Link Love

So much is happening.

Usually I try to stick to a theme, because storytelling is kind of a big deal in the blogging community. I have nightmares about the Blog Police hunting me down when I go off topic too many times, putting an end to my writing-career by encasing all of my digits in Chinese finger traps.

Oh well, bring it on guys. Too much is going on with Facebook and the interwebs right now for me to write another millennials-related Link Love! Besides, I watched that movie about Houdini —  I'll be fine!

The most important thing to share is Facebook's introduction of the option for apps to bid by cost per action (CPA). This will simplify the ad process by allowing developers the option to pay per-download instead of just per-click (CPC). This should make a lot of advertisers very happy, which is Facebook's top priority at the moment.

Facebook is also changing their ad formatting to allow users to watch a video ad / how-to (included with the ads) before they purchase an app. This gives app developers better marketing value and it gives users a better idea of what they are about to purchase. I'm sure somebody will still be grumpy about it though!

Speaking of complaining... Despite the general grumpiness expressed by Facebook users about the increase in the number of ads showing up in their news feeds, those users are clicking on those very same ads at a rate higher than ever before! Maybe it's just another one of those things we love to complain about, but secretly enjoy, like pumpkin spice lattes!

So, apparently this is just one of our usual Facebook-focused Link Loves... But for good reason! Facebook is updating its Custom Audiences feature.

This is the BEST news for recruiters!

The update to Facebook's Custom Audiences feature will allow employers to reach out to potential hires who have recently visited their company career site through their news feeds and encourage them to apply, or finish the application they've already started. Retargeting users is awesome for growing your talent pool and increasing application completion.

We can't explain it, but sometimes users visit your Career Page and end up leaving before, or even mid-way through, the application process. Maybe they got distracted by doughnuts? Anyway, the update to Facebook's Custom Audiences is pretty great! Employers and recruiters will soon be able to direct ads specifically towards users that have already shown interest, both on desktop and mobile, thus making the likelihood of re-engagement super high.  Awesome.

I'll leave you with a link I know you'll love, especially the employers among you. It isn't about Facebook per se, but this amazing Infographic by IOR is a simple and effective hiring guide that is worth printing out and framing! Recruiters, you could do this as a gift to the companies you work for.

Happy Link Loving!

Have something cool to share? Let us know in the comments.

We’ve been all about millennials on the blog lately — what kind of employees they are, what they’re looking for from an employer, and how to recruit them.

One of the biggest takeaways from our research is that Gen Y is allll about lifestyle perks, flexibility, and challenging projects. If you want to attract and retain my peers, let them have flexible hours, the option to work from home, and/or put them in charge of something that piques their interest….

Like, for example, your social media strategy! Here are a whole bunch of fantastic resources about training employees for social media success. You could watch all of them yourself; or simply put a Gen Yer on it and let them attack social with all of their youthful exuberance!

Another great way to retain millennials is to get them a discount on burritos. I am only half-joking. Great perks are attractive to all generations of employees, as are burritos. AnyPerk is a super cool start-up that allows small businesses to group together, so that they have enough clout to offer the same kinds of perks that large businesses can afford.  You can keep your employees happy with cellphone discounts, cheap gym memberships, and deals on delicious Mexican food!

The ability to work from home is often considered to be a perk, although in all honesty, unlike most other millennials, I prefer the camaraderie that an office has to offer! Apparently close to 90% of companies are currently offering some sort of telecommuting option for employees, so the ability to work from home may no longer be considered an added bonus by candidates, but instead something they simply expect from all potential employers.

When it comes to retention, company culture plays a huge role.  I’m not talking about whether your culture is edgy, or old-school, or anything fancy like that. I’m talking about how welcoming you and your staff are to new employees. Having a welcoming and inclusive company culture is a great way to improve retention. Here are some great ways to foster an environment of respect and inclusion in your work place.

Well, that’s a whole lot of great ways to make your workplace more appealing to candidates, and keep those new hires happy. Perks are pretty great, but just a warning, you may want to think twice before you offer free beers as a workplace perk — even if it is craft brew!

