How micro-videos and social staffing can improve recruiting efforts

For staffing and recruiting professionals, there’s always the question of how to attract new potential workers. After all, if you’re in the business of finding top-quality talent, you know it takes more than just posting an opening to an online job board to get the attention of the right candidates. Staffing and recruiting software helps you manage candidates and your entire hiring process, but how are you to first gain the attention of these individuals?

Social media has become a key tool a staffing professional can rely on to market clients and new openings. Of course Twitter and Facebook have become the cornerstone of your campaigns to find top talent, but there are also other options. ERE reported that micro-videos on Twitter and Instagram may prove invaluable to the staffing industry. New features offered by the two social media giants now provide everyone with the opportunity to load and share videos. This offers incredible potential in the staffing and recruiting industry because videos are almost always superior to words and can really demonstrate the brand of a firm and why a worker may want to join.

A micro-video shared on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram can demonstrate a brand’s authenticity and passion. According to the source, the length of the video is an important factor determining how the video can be shared. Twitter’s Vine only allows for a six-second shot, while the new video application to Instagram allows for 15 seconds. In contrast, social media users have been posting much longer videos on Facebook for years now. Because of the time restrictions, it is important that anyone posting a video takes into account the time frame and uses that knowledge wisely to get the most shares.

Micro videos provide recruiters with the ability to communicate directly with an audience. In contrast to larger videos, these smaller snippets can be updated repeatedly without large budgets. As a result, the micro videos are able to spread much more quickly and give workers a better idea of what the brand is all about and what services companies can provide.

However, just like with any other tool, a staffing professional must be wary of what he or she is putting out there and the risks that may be involved with entering the social media space. Maximize Social Business reported that as a recruiter, you don’t control the tool, which means you never know when a change in structure, privacy settings or other updates may throw a wrench in any plans. Therefore, it’s important for a social strategy to remain flexible and use more than one platform to ensure that the campaign remains relatively uninterrupted if an update creates havoc with one plan.

Social media has expanded the reach of many recruiters already, and with the advent of new features and updates, the tools have become of even greater use. Consider the merits of using these and other tools in daily marketing ventures. As with most communication efforts in the staffing industry, a long-term and short-term strategy is required to really get the most out of every investment. Remain flexible and with every update, consider how a new communication option, like micro-videos, is able to be implemented in a strategy for the greatest return on investment. The right video at the right time can reach a considerable number of people and expand your network beyond regional boundaries thanks to the power of social media sharing.