Using video to attract candidates
Video is transforming the way we behave online. The increased availability of 4G mobile and fibre optic broadband means that we spend a third of online activity watching videos. Video is a great way to attract and engage potential candidates. Jobseekers are ten times more likely to share a job post containing video than one without and millennials are particularly influenced by engaging and relatable video content.
Video gives a real insight into the business
Potential candidates want to know what you are like to work for and get a “feeling” for whether your business will suit their aspirations. Using video interviews with current employees and video tours of your facilities provides jobseekers with a realistic insight of what it’s like to work for you. “Seeing is believing” – and videos are so much more powerful than written text.
Give a true picture – positives and negatives
Don’t make the mistake of hiring in actors or using fabulous offices to create a “nirvana” of what you want your business to look like. You will only give yourselves a retention issue through the interview & onboarding process once candidates realise that reality does not match up to the video! Use real employees, real facilities and be brave enough to include what you may feel to be negative factors. You will do yourself a favour if you put-off some candidates from applying – you will reduce drop-outs through the interview process and ensure that candidates that do apply are fully aware of the environment you have and are engaged with your business.
Some examples of videos in recruitment
World Duty Free
World Duty Free competes with leading high-street retailers such as John Lewis, House of Fraser and Selfridges to attract candidates for 25 stores throughout the UK. It is easy for potential candidates to visit their local John Lewis – however the only time candidates can visit a World Duty Free is when they are undertaking international travel – and for most candidates working within retail this is not a frequent occurrence. For this reason, World Duty Free introduced video to their careers site in 2016. These videos feature a range of employees describing what their role entails and what they like the most about their job. They also explain the disadvantages of working at the airport – having to park miles away and go through security just to get to work! The video also shows potential candidates what a busy and bustling environment they will work in.
The videos have received thousands of views and have helped World Duty Free to achieve their highest and most efficient recruitment activity ever.
Northgate Vehicle Hire
Northgate Vehicle Hire operate from 75 UK branches and employ nearly 3,000 staff in a variety of roles. They are not a consumer brand and therefore the recruitment team has to be very proactive in identifying, sourcing and attracting candidates. To help with this challenge, Northgate introduced a new mobile careers site which has “day in the life” videos of current employees from a wide variety of roles (over twenty in total). The videos feature genuine, unscripted content including real-life employees. The workers featured in these videos are providing a genuine insight on what it’s like to work for Northgate including: What a typical day involves, what it’s like working for the company, rewards and benefits and what advice they would give to jobseekers. They also show “behind the scenes” footage of the workshops and the offices. Since the implementation of these videos which have gained 5,000 views, Northgate have received frequent positive feedback and were told the videos were the main factor that influenced individuals to apply.
300% increase in click-through rate
The recruitment staff at ResourceBank, the RPO business that operates the recruitment teams for Northgate and World Duty Free, have embraced the availability of the videos and used them to engage and attract candidates. The videos have been embedded in job adverts, shared on facebook, twitter and linkedin, have been profiled in branches and at recruitment evenings. The most effective use has been the embedding of the videos into emails to potential candidates – which has increased the click-through rate from the emails by 300%.
Driving candidates through YouTube search
Once your videos are completed, you can use the power of YouTube to drive candidates to your jobs. YouTube is the second most popular search engine in the world and now that Google owns it, YouTube videos are very well ranked on Google. Use keywords and titles that are search friendly and you will be found by candidates searching for jobs. For example – the video featuring working as a driver for Northgate Vehicle Hire is third in the YouTube search for “Work as a driver”. The video has received thousands of views and, as a result, Northgate have had an increased number of applications for their driving jobs.
If you are interested in learning more about how video content could improve your recruitment effectiveness, please get in touch. We will provide you with a free audit and assessment for your business and, if you decide to proceed, we will completely project manage for you from start to finish. Call Mike Ellingham on 01344 636312 or email mike@mesomk.com to find out more.