Millennials are the best. We are the best at iPhones, the best at Tumblr, and we are the best employees. No, I do not have any solid research to back up those claims, but they are all 100% true facts - based on knowledge that I have gained by surfing the interweb. Okay, so maybe we are not better employees than our Gen X rivals, but we are the next big wave of candidates entering the workforce! And as such, it’s important for employers and recruiters to know what Generation Y is all about, besides Tumblr and Apple products. Luckily, I do have quite a bit of great information about millennial candidates, and all of it comes from very reliable sources! On Monday I wrote a post about what employers can expect from millennials, and what millennials expect from them. In the process of writing that piece, I dug up some killer surveys, articles, and Infographics that you really ought to check out. Here are the links! Dice interviews recruiters at Talent Tomorrow in this awesome YouTube video about the top tactics to attract millennials.

Some topics, like the importance of mobile and Facebook recruiting, are agreed upon across the board, while others, like the importance of stressing growth opportunities, are highly contentious. These differences of opinion are what make Dice’s video so fascinating, and definitely worth the two and a half minutes! If you have more than a couple minutes, Achievers’ in-depth study, Class of 2012: Understanding the Needs of your Future Workforce, is an incredible resource for understanding both how to recruit, and how to retain millennials. It’s an undeniably #longread, but the PDF version I’ve linked to is extremely well laid out, which makes the information very easy to digest. If you simply don’t have time, here are some of the most important stats on Gen Y candidates taken from their study. Now that you know what Gen Y wants, it’s time to take that knowledge and start recruiting them! But where is the best place to connect with millennial candidates? Why Facebook of course, at least according to this Infographic. Now, if you really want to effectively target millennials with Facebook recruiting you had better make sure your job applications are mobile-friendly… I know a certain app that will do that for you, just sayin’! Back to the heavy duty research! PWC — I'm sadly, unsure of what PWC actually does, but according to their website, they create value for clients. What that means, I have no idea. Sorry. Nonetheless, they released a fantastic survey on millennial employees. The survey covers everything from what Gen Yers value in employers, to their views on flexible working, to the compromises they are willing to make, and why they'll make them. Lastly, I’d like to revisit Achievers, because not only do they provide tons of great info about recruiting Gen Y, but they also provide some pretty cool software that helps employers retain millennial employees, which is just as important as recruiting them in the first place!

I follow a lot of blogs — many of them are related to HR and social media — but just as many of them are not. I also follow too many YouTube channels, and Podcasts. Out of the hundreds that I follow, only one is related to HR, because most HR podcasts and HR YouTube channels are just too boring for words (Jim Stroud is the hilarious exception to that rule, so check him out)!  A few of them are specifically about social media, but most cover a broad range of topics.

I consider this kind of engagement with media an essential part of my job. And though I certainly don’t charge for the time I spend listening to Planet Money (please, please, please listen to Planet Money, it’s amazing!), that time still positively affects my ability to keep this blog relevant, engage with our Twitter community, and keep our Facebook content varied and interesting.

In today’s social media driven culture, it’s more important than ever to stay plugged in to a broad range of media and topics in order to remain relevant.  Heck, Gen Y is about to take over the workforce, and you had better know what their interests are if you want to snap up all of the best millennial talent!

On that note, here are a bunch of the best articles about social media, HR, and other interesting trends I’ve read this past week:

We’ll start on topic with this interesting post by the very lovely HR pro, Nisha Raghavan, about how stealing your competitors’ star employees may not benefit your company at all.

Now to get a little off-topic, here are 24 ways you can relieve your tech stress! Nothing to do with HR specifically, but recruiting is stressful work, and kicking some of that stress in the butt is a great way to become more productive. The article is presented in partnership with a pretty cool new healthy living web app called whil, created by the founder of Lululemon. Definitely check out their site if you want to see incredible branding in action, oh, and if you want to relax and stuff.

Let’s get back to recruiting for a minute with Talent HQs’ round up of 45 mobile recruiting tips and trends. That’s a whole lot of information to help make your social recruiting more mobile-friendly. If you get overwhelmed, I highly recommend using Jobcast Premium to make your Facebook recruiting mobile-friendly in a jiffy. I also recommend using the word jiffy whenever possible!

