Recruiting

Calling All Channels! Omnichannel Recruiting 101

What comes to mind when you hear the word “omnichannel”? Omnichannel actually refers to the idea of using all available “channels” for an activity. Omnichannel methods have been popularized in sales (retail in particular) lately, in which the retailer presents product information across many different available communication channels, such as social media, apps, television, in-store displays, ads, and more.

The same concept of utilizing all available channels can be applied to recruiting efforts. In the past, most organizations opted for a couple recruiting techniques that worked well for the organization, such as advertising on a job board and advertising internally. Now, however, the options for promoting a job opening seem to be continually expanding. You can still use job boards, of course, and there are plenty to choose from. But there’s also social media, employee referral programs, the company’s website, paid advertisements, industry discussion boards, and more. In short, you can put the information in front of the candidate no matter where the candidate is looking.

Benefits of Omnichannel Recruiting

Let’s take a look at a few of the benefits to utilizing a wide range of channels for reaching potential candidates:

  • Being present across multiple channels can help to keep the employer or recruiting firm top-of-mind during the candidate’s job search since their listings pop up at every turn. This might mean a candidate who would have previously overlooked your job posting will now be tempted to click on it because he or she has seen it more often and from more sources.
  • Likewise, this can get your organization’s message in front of more people since it will be more likely to be seen by a larger percentage of job searchers.
  • Being visible across multiple channels shows the job searcher that the organization is connected and invested in finding good talent. It also shows the candidate that you’re keeping things up-to-date and that the information he or she is seeing is likely to be accurate.
  • Having multiple means to communicate can allow the organization to expand its message and create a fuller picture of the organization. When you’re limited to only a couple methods of posting about job openings, there is usually a limited amount of information that can be conveyed. But, when you post simultaneously across many different channels, you can tailor and tweak the message so that you’re conveying a more nuanced and complete view. This can impact how the organization is perceived and can impact the quality of applications since the applicants have more information to determine whether the organization is a good fit.
  • You can collect more information about applicants, such as where they’re looking for jobs, and tailor your future efforts accordingly.
  • Content can be personalized, if you choose. Digital media has a lot of options, including the ability to personalize content for someone who lands on your site, depending on what drove him or her there. For example, you might opt to create different landing pages for people who come to your careers page from an ad versus those who click there from your LinkedIn page.

Now that we’ve taken a look at some of the benefits of omnichannel recruiting, stay tuned for next Tuesday’s Advisor where we’ll outline some of the many channels you can utilize in your omnichannel strategy.

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