Common recruitment marketing mistakes to avoid

Recruitment marketing encompasses all the measures a company takes to discover, attract and engage with talent before they apply for jobs in the company. Also termed as the ‘pre-applicant’ stage of the recruitment process, this has become an important element of recruitment in the current era. From helping create a ready-to-access talent pool to reducing time to fill a new role, recruitment marketing brings many advantages. 

As with all areas of recruitment, there are some common mistakes specific to recruitment marketing that can be avoided. Here are the top few we have seen: 

Bland job descriptions

The objective of a job description is to attract the right talent for a role. The descriptions should clearly state what the role entails but also be compelling enough for the talent to apply. Recruiters and hiring managers should invest time in crafting a job description that’s both descriptive and interesting to read.

Unrealistic expectations from candidates

For any job, there is always an ideal candidate in a recruiter’s mind. There is nothing inherently wrong with that. After all, you create your recruiting strategies based on it. But it’s a problem when the ideal becomes unrealistic. A common mistake is to aim for a candidate who is young but has extensive experience that couldn’t possibly be amassed in a short time frame. Set realistic talent expectations, and communicate reasonable expectations to prospective candidates.

A tedious application process

The application process is one area where minimalism works the best. The best approach will limit the length and number of forms candidates would need to fill. Ensure that the webpages for filling forms are mobile-optimized too.

Taking too long to fill a role

Candidates- especially highly skilled ones- don’t like waiting too long for a recruitment process to complete. If the process is long-winded, they would start looking for a job with your competitors. But taking long periods of time to recruit new candidates is a mistake many recruiters make. They make the initial contact with the candidates, give them the details about the role, only for the next step of the engagement to happen much later. By that point, the candidate may not be available anymore.

Forsaking social recruiting

The traditional channels for communicating with job candidates are emails and job boards. While those remain relevant, many recruiters seem to forget about the prevalence of social media. Even as far back as 2018, 79 percent of job candidates were using social media to find a job. If you don’t take this into account, there will be a social media-shaped hole in your recruitment strategy. To avoid this, stay active on such platforms. And we don’t just mean LinkedIn but also platforms like Facebook where candidates spend considerable amounts of time.

Lack of quality content

Candidates are attracted not only to specific roles but also strong brands. One way to assert brand authority is by producing and marketing content relevant to job candidates. This area of recruitment marketing is often overlooked by recruiters though.

Short-term thinking

Conventionally, recruiters search for and engage with candidates only when new roles become open. But you should consider recruitment marketing as a long-term strategy. The idea of seasonality is not relevant here. Even if a skilled talent isn’t currently searching for a job, it’s in your best interest they become a part of your talent pool. For this reason, keep engaging with talent even when no current roles are open.

Failure to promote company culture

The work culture of a company may not be quantifiable like the salary for a role. But it would be a mistake to think job candidates are not interested in learning about it. In fact, corporate values could be a critical factor in convincing the candidates to join the firm. Periodically communicate to candidates aspects about the company’s culture. For instance, if your current employees are happy about the work-life balance, that idea should be promoted in your communication with job candidates.

Not utilizing automation

Speed of recruitment is a key factor that determines the success of a recruitment strategy. One way to help hasten the recruitment process is by enlisting the help of technology – automation, to be precise. Automation can help you share meaningful messages with a large number of candidates in the shortest periods of time.

Not using visual content

As mentioned before, job candidates are present on multiple communication platforms. Many of them are designed to present visual content to their core user base. Visual content may include but is not limited to picture boards, infographics and photographs. It could also be something ‘informal’ like a meme. Visual content doesn’t necessarily need to be static either. You could promote short videos depicting the company’s work culture, for instance.

Not using a good technology platform

A technology platform like TalentNet is an excellent tool for recruitment marketing. Among other things, TalentNet helps you craft and share customized messages to candidates. You could also communicate with talent over multiple channels using the platform.

TalentNet is a Direct Sourcing platform which helps you engage directly with all types of talent- contingent, full-time and freelance. The platform can be easily leveraged to build and nurture your own talent community. TalentNet is used by some of the world’s biggest brands including Meta, Pfizer, Capgemini and bp. Book a demo to learn more.