Oh, and did you know that YouTube is going to host its own music awards show? Bet you can’t guess what it’s called! Yes, you are correct; it is called the YouTube Music Awards. Very creative, YouTube! This is the kind of stuff you need to know about if you’re going to relate to all those new Gen Y employees you are about to hire.

The topic of our final link is a strange combination of sci-fi paranoia, social media, and human resources, which seems perfect for this particular Link Love. Are You Going to be Replaced by a Robot? is written by Steve Boese, so not only is the meshing of topics perfect, the writing is also wonderfully witty, although sadly lacking in alliteration.

That’s all the Links I’ve got for this week. Next week’s theme will probably have something to do with how sick I’m getting of everyone talking about pumpkin spiced lattes, unless you have a better idea. Let us know in the comments!

It's that time again — time to share some of our favorite articles, videos, and apps with you, our beloved readers. Keeping up with all the cool, techy, social stuff that comes out every millisecond is no easy feat. We try our best, but sadly we are only human, and not in any way bionic. 

Yet still we persevere in our quest to hunt down every morsel of cool recruiting, and social media related info that the interweb has to offer. Okay, so it's mostly just me. The rest of team Jobcast have their hands full with designing new features, growing our client’s employer brands, and problem-solving. Finding links to love is my quest, and your happiness is my reward! Hopefully, this week's links will make you all super happy by helping you optimize your Facebook employer brand and recruiting. If not, then watch this hilarious video, so you'll at least get a good laugh! Now on to the links:

Crowdbabble is an awesome analytics app that lets you track your Facebook stats in real-time. They present all of your data beautifully, with charts and infographics that are full of data, but laid out in a way that makes it all very easy to understand and apply. We all know that tracking your results is the only way to measure success and make informed strategic improvements. Crowdbabble is a great addition to Facebook Insights and Jobcast reports. Another way to keep your Facebook employer branding top-notch is to be proactive about engagement. Sometimes that means dealing with less than kind comments on your Employer Page and, tempting as it may be to simply hide or delete them, this is definitely not the way to go! Instead you should belittle the negative commenter and insult their mother.... Oh wait, that's also a terrible course of action. What you really ought to do is read this article by Franceen Shaughnessy, where she explains exactly how to handle negative comments on your Facebook Page.

Now that you know exactly how to deal with undesirable comments, let's look at a way to get more positive ones. Image-based content always get the most engagement from Facebook users, and you know what's even better than one great image? A collage of great images of course!

Pic Monkey is a really cool app that lets you compile images into super fancy collages, which you can share on your Facebook Page. It even lets you add bunting graphics, which will give you all the hipster cred you need to appeal to millennials like me! Speaking of appealing to millenials, Facebook now allows users to target iOS IDs in custom audiences, so you can make sure all of those hip gen Yers with iOS7 see your lovely collage. Last, but not least: the best way to improve your Facebook recruiting is by making sure your Career Page is optimized for mobile. You can bet that at least 1 in 6 (that's the most conservative stat. It's probably closer to 80%) of your potential hires are accessing Facebook from a mobile device. You simply can not afford to lose these candidates to friction caused by poor mobile experience. Here's how to create a Smart URL with Jobcast to make your Facebook recruiting mobile-friendly. Enjoy these fantastic links. I'm off to find more of them to post on our Facebook Page, because I really need to start following my own advice! If you have any cool posts, apps, or articles you'd like us to feature on the blog, let us know in the comments.

