Gone are the days of posting a job advert in the newspaper classified section and hoping for the best. Luckily for recruitment agencies, the rise of social media has created so many more opportunities to reach potential candidates.

Here’s just a few ways in which recruitment companies are using social media to their advantage…

Headhunting

Why wait for the right candidate to turn up on your doorstep when you can make the first move? Headhunting via LinkedIn has made it super easy to get in touch with a candidate who has the right skills and experience, without wasting time on lengthy introductions. Using LinkedIn in this way helps to gauge a candidate’s interest in a role without the legwork.

Increased reach and visibility

According to the Office of National Statistics, 87.9% of adults in the UK use the Internet. This, plus the truly global nature of the Internet means that recruitment agencies are benefiting from an incredible reach and increased visibility.

Screening potential candidates

Recruitment agencies can use social media to screen candidates before even looking at their CV. How someone presents themselves to the outside world can give a good indication whether or not they’re right for the job, saving recruiters countless hours wasted on interviewing unsuitable candidates.

Targeting passive candidates

More often than not, the ideal candidate for your role is not currently looking for a job. Social media gives recruitment agencies the opportunity to target passive candidates, who previously would be unreachable. Over half the UK population actively use Facebook, which makes casually placing an attractive job advert in the newsfeed of an unsuspecting but perfect candidate, all too easy.

Highly targeted adverts

We’ve all seen adverts pop up in our social media feeds, but did you know just how highly targeted these adverts can be? Not only do social networks give you the ability to target by gender, age and location, you can now search for people with related interests, job titles and Internet behaviours. This can help a recruitment agency fine-tune the audience that sees their adverts, reducing wastage and creating a really targeted search.

Analytical tools

After posting an advert, most social media networks give you rich insights into its performance using their analytical tools. This gives recruiters the ability to find out what works and what doesn’t, helping to better improve performance of adverts in the future.

Overall, social media provides yet another touch point to create connections with your candidates. Using it effectively can save you and your business money, time and effort.

One way in which we use social media at Back Office Support Services, is through our blog, where we share relevant and useful content for your agency. Feel free to have a browse through our posts to keep up to date with industry news, events and any new legislation that might impact on your business.