Searching for candidates on LinkedIn: a guide to start social recruiting quickly and effectively.
Searching for candidates on LinkedIn: some useful data
According to some statistics, LinkedIn has over 690 million active users globally, of which almost half use it on a monthly basis.In 2020 LinkedIn had a turnover of over 8 billion US dollars (source Statista). Furthermore, according to Statista, almost 80% of users worldwide are under the age of 34.With this data it is easy to imagine that not only those looking for work may want to open an account on LinkedIn but also companies, which can have a showcase for their brand and interact with a very rich pool of potential talents.
LinkedIn offers the possibility to examine account profiles as if they were CVs, evaluating the experiences and skills, network of contacts and publications of candidates. The latter can make themselves known directly through their own contents.A conscious and strategic use of LinkedIn allows the company to make its products and services known and to promote its Employee Value Proposition, building a high-profile network and establishing valid relationships with potential candidates and future employees.We have already talked about the effectiveness of Social Recruiting as a tool for HR. We will now take a closer look at how to search for candidates on LinkedIn.
Searching for candidates on LinkedIn: steps to follow
Searching for candidates through LinkedIn is not limited to posting job offers, but includes a series of actions to identify suitable talent and candidates.There are several tools available to recruiters to search for candidates on LinkedIn:
- Job Posting and Job Slot publication
The first way to use LinkedIn to search for candidates is undoubtedly to publish Job Posting through LinkedIn Job Slots.
- The Career Page
A company that wants to present itself in a complete and transparent way, communicating its values and an attractive self-image for a potential candidate, must have a well-structured and coherent Career Page. This is the first step to gain visibility and leave a positive impression.The LinkedIn Career Page is not just a wall to publish Job Posting. The shared contents must be of quality and the result of a precise Employer Branding strategy, with the aim of reaching the target with a positive impact.The contents can be addressed both to candidates and to other companies, in a flexible way. There are sections dedicated to corporate life and "what we do" where you can share interesting insights on working in the company, the organization of work and the people who are part of the network of employees and collaborators.
- Corporate events
LinkedIn allows users to create and promote business events. Company Page administrators can create events and advertise them, to gain greater visibility in the community.The event can be promoted through dedicated posts and interactive videos, you can invite your contacts with a multiple or personalized sending (by simply including the URL link of the event).
- Creating quality content
LinkedIn allows you to create and publish articles on sectoral issues, to share moments of corporate life or to promote your activities in terms of wellbeing and Corporate Social Responsibility.Corporate pages with a lot of subscribers also have the ability to post live video. Recently, LinkedIn introduced the ability to post Temporary Stories, just like Instagram. These are communication methods suitable for the younger candidate groups such as Millennials and Gen Z.
- Premium functionality
LinkedIn also offers several paid tools to optimize your recruiting efforts. LinkedIn Recruiting and Recruitment Lite allow you to search for people using filters to improve results. Among the features there are also the monthly sending of emails to present the published Job Postings and tools that automatically publish new open positions in the social profiles of employees and collaborators (Work with Us Ads), aiming at the network of their contacts.
The potential offered by LinkedIn to search for candidates is different, but it is clear that they must all be part of an Employer Branding strategy aligned with the company's mission and vision. Corporate reputation, both online and offline among acquaintances, is the key to attracting valuable talent and resources.