You want the truth?! Well, that's awesome; because I'm pretty sure you can handle the truth. Maybe not the truth about corruption in the armed forces, or extra-terrestrial life… But the truth about Facebook Recruiting? No problem. Last week's Link Love was a long one, so to balance things out, this one will be as short as Tom Cruise sans-lifts and as sweet as Mission Impossible 1. It will also be more useful than both of those things combined, although slightly less entertaining. These links provide some true facts, pertinent stats and straight-talk about Facebook recruiting. Well start with the meatiest link. This survey about the American workforce and Facebook recruiting, put out by Jobvite, shows that job seekers are flocking to Facebook to find work like never before. It also reveals that Facebook is the leading social network in the American workforce, mostly because of stats like this one:

“52% of job seekers use Facebook to help find work.”(2012)

Our next study, by Simply Measured, explains the positive impact of Facebook Timeline for brands. It’s a great little chart that squeezes in a lot of detail, but still manages to be easy to understand. The major takeaway is that “brands receive on average 46% more engagement per post with Timeline.” Getting back to stats that are specific to recruiting on Facebook, here’s a case-study showing that Facebook is an effective tool to recruit for the restaurant industry. Next up, a great piece by Business 2 Community which compiles a huge amount of Facebook marketing stats that can be applied primarily to employer branding, but also recruiting. The most interesting, in my humble opinion, is the one stating that “80% of Social Network Users Prefer to Connect with Brands through Facebook.” Our last link is not for the faint of heart, or anyone with a short attention span.  With this in-depth study, Pew Internet gets into the nitty gritty of how social sharing works on Facebook, and Facebook’s user demographics. The link will take you to a chart of who’s using Facebook, and what they’re using it for. The chart is very large, and very detailed. I suggest you grab a cup of coffee before clicking through!

It’s smack dab in the middle of the work week, which means it’s time for some Link Lovin’ to help us get over the hump that is Wednesday. This week has been pretty great for HR and social media related content already, so there’s a lot to choose from, and I want to share ALL the things with all of you! Sadly, this is about as feasible as fitting every, single flavor of gelato into one small sized cone. Which is why I always choose a large cone, and why this week we're going to share 7 links instead of 5. You heard me! It’s about to get crazy:

Crazy relaxing that is! First up is my very favorite link of the week. It’s my favorite for two very obvious reasons: it’s and Infographic, and it’s about napping. The science behind taking a perfect nap has been compiled into an Infographic  and published by the Wall Street Journal, so you know it’s legit. Napping boosts happiness and productivity, which is why better napping will make you better at your job and a better coworker. Big thanks to Jim Dougherty for bringing this cool graphic to my (and now your) attention! Now for something a little more serious, but still pretty darn cool! Did you know that Facebook daily active user (DAU) numbers in Europe grew from 127 million to 182 million DAU. Ad revenue in Europe went from $245 million to $451 million from 2011 to 2013? Talk about global reach! To help companies capitalize on this crazy growth Facebook’s ad goals for the future are to become even simpler and more worldwide. The article linked does a great job of explaining these goals and what they mean for you. Do you find yourself easily distracted by simplicity and pretty colours? That’s okay, so do I, and, according to Laurie Ruettimann so do most humans. This is why Laurie has laid out some great advice for choosing HR software without being sidetracked by flashy design. Sometimes the smallest things make the biggest impact. Productivity is so important; we all want to be more productive all of the time. Sites like Lifehacker, books like The 4 Hour Work-Week, and apps like The Jobcast Facebook Recruiting App are all a response to this need. But it’s also important to remember how basic things, like taking notes with pen and paper, are often just as important for productivity as any high tech tool.

Bullet Journal is a great reminder of just how great a simple notebook can be. Speaking of technology VS old-school methods, Morgan Hoogvelts’ latest article for ERE.net advises recruiters to remember the basic principles of hiring. It’s true, love Facebook recruiting, but he makes some darn fine points with this post.

LinkedIn is gearing up to add more bells and whistles to their platform. Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy LinkedIn and am really looking forward to the improved communication these updates will bring, I just wish they would improve their mobile app first! The final article is from Inc Magazine and contains the Link Love quote of the week!

“People aren't engaged by programs; they're engaged by people.”

Important words to keep in mind when using social platforms to recruit, and when trying to get employees on board with your Facebook recruiting strategy and employer branding endeavours.  The article from which this quote is pulled explains why most employee engagement programs fail, and what to do about it! Happy Link Loving, if you have any articles you’d like to share, let us know in the comments.

