As small businesses continue their battle to bring on new employees, tactics to attract top talent have evolved. There hasn’t been another choice; they’ve had to be competitive. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were still 11.3 million job openings at the end of May. The hunt for new hires continues for those needing to bolster their workforces.
To bolster your recruitment efforts, consider implementing some marketing techniques to attract new talent. Just as businesses market their products and services to customers, those same tools can promote the organization and bring attention to open positions. When performed well, recruitment marketing attracts candidates to your organization rather than having to keep seeking them out.
“The competition for new recruits is fierce,” Mechele Agbayani Mills, President and CEO for BBB Central East Texas said. “If you want to increase the number of applicants you receive, you may have to find some creative ways to attract attention.”
BBB provides the following tips on how to make your business stand out when searching for new hires:
Tell employees what you’re all about. The Great Resignation is still holding steady, and according to Fortune magazine, this situation is partly due to rising inflation. Thus, there are still plenty of workers searching for greener pastures. So, your business needs to position itself as a desirable landing spot. That means spotlighting the unique qualities that separate you from every other employer. So, how do you do that? Begin by sharing your story.
Use your marketing and public relations channels to tell prospective employees how your business began and what drives its operation today. Then, filter that message through the values or standards that define your organization. For example, if your business prioritizes trust, promote it in a way that resonates with customers and job candidates.
Employees want to know their work has meaning. Tell them how your organization adds significance to their efforts.
Stay on top of your reviews. Candidates lean on experiences shared by current or previous employees to help determine if your job opening is one they should pursue. So, it’s critical for your business to read and respond to reviews of your organization.
Employee-facing review sites like Glassdoor and Indeed are critical places to monitor feedback passed on by members of your workforce. But that’s not all. Consumer-facing review sites often also host those types of comments, so it’s important to keep tabs on conversations happening in those areas as well.
How easily your business can manage its employee reviews may vary across platforms. BBB, for example, offers its Accredited Businesses exclusive opportunities to respond and vet reviews of their business and promote positive customer experiences.
Use social to show off your culture. Customers aren’t the only ones viewing your social media pages. Potential employees are there too. Take advantage of the opportunity to feature the overall culture of your company.
Rather than keeping the focus on products and services your business provides, offer a behind-the-scenes look at how those offerings happen. Post captivating images of your workforce and celebrate big organizational wins. Offer candidates a glimpse of what working for your business looks like to see if it feels like a fit.
Weaving those messages and visuals into a paid digital marketing plan may not be a bad idea either. Organic posts only go so far, so allocating some of your advertising budget to boosting recruitment-focused content may mean it gets seen by more job seekers.
Offer Incentives. More companies are now offering incentives, special perks, and employee referral programs to alleviate their hiring headaches. In-person recruiting opportunities – career fairs, for example – have also reemerged as popular hiring options now that the pandemic is slowing down. But those approaches typically require a lot of leg work and may burden a small business’s bottom line. For more ideas on creative incentives, check out our blog.
Stand out on job boards. Don’t be afraid to use paid advertising to push your open positions. Nearly every job board allows businesses to post jobs, but that doesn’t necessarily guarantee those openings get seen by the best candidates.
Advertising your open positions on job boards elevates your listings above others posted on their sites. It places you ahead of competitors when candidates scroll through the list of available positions. And considering how pressed businesses are to attract new employees, those rankings can make a big difference.
BBB is a nonprofit, business-supported organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. Most BBB services to consumers are free of charge. BBB provides objective advice, free BBB Business Profiles on more than 5.3 million companies, 11,000 charity reviews, dispute resolution services, alerts and educational information on topics affecting marketplace trust. Visit bbb.org for more information. BBB Serving Central East Texas was founded in 1985 and serves 19 counties.