Building an employer brand? You’ll need a creative strategy for connecting with preferred candidates, particularly if they’re not actively seeking a new role.

You’ll want to explore the best ways to share stories from your workplace — stories that will attract and engage high-quality candidates.

We call this ‘social talent attraction’. And in 2019, it’s no longer simply nice to have.

Using social platforms to interact with star talent must be a key part of your employer brand strategy. If it doesn’t, your brand will have a harder time competing for great talent.

Leah Burdick, Vice President of Marketing and an experienced employer brand strategist, says:

“The talent market is competitive. Candidates are in charge: companies are discovering that you can’t just put out a job description and expect candidates to come running. You’ve got to charm them, much the way a consumer brand sells its products to customers.

“Social media plays a critical role in selling your brand to top candidates.”

With that in mind, let’s explore the significance of building a strong employer brand in social media. We’ll also take a closer look at one hotly recommended platform: Instagram.

Social talent attraction: why does it matter?

With more than 3 billion people using social media, and that number growing year-on-year, the time has come for employers to hang out among candidates, on their preferred platform(s).¹

So, where are many of your great candidates hanging out? On Instagram, quite likely. Interaction rates are higher here than on any other social platform.²

Instagram is a great place to connect with younger talent in particular. It’s been reported that six out of 10 Instagram users are aged between 18 to 29.³

An example of employer branding on Instagram

Want to see an example of employer branding on Instagram?

Check out our Hudson RPO (APAC) Instagram page. It’s designed specifically for our Asia-Pacific audience, but provides a feel for what types of content you might consider when building an employer brand on Instagram.

From dynamic company events to vibrant work spaces, we love Instagram for its pictorial storytelling style.

If you’ve never met us before, but you arrive at our Instagram page, you’ll quickly discover our positive and collaborative nature.

We use Instagram to showcase:

• team celebrations
• meet-ups
• social events, and more

You’re even treated to a bit of behind-the-scenes, with still photography from one of our video shoots.

When it comes to text, we mix inspirational quotes, which do indeed capture our culture, with descriptive career opportunities.

But we mainly prefer to fill our Instagram platform with a range of images that capture the environment you can expect if you join Hudson RPO. That’s what employer branding is all about: showing candidates who you are as a team, allowing them to consider whether the cultural fit could be mutual.

Still not sure about employers using Instagram?

Whether you’re a personal user of Instagram (or any social site), the reality is: many of your candidates are. If your employer brand is serious about capturing the imaginations of truly talented people, then it’s hard to ignore Instagram.

Suzanne Chadwick, Director of Employer Brand, says:

“Instagram allows us to share employee stories of why they love working at Hudson RPO and what their career journey has been. Plus, we can re-share their images when they’re out and about with their work colleagues.

“Employer branding isn’t just about attracting new talent into your team, it’s also about engaging your current employees and making them the heroes of your employer brand. Instagram provides a great platform to do that.”

Instagram is a great place to showcase your team’s creative and social sides. It’s perhaps not as formal as LinkedIn. It’s also not as flooded with advertising as Facebook has become. And it’s not as short-lived as a tweet on Twitter.

Of course, those platforms do serve their purposes and should certainly be considered as part of the employer branding mix on social media. Different audiences hang out on different platforms. You need to ensure the right content reaches the right audience, at the right time. But when it comes to the power of visual storytelling, Instagram is a platform worth considering.

Want to learn more about building an employer brand strategy for your business?

Learn more information about Hudson RPO and Employer Branding.

Sources

1: https://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-strategy/new-global-social-media-research/

2: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2017/03/28/why-instagram-is-the-top-social-platform-for-engagement-and-how-to-use-it/#3c230f1336bd

3: https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/01/05/social-media-marketing-statistics