Recruiting Firms Need Content Marketing: Here’s How to Do It Right

These days, talent acquisition is different and far more competitive than it was even five years ago. Sifting through piles of paper has become a thing of the past. Today, résumés, applications, and cover letters have gone digital, and keywords are king. Today’s recruiting candidates, even those in mid-career, are tech savvy, social, and mobile — and so are their corporate employers. So you can guess what comes next: To reach both quality candidates and top corporate clients, recruiting firms also have to be tech savvy, social, and mobile. 

But with everyone competing online, how can you use tech to cut through the noise and reach well-qualified candidates and corporate clients? The answer is: through well-executed content marketing. You’ve probably read enough about content marketing to recite definitions in your sleep. But the content marketing model that works for fashion and healthcare isn’t exactly what you need. Here’s some of our best recruitment-specific advice. 

Make your blog easy to find 

Far too many brands make their blogs hard to find, then wonder why they’re not getting a return on all of that time and money. When you bury your blog so deeply within your site that no one will find it unless they’re specifically looking for it, don’t be surprised if no one reads it. If you’re going to have a blog, give it its own link from your home page so it’ll be easy to find. And because more people now access the internet from mobile devices than from desktops, make sure your content is easy to read on any device. 

Even more important, make your blog posts "findable” by weaving in search engine optimized (SEO) keywords. But don’t forget to create content for people, not robots! No one wants to read a post stuffed full of keywords. Be sure to write about recruiting topics and issues people care about, and make the posts engaging and interesting for real people to read. 

Blog about what matters

If people want to be entertained, they’re going to head for the movies. So if you want your target audience to take the time to read your blog posts, you’ll need to make them useful and relevant as well. For candidates, good topics could include things like how to ace a phone interview, how to talk about a gap in employment, and how to answer tricky interview questions. For employers, topics could include things like the best screening methods, which interview questions provide the most valuable insight, and how to stay out of legal trouble.

Above all, remember to keep you blog updated with a steady stream of fresh, well-crafted content to build your reputation as a source of valuable recruiting information and to entice your readers to keep coming back for more.

Social media: Go where your audience is

The female lead in “King Creole” tells Elvis Presley, “Maybe we’ll meet some place by accident.” Elvis responds, “Well, tell me where that accident will take place, and I’ll make sure I’m there.” 

The King knew what smart content marketers understand intuitively: Nobody is going to read your blog content by accident — you have to put it where people are most likely to stumble across it. And where might that be? Professional networking sites. 

According to LinkedIn, almost half of U.S. companies list social professional networks as their best source of quality hires. Capitalize on this by cementing your brand as a recruiter of choice. How? By posting frequent updates that include links to your blog posts and other exciting content, including well-scripted podcasts and webinars.

Fatten up your content marketing with e-books and white papers

Thin is out, and fat is in, at least when it comes to content marketing. E-books and white papers are two highly effective, meaty content marketing tools. In particular, e-books that address relevant topics are an excellent way to attract prospects, offering insight into your company’s culture and sharing your staffing and recruiting expertise. White papers and e-books are one of the best way to generate leads. Prospects will happily offer their contact information in exchange for one of these useful and attractive digital documents. Because white papers and e-books are often overlooked if they’re boring, present your data in an efficient and engaging way. Prose Media can help you with that.

Although these content marketing types don’t replace blog posts — which are necessary to boost search engine traffic and speak less formally to your target audience — white papers and e-books can provide topics for your posts. To cross promote, insert a link to the full version of the white paper or e-book at the end of each blog post.

Speak the right language

When it comes to social media, the right language means keywords and hashtags. If you Tweet a link to a blog post aimed at potential candidates, you’ll get the best response by using the same hashtags they use when searching for information. There are dozens of online tools to help you find the right hashtags to reach your audience. The same is true for keywords. If you’re not tagging your content with the right language, you can have outstanding content in the right place at the right time — and it still gets lost in the shuffle.

When it comes to recruiting quality candidates, the economic downturn of 2008 is so far in the past you can’t even see it in the rearview mirror anymore. Competition is tough. In fact, in one survey, more than 95 percent of respondents said that they expect competition for top talent to increase even more during the coming year. The recruiting firms that win will be the ones that show up on candidates’ radar—and show up for the right reasons. That means getting serious about content marketing.

How does your content marketing measure up? We here at Prose Media are experts in crafting original, creative, and compelling content. We’re here when you need us. Sign up today for free, no-obligation access to our platform. We look forward to seeing what you have in mind.