dice how to brand yourself on social to attract talent webinar

HOW TO BRANDYOURSELF ONSOCIAL TOATTRACT TALENT

With Allison Kruse, Sr. Manager, Social Media & Talent Acquisition, Kforce

THE CANDIDATE POWERED ECONOMY

* Tech Candidate Sentiment Survey, Dice, 2015** Job Seeker Nation Study, Jobvite, 2016

1 IN 2 USED SOCIAL WHEN SEARCHING FOR THEIR MOST RECENT JOB**

3 IN 4 TECH PROS ARE OPEN TO NEW JOB OPPORTUNITIES*

#SOCIALRECRUITING2016

WHAT DOES STEVE (THE IN-DEMAND TECH CANDIDATE) WANT?

WHY SHOULD HE TALK TO YOU?

He’s busy in his full-time job

When he’s “in flow” at work, he doesn’t want to be interrupted

He wants to have an impact — point to something that he did — and be recognized for his work

There are gaps between what he’s doing now and what he wants to do

He’s bombarded by recruiters who don’t know him but are saying he is perfect for the job

He wants to work on specific platforms/programs

He’s not looking for a new job, but is open to hearing from a recruiter


IN ORDER TO BE THE RECRUITER STEVE WANTS TO WORK WITH, YOU NEED TO LOOK THE PART, ACT THE PART AND TREAT HIM THE WAY YOU’D WANT TO BE TREATED


1. AUDIT YOURDIGITAL FOOTPRINT

2. DESIGN YOURDIGITAL PRESENCE

3. ESTABLISH YOURCONTENT STRATEGY AND SCHEDULE

4. WRITE MESSAGESTHAT EARN RESPONSES

4 STEPS TO HELP YOU LOOK AND ACT THE PART


STEP ONE

AUDIT YOUR DIGITAL FOOTPRINT THROUGH THE EYES OF YOUR TARGET CANDIDATES


TECH PROS WILL LOOK YOU UP ONLINE BEFORE DECIDING TO RESPOND TO YOU

When you contact a tech pro, he/she will likely research you first online

Ensure your digital presence clearly answers why the candidate should work withyou versus your competitors

Your message may not have made an emotional connection, but your social profiles can


YOUR INDIVIDUAL BRAND HAS A DIRECT IMPACT ON YOUR RESPONSE RATES


BORING PROFILES DO NOT GET NOTICED


WHICH ACCOUNT WOULD YOU WANT TO FOLLOW?


STEP TWO

DESIGN YOUR DIGITAL PRESENCE TO ATTRACTYOUR TARGET CANDIDATES


ALWAYS KEEP YOUR TARGET CANDIDATE IN MIND

Include links to your profiles, and company’s websiteMake it easy for people to checkyou out

Include your contact infoIt should be simple for candidates to find your email and phone – we don’t want toplay hard-to-get

Ensure your writing is 100% error-freePay attention to spelling, grammar, punctuation, formatting, etc.

Use dynamic high-res imagesHumanize your profile by including a picture of yourself

Establish credibilityAdd social proof by including peer testimonials and recommendations

Aa


BE PROFERSONALTHERE’S NO NEED FOR TWO SEPARATE TWITTER ACCOUNTS


TM

Headshot of just you

Not posed or fake

Friendly and approachable

High-res

PROFILE PICTURE

Include areas of focus and specialties

Add a few personal details

Include hashtags if appropriate

Add links to other relevant sites

ABOUT ME

Tell your story here by first asking “What’s appealing to them?”

Avoid recruiter speak and internal jargon

Describe the skills, job types and geos you recruit for – if you’re third party, mention your clients/industries

Share personal details to make it easy for others to find commonalities with you

Include your contact information

Think about SEO – include terms candidates may search for

SUMMARY

Think what’s in it for them

HEADLINE/TAGLINE

FULL LEGAL NAME


STEP THREE

ESTABLISH YOUR CONTENT STRATEGY AND SCHEDULE


Tie goals for using social to your metrics

Set goals and objectives to #s and activities you can measure (i.e. # of new leads from social and # of posts per week)

DEVELOP YOUR CONTENT STRATEGY

ESTABLISH GOALS & OBJECTIVES

SET RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CONDUCT RESEARCH

GET ORGANIZED

DEVELOP YOUR OUTREACH SCHEDULE


Decide how you will track and measure your progress

Avoid using the # of new followers or connections as your measure of success – track engagement instead

Choose your tools and determine how you will use them




CONDUCT RESEARCH

GET ORGANIZED



Research where your target audience is most active

Build a list of your influencers

Identify your keywords




CONDUCT RESEARCH

GET ORGANIZED



Update your social profiles regularly

As your targets shift, ensure your profiles include the right content to attract your prospects

Inventory your content sources: Know the content you have available, understand when it’s appropriate to use it, and have a way to swiftly deliver it




CONDUCT RESEARCH

GET ORGANIZED



Create a schedule of posts that will start conversations

Include short statements or questions, like interesting facts, company news or polls

Create a formula that you can stick to each week (i.e. a 3/2/3/1 strategy)

Tap into free tools like Hootsuite to helpmanage your social efforts




CONDUCT RESEARCH

GET ORGANIZED



CREATE YOUR OUTREACH SCHEDULE

Post three pieces of fresh content that are informative or educational

Start a conversation with two new influencers

Share three links that others have posted on each social channel you’re on

Comment on at least one group thread, article or blog

3 2 3 1

30 MINUTES PER WEEK 10 MINUTES PER WEEK 15 MINUTES PER WEEK 10 MINUTES PER WEEK


BLOCK YOUR CALENDAR

Be thoughtful about defining your blocks of time

Place social activities on your calendar to ensure you spend time on it every day

Instead of putting “Get on social media from 8-9” on your calendar, schedule small timeslots that include specific details on what you want to accomplish


STEP FOUR

CREATE MESSAGES THAT EARN RESPONSES


VS

I’m an Account Manager with Bland People Technologies and I wanted to connect with you and discuss an opportunity that I’ve been working on that I thought could be a good match with your skill sets.

I was checking you out on YouTube and caught your talk about DevOps: Year One. The solutions that you talked about are exactly what my client needs.


WHY TECH PROSMAY BE IGNORING YOU

You look like just another generic recruiter

You sent the wrong job to the wrong person

The candidate doesn’t see a good reason to talk to you

You offended the candidate

You seem untrustworthy

You send too many messages

Your emails are sloppy and full of errors

You seem unprofessional


Think about it like dating: When you first meet someone, you are not proposing marriage — you just want to get to know them first

REMEMBER YOUR GOAL IS TO EARN A RESPONSE

“The best messages are never about you or the job you’re trying to fill. The best approaches start with the work that they are passionate about and how you can connect them to 1) new, really challenging problems in their space and 2) help them grow in their career.”ANDREW CARGESVP TALENT ACQUISITION, GODADDY


BEFORE REACHING OUT MAKE TIME TO UNDERSTAND THEIR PAIN POINTS

Source: The Keys to Understanding Today’s Tech Pros, Dice, 2015

Limited Housing: Only 12% of tech pros in major tech cities think there’s enough housing and 46% say housing is too expensive

Traffic: 48% say they deal with too much congestion

Consider what may be stressing your candidates and determine what that means for effective messaging,for example:


MAKE TIME TO RESEARCH YOUR CANDIDATES

Set aside 2-3 blocks in your day – each 30 minutes – for research. Treat this like any other appointment.

Use tools such as Dice Open Web to save you from the more time-consuming site-by-site research.

Invest more time up front with the hiring manager to understand what he/she is looking for. Leverage sample profiles available on Dice, your ATS or from previous openings before you start sourcing.


MAKE TIME TO WRITE EFFECTIVE MESSAGES

From your subject line to the last sentence, demonstrate that you’ve thoroughly reviewed their online profiles, resume, etc.

In just a few seconds, you need to earn the candidate’s trust


BE PROFESSIONAL

Your message must be free of errors – spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc.

You can be friendly without being juvenile – do not include emoticons, .gifs, or excessive slang in your email

Ensure your tone conveys courtesy and respect

Aa


MAKE IT ABOUT THEM, NOT YOU

The candidate likely isn’t looking for a new gig, so your initial message needs to address why talking with you is a valuable use of time

Before contacting the candidate, think through possible gaps in what he/she is doing now, and what the job opportunity offers

What specific problems could he/she help solve in this new role? What will he get to work on? What would be her business impact?


AVOID THE 5 BIGGEST MISTAKES RECRUITERS MAKE WHEN CRAFTING MESSAGES TO PASSIVE TECH TALENT

YOU’RE SENDING OUT ANYTHING THAT RESEMBLES A MASS EMAIL (OR BCC’ING THEM, SO IT APPEARS THEY ARE ONE OF MANY CANDIDATES RECEIVING THE MESSAGE)

YOU’RE SENDING A TRADITIONAL JOB DESCRIPTION OR ANY KIND OF WORD DOC ATTACHMENT

YOU’RE ASKING THEM IF THEY’REA ROCK STAR, NINJA, OR SUPERSTAR

YOU’RE WRITING MORE THAN 2-3 SHORT PARAGRAPHS IN AN EMAIL

YOU’RE ASKING THEM TO CHECK OUT YOUR CAREERSITE OR TO APPLY ONLINE

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5

3

2

TO: FROM:


Source: The Definitive Guide to Engaging Top Tech Candidates by Dice and John Vlastelica of Recruiting Toolbox

HUMAN SPEAK > HR SPEAK

“I read out loud before hitting send. If it doesn't sound like something I'd say in person I change it.”AMY MILLER

“Great people will ask you what pulled you to them. Answering "um, you have Python" won't get much of a response...”STEVE LEVY


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dice how to brand yourself on social to attract talent webinar

Recruiting & HR