How to Use Creative Strategies to Get Discovered By Candidates

Advice abounds for job seekers hoping to stand out. But what about those who are doing the hiring? In an effort to snatch up the best talent, hiring managers are in a unique position to help their companies get noticed. Here are a few ideas to help you get creative in order to get discovered

1. Use What You Have

Sometimes the most out-of-the-box thinking comes from within the box itself. Research has shown that referrals from current employees can actually result in a much higher hiring rate than when managers look elsewhere. According to a 2015 study by Glassdoor, employee referrals lead to an increase in successful job matches by anywhere between 2.6 and 6.6 percent. But despite the existing data, only about 10 percent of hires are done this way. So take a moment to look at (and appreciate!) what you have right now, and use those employees to help spread a more concentrated net.

2. Take the Lead

Events geared toward job seekers can be great places to find local candidates, but in this increasingly competitive hiring market, being one of many companies at a job fair or recruitment gathering leaves you vulnerable to wallpaper syndrome…that is, blending in like some. Now is the time to create your own hiring events. Establish a semi-casual meet-and-greet for candidates, and use that social time to get a feel for their professional skills and their ability to fit in with the larger corporate environment. This not only grabs the attention of immediate would-be hires, but establishes your company’s name within the larger community—a powerful tool to have at your disposal when local talent is looking for a job in the future.

If such an “open house” type of event would attract too large of a crowd in your area, consider hosting a gathering more in line with a group interview. That is, make the event itself the step that falls between resume submissions and one-on-one interviews. This is a great way to whittle down the candidate pool without having to hold a plethora of time-consuming and costly individual interviews.

3. The Internet is Your Friend

The internet itself is nothing new when it comes to finding the perfect hire for your company. But gone are the days of old-fashioned job posts that are available to anyone with a web connection. Try testing the waters out by utilizing everything from YouTube videos to podcasts to ads geared toward social group sites like Meetup.com. There are also plenty of apps out there geared toward making talent easier to find, such as recruiting news feeds. In other words, go beyond basic job sites to find what your ideal potential candidates are involved in—then use that information to engage them from a shared-interest angle.

4. Consider Opening Up…

…your job description, that is. More and more companies are realizing it’s the people in their workplace who matter more than the skills those people have when starting their first day on the job. After all, skills can be taught, but the unique personal qualities that make someone an ideal candidate for your specific company cannot. Upworthy made headlines when they posted an “open-ended job” that contained no title or specific job requirements. This is certainly one way to reach a whole new audience when looking to hire.

No matter how you go about finding potential recruits, the ultimate goal for any hiring manager should be creating a strong team that truly embraces company philosophy. With a little effort and imagination, that goal is within your reach!