I have a pet peeve about superhero movies and comics with “versus” in the middle. Superman Vs Batman. First they fight…then they become best friends! And fight crime together! But I get impatient. Can’t we skip the contrived drama and just get to the part where they actually being productive and making a difference?
In researching my previous posts on using social media for job boards, I came across the “Job Boards vs Social Media” theme more than once. It’s disappointing, because for all the good each does on its own, they’re more powerful when they’re working together.
The recruiting industry has collectively been through the “job boards are dead” rhetoric (which continues to be untrue), as well as the “social media recruiting = answers to all your problems” narrative.
Social media is great, and it can help job boards and recruiters reach candidates and better serve their customers. Is it the answer to every problem? Er, no. Is social media vs job boards really an either/or question? Nope. It’s a false dichotomy, and a myth you should be dispelling for your customers in your content and marketing.
A job board that uses social media for attracting and engaging candidates, for job distribution, for social sharing, etc. makes a greater impact than a job board that doesn’t. For a busy recruiter or hiring manager, posting their openings to a job board that takes advantage of social media saves them time and effort put into promoting that job post.
It’s an advantage you can sell – on your landing page for employers, in your email marketing, or on sales calls. Whatever method you use to communicate it, make sure your customers know how they benefit from your job board’s use of social media.
The other element in this social media-job board equation is logistical. Regardless of how you use social media to recruit, at a certain point you will need to exchange information that won’t fit into 140 characters or isn’t appropriate to share on a public channel.
You’ll want to capture more detailed candidate information beyond a Facebook profile, such as email address, phone number, work history, references, etc. And at a certain point, those great candidates are going to want a job description. This exchange can happen on a job board, through an ATS, or by swapping links and sending emails.
But as we know, hiring managers and recruiters are busy people. Using a job board that can meet their needs for both applicant tracking and recruitment is a great ROI for them. And that’s how you can pitch to them if you take advantage of the tools and marketing strategies available to you.
Social media is not your competition. It’s your friend. So skip the fight and get to work making social media work for you.
Read more posts on how job boards can use social media to their advantage: