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In Australia's competitive job market, it can be hard to attract the best talent. Simply posting job vacancies and hoping the perfect candidate will see them is no longer enough.

Social media is becoming an increasingly vital means for businesses to engage with new networks of potential talent, capture their attention and drive them to apply for a role.

However, with so many businesses vying for the same share of attention, finding the best talent and attracting more candidates through social channels requires you to understand your point of competitive differentiation through exceptional employer branding.

Why building a strong online employer brand will help you attract top talent

It’s no secret that people want to work for great companies.

In fact, research from Robert Half Australia finds that 86% of jobseekers say that an employer’s brand is likely to impact their decision to apply for or accept a job offer.

And when you consider that 88% of employers believe employer branding is more important to attracting and securing top talent in today’s market, then building a strong online brand presence is essential when recruiting through social media.

Given that social media recruiting is a simple and affordable way to find top talent, the more your online branding resonates with your ideal candidates, the more likely you’ll attract – and recruit – top talent for your company.

Related: Employer branding is important, but how do you build one? Find out in our comprehensive guide to corporate branding.

Key considerations when trying to attract more candidates through social channels

You’re probably wondering which social channels you should use.

The good news is, there’s no need to be across all social platforms. Instead, go where your ideal candidates already are and focus on those, so you reach both active and passive jobseekers.

Potential candidates love to hear about your:

  • Excellent professional development and training opportunities
  • Great parental leave or employer leave policies
  • Regular opportunities for travel
  • Flexible working arrangements with home office stipend
  • Career pathways if you’re a global organisation

PRO TIP: The top networks for social media recruiting are Linkedin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Glassdoor.

Another important consideration is nailing your brand voice.

Aim for a friendly and relatable tone that highlights your employer brand in a genuine way.

The great thing about social media is you can build new audiences and create good engagement with a network of potential candidates with few resources.

If you focus on the unique differences of your business and implement a consistent, clear social strategy, you’ll attract the best-fit talent, and there’ll be no risk of creating a false impression that might disappoint your future employees.

5 effective strategies for strengthening your employer brand on social platforms

1. Ensure your social media reflects your brand

In today’s tight labour market, employers compete to attract more talent to apply to open roles and accept job offers.

A strong online employer brand serves the dual purpose of growing the pool of Australian talent it reaches through audience growth and strengthening its reputation in the mind of viewers through engaging informative content.

So your brand message must be clear across your social media profiles and posts.

How can you build your brand identity online?

Knowing what you want to highlight about your company, or better still, what past and present employees consider the most appealing parts of your organisation, can help you define your employer brand and carve a point of difference in the crowded Australian market.

Need some ideas?

  • If you’re proud of your parental leave and want to be known as a great employer for families, try sharing a blog post about how you support working parents.
  • If you want to attract more graduates or junior employees, consider showcasing your training and development with photos and videos of employees at training events.

Company culture is an important part of every jobseeker’s decision-making process, so highlight the feel of your workplace by getting employees and managers to share impromptu behind-the-scenes posts.

How should you optimise your social media profiles to attract more candidates?

  • Write a solution-focused, keyword-rich headline
  • Use high-quality photos, images, and videos
  • Write an on-brand company bio with a clear call to action
  • Make sure all links point to your website or careers page
  • Use relevant hashtags for your brand

PRO TIP: If you’re using LinkedIn, boost your employer brand by encouraging employees to optimise their LI profiles with company branding.

2. Share relevant and engaging content

No matter what channels you choose, share content that brings your employer brand to life and helps candidates imagine what it’s like to work for your organisation.

What should you post about?

Start by creating a set of topics, or ‘content pillars’, for your posts.

Choose themes such as employer branding, industry insights, company experience, client success stories, open roles, testimonials, and company updates or promotions.

Having at least five content pillars helps balance your posting schedule and makes mapping your content calendar easier.

What formats of content should you share?

Just as you mix up your topics, also try different formats:

  • Interviews profiling new hires
  • Videos of employees
  • Quality photos or videos from company events
  • Company accolades or industry recognition
  • Recent media articles

How do you make content more engaging for candidates?

Trying sharing stories, photos, and videos about:

  • How company life looks and feels
  • Current employees and teams
  • Behind the scenes in your office or workplace
  • Interesting projects your team is working on
  • Onsite company perks

PRO TIP: Don’t be scared to be sound human – skipping the super-polished posts from time to time helps break down barriers and shows your real-life experience.

3. Be responsive to your online community

It’s easy to forget, but social media is designed to be just that – social.

When you engage with your online audience, you build goodwill with both the commenters and everyone else reading the thread.

Showing your human side and that you read and care about feedback is the fastest way to develop trust with potential candidates.

So, put aside a few minutes each day to engage with your online community.

How can you start more conversations and build engagement?

  • Reply to all comments (if possible)
  • Ask questions
  • Respond to negative feedback promptly
  • Offer personalised answers

Related: Find out how your corporate reputation can strengthen your employer branding on social media.

4. Create a social media content calendar

Social media is a cluttered and busy space, right? That’s why consistency is the key to cutting through the noise.

Creating a social posting calendar to share regular content will provide more opportunities for candidates to see your posts and engage with your band.

What do you need in a content calendar?

Use a spreadsheet to map out your posting schedule in advance.

Include fields such as:

  • Publishing date and time
  • Social channel
  • Creative asset (i.e. image or video)
  • Body copy
  • A clear call to action
  • List of relevant hashtags

Ensure you follow your content pillars so there’s an even spread of content topics and a regular (but achievable) posting frequency.

Aim for five posts a week, if you can.

How can you use content to boost your brand in Australia?

  • Share posts about your employer brand every week or so
  • Make use of existing content from your careers page
  • Repurpose content (e.g. break up a blog post into a set of social posts)
  • Highlight new roles and opportunities as they open up

PRO TIP: When sharing new job vacancies, why not try out paid ads for an easy and affordable way to increase your reach?

5. Get help from employee advocates

There’s no better endorsement for your employer brand than personal recommendations from existing employees.

In fact, 84% of people trust peer recommendations over any other form of advertising or marketing. That’s because people trust the authenticity of individuals.

So tapping into your team’s network is an excellent way of sourcing candidates.

How can you encourage employee advocacy on social media?

  • Ask managers to congratulate their team on promotions
  • Interview new hires and share their experience at the end of their probation
  • Remind staff to share images from company events
  • Encourage employees to share company posts on their own social channels
  • Create a unique hashtag so everyone’s posts can be seen in one place

Ready to start attracting more candidates through social channels?

Effective social media recruiting can take time. But as your online employer brand and presence develop, you’ll see improvements in both the quantity and quality of potential candidates.

Are you looking to hire but struggling to find the right talent? Or are you interviewing quality candidates but losing them along the hiring journey? Contact us today and one of our specialised talent specialists will work with you to strengthen your employer brand. In the meantime, why not explore more expert hiring tips from Robert Half:

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