Although it’s probably a terrible idea to date our blog content this way, I just can’t help myself…

September is here; it’s time to go back to school. Recruiting School that is! (So cheesy, yet so satisfying.)

This week’s Link Love will get you educated, and you won’t even need to sign up for an online course, or community college, or play beer pong!

From recruiting millennials, to not horribly offending your potential hires, each of these articles is a wealth of information for employers and recruiters alike.

Let the learning begin!

Millennials 101

Millennials are the new black, and not because they are trendy, but because they now make up a large percentage of job seekers. So, it’s important to know exactly how Gen Y feels about social media in the workforce and this article will teach you everything you need to know on the subject.

Millennials 102

Delving further into the topic of Gen Y, Dan Schawbel’s latest article for Harvard Biz is entitled: You’re Probably Wrong About Millennials!

I love, love, love Dan’s advice “to drop generational stereotypes and give Gen Y employees a chance to prove themselves.” And his down-to-earth tips for getting the most out of your millennial employees.

Facebook Edgerank 101

Warning, it is extremely helpful to re-visit Facebook Ads 101 before enrolling in this course!

In this excellent post, Meredith Soleau, breaks down exactly how you can beat Facebook Edgerank to get your job posts seen, liked, and shared. This article is mandatory for any student looking to pursue Facebook recruiting.

Tutorial: Avoiding Interview Disasters

Recruiting doesn’t end at converting candidates into applicants. You also have to interview those applicants and convince them that they want to work for you!

Here’s how to avoid the 7 deadly sins of the interviewing process by Ken Sundheim.

Employee Satisfaction 300 Level

Now that you’ve learned how to reach candidates, convert them into applicants, and interview those applicants like a *baws*, it’s time to talk about retention. Here’s how to reward employees the right way, and to make them feel appreciated while boosting retention.

Stay tuned for next week’s Link Love, where we discuss how to pack healthy lunches for recruiters, and how to keep office bullies at bay!

Unless, of course, I decide to cover a topic that is slightly more pertinent to our readers… Speaking of pertinent, if you have any links that you think we should feature, or ideas for blog topics, let us know in the comments.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Just don't go making any copy-right infringements and pointing at me when you get in trouble...

Moving right along. When it comes to social recruiting, there really is no better way to learn than by observation. Sure, tutorials and webinars are great; you'll learn the basics, the technical stuff, the rules, but it's not the same as seeing a great social recruiting strategy at work in the real world.

Observing a company’s employer branding and Facebook recruiting firsthand gives you a much better idea of what a good campaign looks like as a whole. An example lets you see the bigger picture, unlike most tutorials that simply explain all the specific parts of Facebook recruiting.

We recently interviewed Jessica Slusar, the “People Solutions Specialist” for Earls Restaurant about how the chain has been so successful with their employer branding and social recruiting. Her candid advice can be applied by any employer or recruiter looking to improve or even just start using social media and Facebook. Earls Wants You is a fantastic example to learn from... but a few more great examples can't hurt!

Today’s Link Love will showcase a range of different Facebook Employer and Career Pages. From tech, to retail, to construction, each of these companies is looking for a completely different kind of candidate, but all of them are using Facebook effectively to accomplish their goal.

Corporate and Upscale

The Corporate Recruiters Facebook Career Page screams professional. Their logo is large and in charge, and they've used bright yellow to make it stand out against a backdrop of grey to keep things classy. They also have a great recruiting video alongside their job postings. Of course recruiters would know how to make a super slick Career Page! If your employer branding is more business than casual Corporate Recruiters are a great source of inspiration.

Quirky and Fun

Esquel Group's Facebook Career Page is on the opposite end of the spectrum from Corporate Recruiters. Absolutely nothing about their Page says corporate, and this is a good thing as they are an apparel company!

What makes Esquel Group stand out is their decision to highlight company culture in a wonderfully quirky way. Their color scheme is bright and fun. Their banner shows employees looking smiley, and holding signs expressing what they love about working for Esquel. They also put up tons of fun pictures from company events. This is all great social proof for potential hires that Esquel is a great company to work for.

