What Recruiters Can Learn from Marketers

Human resources has always been my thing but launching and growing my website, Blogging4Jobs, has also taught me a lot about employer branding and marketing. I’ve had countless discussions with marketers, read extensively about how to market and have put the ideas into practice myself. I can testify first hand about what it takes to succeed in marketing, and it turns out that it’s not that different from what it takes to be an excellent recruiter. I believe that there are so many lessons to be learned from other industries, so below are the top four recruiting tips I’ve learned from marketers: Create a connection As anyone in advertising will tell you, the quickest way to convince someone to purchase a product is to facilitate a personal connection between the person and the ad. When you connect with something, it sticks with you. You’re more likely to trust the brand and it’s more likely to be front of mind. While the takeaway here isn’t necessarily to feature people in your ads rather than things, the lesson is the same. Connect with your candidate and they are more likely to stick with you. You can do this by keeping track of personal details, like family or the things they dislike about their current job. Make it a point to talk to them personally and remember to follow up. People talk more about bad experiences than good ones It’s a cold, hard fact that people share their bad experiences much more often than they share their good ones. Especially in our social day and age when people share anything and everything with the world, it’s vital that you do everything in your power to create good experiences. Even when a candidate doesn’t receive an offer, you can still make a lasting, positive impression with the way you handle it. Make sure you monitor your candidate experience, checking interview reviews on Glassdoor. Make your brand known Brand recognition is the pinnacle of success for marketers. Every marketer wants for his or her company to be a household name and every recruiter wants his or her company or name to be the first thing that pops into a job seeker’s head when considering a new job. To do this, you’ve got to hit the streets, so to speak, and make yourself known as a master recruiter and industry expert in professional organizations, on social media, among family and friends and anywhere else you’ll find potential candidates. If it’s your company that you want to make known, strategically select which channels you’ll use to post jobs, relevant news, articles and more. Consistency is king Whether it’s your message, logo or other branding elements, the first rule of brand exposure is to be consistent. Take this lesson to heart and be consistent every time you represent your employer brand. This also goes beyond branding and extends to being consistent in your dealings with candidates. You should be someone they can count on and trust, so keep your word by returning phone calls, doing what you say you’ll do and keeping them in the loop. What things have you learned from people in other industries that translate to the HR world? Let us know in the comments section below.