares by tagging featured employees when you share on social media too!
Images
37% of marketers said visual marketing was the most important form of content for their business, second only to blogging (38%), so you need to consider using images as part of your content creation. Share photos that bring your employer brand to life – think birthday celebrations, new employee welcomes, images that show off your offices, social events with the team, conferences you attend – you get the idea. As well as using photos it’s also good if you can create your own graphic images using software such as Adobe Create Suite or a free option like Canva. Graphics are a great way to compliment any blog posts or jobs you choose to share on social and it means everything can be customised with your branding.
37% of marketers said visual marketing was the most important form of content for their business
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Videos
A lot of people think that video content involves a lot of cost and time – and if you’re looking at creating a professional corporate video then you probably will need to shell out the cash to get a good result. But video content doesn’t just have to be big budget and corporate – you can actually do a lot yourself! You don’t even need a video camera – most smartphones have a pretty decent camera these days, plus the home video style will give you an even more authentic view into your employer brand! You could even create a Snapchat story and download it as a single video! If you pride yourselves on having a fun social environment, then why not use video to re-enact the latest viral trends on social media? Think things like the “mannequin challenge” or the “ALS ice bucket challenge”, or maybe even create a fun lip-sync video to your favourite tune and get all of your employees involved! It could be ANYTHING! If it’s interesting to watch, and better still makes people laugh, you’ll get a lot more shares and engagement. Remember that 85% of Facebook video is watched without sound, so either add subtitles or make it clear when sound is needed to full appreciate your post.
Looking for a bit of help with your content creation? Our JobHoller team can help – call 01244 567 967 / email your questions to [email protected].