Young and Hip

VMInnovations Career Page is cool. Their Employer Branding portrays the company as forward thinking, and makes it clear that they are looking to hire people who fit that description as well. They are extremely direct in the way that they deliver their recruiting message:

"The only thing you will regret is that you didn’t join our team sooner!"

Which is perfect for targeting the type of candidates they are looking for. This message is consistant throughout their branding, but is most apparent from their choice of images and wording. Check 'em out!

Stability and Legacy

In contrast to VMI, PCL Construction's Facebook Career Page highlights the stability, family values, and long-term benefits their company has to offer. They do so with their imagery, but even more importantly in their profile write-up, which is heartfelt and well written. There message is a perfect way to appeal to candidates who are looking for longterm employment, with a company that they can grow with, and an environment that encourages co-workers to become a family, and work together, rather than compete with each other. Their Page is just plain heartwarming!

All four of these companies have done a great job of branding their Career Pages to appeal to the type of candidate they are looking to hire, and to showcase what matters most to them. They are all completely different, but each one is perfect for the company it represents.

To learn more about creating your own Fully Branded Facebook Career Page, check out the Jobcast Recruiting App.

August is officially half way over. Summer is coming to a close.

But rather than mourn the fact that there are only four weeks left of backyard BBQs and adorable, pint-sized salespeople hawking lemonade at every corner, let's celebrate the time we do have.

No, not by going to the beach, or working on our tans, but by recapping some of the best articles and Facebook recruiting tools to have come out this summer.

So unwrap a popsicle, grab your laptop, and plunk yourself down on the closest beach blanket you can find. Well, the closest beach blanket you can find with access to wifi that is!

Coolest new(ish) tool for social recruiting

Facebook Graph Search hands down! Because it gives recruiters and employers the ability to access the information people share with Facebook, in order to connect with passive candidates. Graph Search rolled out a while back, but is only now becoming truly effective for recruiting as the Facebook team successfully encourages users to share their details, and have made it universally available.

Blog post that taught the most

So technically this post came out in Spring, but I think we can overlook that, considering its awesomeness. China Gorman's "Data Point Tuesday" features are some of the most informative articles online. In this particular piece, she breaks down survey data on social recruiting from SHRM. What makes these posts different from most of the info you'll find on the internet is China's ability to explain what the statistics mean, why they matter, and also to pose thoughtful questions about what the information will mean for the future of recruiting.

Hottest Infographic

This Infographic on social media demographics is hot in more of a librarian kind of way... but the brain is the sexiest body part right?!? The imagery may not be as flashy as some of the Infographics floating around the web, but the information is relevant and clear. We're linking to the Leaders West blog post, since Jim Dougherty does a great job of commenting on the information presented.

Facebook feature that is most effective for recruiting

The award goes to (the recently updated) Facebook Ads. If Graph Search is bronzer with sun protection, then Facebook Ads are the 'SPF 50 long lasting'. Facebook Ads are definitely less shiny, but are waaaaay more effective. We've found that, for our clients, the use of targeted Facebook Ads is the best ways to increase applications from qualified candidates. No contest. The newest incarnation of FB Ads provides better targeting and analytics. Here's an easy-to-follow tutorial on how to use Facebook Ads for recruiting.

Best way to recruit on Facebook

Okay, so it's pretty obvious what I'm going to say for this one! The Jobcast Facebook recruiting app. Best app ever. What may be new to some of you is the recent addition of Jobcast Enterprise to our plan roster. Enterprise gives you all of the amazing branding, ATS integration and mobile optimization options of our Premium plan.

What makes it so much cooler is, that with Enterprise, we do everything for you. EVERYTHING. This includes creating targeted Facebook Ads. If you want to see an Enterprise client's Career Page in action, check out Earls. In just a month of using Jobcast Enterprise they've increased their Page Likes by 500% and received applications from over 200 qualified candidates. Also, their branding (and burgers) are freaking amazing.

Come to think of it...

I'm getting pretty hungry, I think it's time to wrap this up and go get a burger myself!