Are you harming your hiring with a hashtag?
During the dark days of the pandemic, two hashtags gained prominence on LinkedIn - #opentowork and #hiring. The sight of #hiring became a beacon of hope that all was not lost.
However, is it detrimental to your hiring process today?
In today’s competitive talent market it’s essential to treat your Employer Brand with as much love as your Consumer Brand.
An appealing talent acquisition strategy is the first step in attracting the very best talent to your organisation. Yet, almost daily, I see LinkedIn posts like this:
“I’m #hiring a marketing manager, know anyone interested?”
Invariably there is a link to a job specification that’s drier than a 3-month-old cracker.
Can you imagine the consumer marketing of a luxury brand being presented in the same way? It might look like this:
“I’m #selling a dress. Know anyone looking for one?” – this links to the garment composition, 52% silk, 48% viscose.
Of course, this would be utterly ridiculous; yet demonstrates how poorly the job and the employer brand is being marketed in the first post. It unwittingly communicates a need, perhaps a level of desperation. Not attractive!
Great talent acquisition is marketing. It is about enticing talent to want to work for your business; in the same way great product marketing creates desirability.
When it comes to recruiting, it is essential to tell a story. Communicate why someone would want to work with you, what they will gain from the position (clue: this has nothing to do with your consumer brand or your needs).
At LIFE we can consult with brands to help them define their employer brand or how to communicate what they already have, even if we’re not directly managing the hiring process. We are always happy to collaborate with in-house recruitment teams or directly with hiring managers.
LIFE - A Recruitment & Retention Consultancy for Fashion Brands.