Virtual workplace tours mark a new phase in the evolution of recruitment, attracting jobseekers who closely match a company’s unique culture
Video is stepping up to yet another blockbuster role: Virtual recruitment.
Riding the popularity of websites such as YouTube, some employers and recruitment websites have started offering video workplace “tours” to give prospective employees a fuller sense of companies they may be interested in joining.
For employers, this is a powerful new way to attract top talent aligned with the employment brand.
‘Frictionless’ recruiting
These virtual tours allow jobseekers to “visit” a company they feel has an especially appealing opening, and then look around and meet employees already working for the employer. They can get an idea right away if the employer might be a good fit.
Online recruiting sites such as Scottsdale, Ariz.-based CareerTours allow job candidates to do exactly that. CareerTours chief executive officer Aaron Bare calls it “frictionless recruiting” — the ability to remove the friction in recruiting and change the way recruiting happens.
It’s a phenomenon that is happening in Canada, too. Recruitment specialists are leading the drive to enliven job boards by augmenting text job postings with a more complete and interactive video experience. Some also produce customized video profiles for clients.
Posting guided virtual tours or day-in-the-life sequences on the web helps employers stand out by illustrating the company’s culture and career opportunities. From the jobseekers’ perspective, video “test drives” free them to explore new companies on their own terms. A job video can show and tell far more about a potential workplace environment than other kinds of communication.
Given that most talented employees are being aggressively recruited from all corners of the world, video can help clarify what it’s like to work in a particular organization before a candidate travels to an in-person meeting.
Employment branding
For employers vying to win the war for talent, the timing of this new recruitment tool couldn’t be better. Video is a strong adjunct to print and online recruitment campaigns fighting to address the talent crunch — in large part because video is also a great way to showcase an organization’s brand.
In the same way that marketers build product brands, forward-thinking companies are building employment brands, providing a competitive edge that distinguishes them as employers of choice.
Video’s mass reach
Another big plus for video is mass reach. Short recruitment advertisements with video are appearing in movie theatres and on television. This allows recruiters to reach a whole new audience — including passive jobseekers. Since this group makes up a very significant portion of the job candidate market, recruiters must find channels that reach them. A 30-second TV ad demonstrating the look and feel of working at a given employer is often all it takes to pique a passive candidate’s interest.
British Columbia’s Dollar Giant retail chain is a strong believer in video’s potential. For years, it struggled to convey the charisma of president Joe Calvano in recruitment print ads but never fully succeeded.
Now, with a customized video featuring Calvano, prospective employees can experience the passion he brings to his industry and workers. Dollar Giant finds running this video and e-mailing it to jobseekers bridges a gap it had been unable to fill with conventional classifieds.
Antonio da Luz is a recruitment strategist with Working.com. He can be reached at [email protected].
Tuning in jobseekers
Telling the organization’s story
Every organization has a story to tell. Virtual career tours allow them to tell those stories with far more impact. These virtual workplace visits also have a remarkable ability to bring a tighter focus to the ¬employee value proposition — showing precisely what’s in it for the jobseeker.
The most effective recruitment spots share some or all of these traits:
• a short and fresh message, rarely more than 30 seconds;
• internal and external testimonials to build trust;
• a working environment a candidate can look forward to enjoying;
• the use of a wide variety of channels, including corporate websites, TV, recruitment sites and e-mail; and
• an emphasis on the organization’s employment brand.
Source: Working.com
Riding the popularity of websites such as YouTube, some employers and recruitment websites have started offering video workplace “tours” to give prospective employees a fuller sense of companies they may be interested in joining.
For employers, this is a powerful new way to attract top talent aligned with the employment brand.
‘Frictionless’ recruiting
These virtual tours allow jobseekers to “visit” a company they feel has an especially appealing opening, and then look around and meet employees already working for the employer. They can get an idea right away if the employer might be a good fit.
Online recruiting sites such as Scottsdale, Ariz.-based CareerTours allow job candidates to do exactly that. CareerTours chief executive officer Aaron Bare calls it “frictionless recruiting” — the ability to remove the friction in recruiting and change the way recruiting happens.
It’s a phenomenon that is happening in Canada, too. Recruitment specialists are leading the drive to enliven job boards by augmenting text job postings with a more complete and interactive video experience. Some also produce customized video profiles for clients.
Posting guided virtual tours or day-in-the-life sequences on the web helps employers stand out by illustrating the company’s culture and career opportunities. From the jobseekers’ perspective, video “test drives” free them to explore new companies on their own terms. A job video can show and tell far more about a potential workplace environment than other kinds of communication.
Given that most talented employees are being aggressively recruited from all corners of the world, video can help clarify what it’s like to work in a particular organization before a candidate travels to an in-person meeting.
Employment branding
For employers vying to win the war for talent, the timing of this new recruitment tool couldn’t be better. Video is a strong adjunct to print and online recruitment campaigns fighting to address the talent crunch — in large part because video is also a great way to showcase an organization’s brand.
In the same way that marketers build product brands, forward-thinking companies are building employment brands, providing a competitive edge that distinguishes them as employers of choice.
Video’s mass reach
Another big plus for video is mass reach. Short recruitment advertisements with video are appearing in movie theatres and on television. This allows recruiters to reach a whole new audience — including passive jobseekers. Since this group makes up a very significant portion of the job candidate market, recruiters must find channels that reach them. A 30-second TV ad demonstrating the look and feel of working at a given employer is often all it takes to pique a passive candidate’s interest.
British Columbia’s Dollar Giant retail chain is a strong believer in video’s potential. For years, it struggled to convey the charisma of president Joe Calvano in recruitment print ads but never fully succeeded.
Now, with a customized video featuring Calvano, prospective employees can experience the passion he brings to his industry and workers. Dollar Giant finds running this video and e-mailing it to jobseekers bridges a gap it had been unable to fill with conventional classifieds.
Antonio da Luz is a recruitment strategist with Working.com. He can be reached at [email protected].
Tuning in jobseekers
Telling the organization’s story
Every organization has a story to tell. Virtual career tours allow them to tell those stories with far more impact. These virtual workplace visits also have a remarkable ability to bring a tighter focus to the ¬employee value proposition — showing precisely what’s in it for the jobseeker.
The most effective recruitment spots share some or all of these traits:
• a short and fresh message, rarely more than 30 seconds;
• internal and external testimonials to build trust;
• a working environment a candidate can look forward to enjoying;
• the use of a wide variety of channels, including corporate websites, TV, recruitment sites and e-mail; and
• an emphasis on the organization’s employment brand.
Source: Working.com
