Effective social recruiting looks a lot like content marketing.

An interesting mix of content is what prompts people to follow, Like, and share on social networks. Whether you’re using social to sell sneakers, timeshares, or the latest job opening at your company, follows, Likes, and shares are what will get you the sale.

Companies need to create engaging, targeted content that markets their jobs and employer brand to candidates to accompany their job ads.

The best mix for social recruiting is to post 4 other types of content for every one job posted.

Coming up with different kinds content is one of the toughest aspects of social recruiting… Or social media marketing of any kind.

If you don’t have a Nike sized budget, or a team of creatives at your disposal, content creating can be daunting.

But it doesn’t have to be!

Here are a few ideas for creating social media posts that convert job seekers into applicants.

Employee Profiles

Coworkers matter. We all want to work with people that we like and respect and yet the social aspects of work are very rarely addressed during the recruitment and hiring process.

This is what makes employee profiles such an excellent marketing tool!

Posting images or video of employees talking about their work, their hobbies, even their pets is a great way to show job seekers what an awesome bunch of people they’ll be working with.

How to create employee profiles to grow your employer brand

Company Updates

Posting positive updates and news about what’s happening at your company is a nice way to show off a little.

Employees want to feel proud of the place that they work (especially millennials), so sharing news about awards, innovations, new products, or collaborations is an excellent way to sell job seekers on your company.

Advice for Getting Hired at Your Company

Share tips and insider advice for how to get hired at your company.

Marketers like to talk a lot about content that “adds value” and posts like this are a perfect example of this.

You add value for the job seeker by showing them how to apply and/or interview more effectively and helping them land the job that they’re after.

You add value for your company and your HR team by teaching applicants how you want them to apply and what skills/traits they should highlight.

Cool Stuff About Your Industry

Use apps like Swayy or Buzzsumo to find interesting news about your industry that you can share on your social networks.

Try to share links with a (very) short write up with your thoughts on the subject and a nice accompanying image. If you’re posting to Twitter then always include a relevant hashtag!

Community Outreach and Charity

Posts about the positive things that your company and employees do for the local or global community make for great social recruiting content.

Share stories about your employees participation in charitable events, how your company gives back to the community, or the charitable giving that your organization does.

Day in the Life at Your Company

Job seekers are dying to know what it’s like to work at your company, so show them!

You can follow an employee and create a post based on the highlights of their work day, ask employees to write short paragraphs about their day, or create a video that explores your office.

This Apple recruiting video shows candidates what it’s like to work on developing a new product at Apple:

Tour Your Office

Along the same lines as day in the life posts, sharing images or video of your office space is another excellent way to peak job seekers’ interest.

When putting together this kind of post it’s important to make your workplace look nice, but to stay honest.

It may be tempting to hide all the clutter, or only show the nicest offices, but you need to give candidates realistic impression because you don’t want to set them up for disappointment!

Employee Stories

Human interest stories rule social media and luckily for you, you have a lot of humans to draw on for finding this kind of story.

Reach out to staff and ask them if they have anything fun or interesting going on that they’d like to share.

An employee’s stand up comedy hobby, recent marathon participation, or even their amazing chocolate chip cookie recipe are all excellent fodder for a social recruiting post.

Parties and Staff Events

My husband’s company recently took their entire team for a boat tour of Amsterdam’s canals followed by dinner at a super hip restaurant that used to be a pirate radio station back in the 60’s.

The photos and video they took or their staff party would make any millennial clamour for a job with his company!

Even if your staff events aren’t pulled from the pages of Kinfolk magazine, they are still an excellent way to connect on a personal level with job seekers.

Perks

Game rooms, snacks, flexible work spaces and hours, all of these perks can be a part of your social recruiting strategy.

Let’s use flexible work as an example.

Share your own, or another employee’s pic of how they work when they’re not in office. Add a message explaining the post, that you’re hiring, and even a link to an open job.

You’ll also want to add some relevant hashtags if you’re sharing to Twitter such as #hiring, #startup, or #jobs.

Here’s one that I made for us (we’re not currently hiring otherwise I would have included a check out our latest jobs CTA and #hiring for sure!)

Quotes, Kittens, and Memes

Last, but not least share fun stuff! Inspirational quotes, fun pictures, and silly memes may not seem all that relevant, but this kind of content is the backbone of social media!

My favourite way to create posts that fall into this category is to use Buffer’s Pablo app to layer a fun quote on top of a gorgeous image. Works every time 😀

I hope this list provides you with the inspiration that you need to keep your social recruiting content fun!