50 years ago, hiring an employee for a position looked very different than it does today. A recruiter would sort through a pile of resumes dropped off at their office or visit local colleges and universities and select students they thought were promising as potential future employees.
With the rise of the Internet, however, the process of job recruiting has changed dramatically. The applicant pool is now much larger than ever because recruiters can access potential employees via social media. Recruiters can instantly see all social account activity and job history before the hiring process even begins. In fact, 84% of organizations recruit via social media.
While this means employers can cast a wider net, making roles even more competitive, , it also means that potential applicants can polish their social media accounts to attract employers and stand out amongst the crowd. One surprising but very common social media platform used for recruitment is Instagram. In fact, many major companies will post a job on Instagram to recruit staff.
So, how can Instagram help you find your next employee?
5 Reasons Why You Should Be Using Instagram for Posting Jobs
73% of 18 to 34 year olds found their current jobs through social media. That means if you haven’t learned to post a job on Instagram, you’re missing out on a huge pool of talent. Instagram is an ideal platform to post jobs because of how many people are on the site.
Instagram itself does not have a “jobs” feature, however, it serves as a great platform for job seekers because they are able to research your company’s profile directly from the app.
1) Almost Everyone Has an Instagram Account
Instagram currently has around 1 billion active users. Chances are, of the applicant pool you’re looking to hire from, almost all will have an Instagram account. Compared to other sites like LinkedIn and Indeed, Instagram has substantially more users.
Plus, the users on Instagram use the social media site daily, compared to other social media sites that are checked less frequently. That means your job posting stands a better chance of being seen on Instagram compared to other sites.
2) Jobseekers Can Instantly Research Your Company
Whether you are planning to post a job on Instagram or not, having an Instagram presence allows job seekers to instantly research your company. An Instagram account provides a way for your company to flaunt its culture and values. As a result, once you post a job on Instagram, you will have an established presence that attracts job seekers to apply.
3) Instagram Users Can Share Job Posts With Others
Not every user will be interested in your job posting on Instagram. However, Instagram’s post and story send features are widely used. Any post or story you make can instantly be sent from one user to another, expanding your reach through others’ networks, which may lead to a successful hire.
4) You Can Directly Contact Jobseekers
If you are interested in a particular candidate, Instagram’s direct messaging system is a great way to get in contact with them. It provides a casual way for companies to reach out to potential candidates and encourage them to view a job posting. Reaching out directly is a proven Instagram recruiting strategy that enables you to make an instant connection with a candidate. After you post a job on Instagram, reach out via direct messaging and encourage promising candidates to apply.
5) Social Media Presence Helps Grow Your Brand for Free
Even if you don’t have a current job posting on Instagram, social media helps your brand gain notoriety. Having a polished Instagram account that shows off your company values attracts people to follow the page and possibly apply for a future job position.
4 Instagram Recruiting Strategies by Top Companies
How do real companies put their Instagram hiring strategies to practice? Let’s look at four different real-life examples of companies using their social media platforms to attract business and recruit staff.
1) Posting Relatable Content to Attract Followers
Wendy’s is a great example of how Instagram can be used to attract followers, thereby attracting applicants. In this post, Wendy’s is making a direct appeal to increase their followers. No one wants to follow a company’s Instagram page filled with boring images. Wendy’s knows this, and therefore posts funny memes that make the account enjoyable to follow. It also attracts followers using Instagram for job search.
2) Promoting Employee Benefits in Posts
In addition to posting content that’s enjoyable to follow, Starbucks is a prime example of using social media to promote company culture. Here, Starbucks is promoting its College Achievement Plan, which helps employees pay for tuition. By posting this on social media, users can see the employees who have benefited from working at Starbucks, which may encourage job seekers to apply.
3) Sharing Current Employee Experiences
Google is absolutely doing it right when it comes to its Instagram hiring strategy. They have a whole page (@lifeatgoogle) dedicated to showcasing their employees and what it’s like to work at Google. This allows Instagram users to do research and view the posts to gain insight into the world-renowned company. The transparency here will certainly encourage more people to consider applying at Google.
4) Post Jobs Directly With Detailed Job Descriptions
This animal care company is navigating its Instagram hiring strategy directly. They’ve posted a straightforward post, where the photo has a brief jobdescription included. This post can be easily shared and has likely reached thousands of users within just a few days of posting. This direct approach is an effective way to go about job posting on Instagram
Step-by-Step Guide to Attracting Jobseekers on Instagram
Step One: Create Your Account
Create an account for your company that is separate from your personal account. You can log in using your company’s Facebook, or create a new account with your company’s email. Your username should be the name of your company, but add an underscore after the name if your company’s name is already taken.
Step Two: Add a Profile Picture and a Bio
Once you have your account, the first thing you should do is add a profile picture. This should be the logo of your company. If your logo has words, consider altering it so it’s more visible since it’s displayed in a small circle on smartphone screens. Make your bio super short and sweet by adding a catchy one- or two-line description of your company.
Step Three: Post Photos of Day to Day Employee Life
Once your account is looking polished, it’s time to start posting! Post regular photos from events, or just day-to-day office life. Show off your employees and write a concise description of who’s in the photo and what they’re doing. Add hashtags to increase how many people will see the post.
Step Four: Post Weekly Stories of What’s Going on At Your Company
Along with posts, regular stories are a great way to keep followers engaged with your Instagram, and an effective way to attract new followers, which is your goal. Use stories to keep followers updated on what’s going on at the company, to show current employees, and celebrate achievements. For example, @starbucks regularly uses Instagram stories like this one to showcase a current employee and their story.
Step Five: Create Eye-Catching Job Ads
Once you’ve posted on your company’s account consistently for a few months, you’ll have a base of posts that potential applicants will be able to look back on. Now you can use your Instagram to recruit. Create simple but eye-catching job ads like this one from Pleo. The post itself is concise, and the description offers more information about the job. From this job post, users can go to your profile and see all the wonderful posts that show the positive company culture and current employee experience, and may even apply.
How to Integrate Job Posts on Instagram, Facebook, and other Social Media
Instagram is one of the best places to post job ads, but not the only platform you should be utilizing. In fact, the more platforms you post your job on, the wider the reach! But how do you deal with job postings on multiple sites?
To integrate your Instagram and job posting with the rest of your company’s social media ecosystem, ensure everything fits a theme. This means having the same username, profile picture, and bio across all your company’s social media platforms. We also recommend posting the same graphic with the same description across all platforms. This allows for a seamless way to promote the job with no room for error or confusion.
To Sum Up…
The rise of social media has made job recruiting much easier in many ways, but harder in others. You now have access to a much larger applicant pool, but so does every other company. That’s why it’s necessary to follow some simple strategies to ensure your job postings and social media presence stand out amongst the crowd.
These strategies are especially useful on Instagram. More and more people are using Instagram for job search, and it’s a perfect platform to show off your company values and day-to-day employee life at your company.
Job recruiting on Instagram is fairly simple. Just make sure you maintain a strong and consistent social media presence and have an account that shows potential jobseekers what your company’s all about. When it’s time to post a job, ensure that it’s simple but eye-catching and that you have direct contact information including details where job seekers can learn more.
