Headhunting on Social Media

Websites like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Google Plus are common recruitment grounds for companies big and small. Looking over candidates’ movement on social media provides information that can replace or at least supplement traditional skill assessments and other conventional recruiting techniques. By researching blogs, tweets, responses to questions, and more, we can find better data and see how a potential employee works to find the best and brightest in their fields.

The Statistics

Statistics show that more than 90 percent of recruiters now use social media as a hiring tool. More than 85 percent use LinkedIn, 55 percent use Facebook, and 47 percent use Twitter. When it comes to less-utilized networks, there is still some activity. Sites like Snapchat, Tumblr and Periscope can also provide the help needed to find the right candidates for a company or position.

Of course, these aren’t the only places recruiters are looking. Seventy-eight percent of companies also consider employee referrals, but it has been shown that more than half of recruiters recount finding excellent candidates online, followed by job boards at 38 percent.

Brand Awareness

One of the factors that is most difficult for recruiters to tackle is brand awareness, and social media can also prove useful in this aspect. Nearly three fourths of companies use social media to attract talent in some way, while 63 percent use a company website instead of or in addition to social media. Meanwhile, only a fifth use outbound campaigns like email, and only 15 percent have a mobile website.

Being aware of what is out there is important, and social media is a huge part of that. However, having your eggs in numerous baskets is the best choice. With the world being high-tech and existing in a very real way online, choosing to avoid social media recruitment can be crippling. Whether you opt to utilize it as your only recruitment method or merely add it into your arsenal, it is something every good company should be working to integrate into recruitment and hiring processes.