Online Recruiting Resources Explained

Online recruiting has exploded and now represents the primary avenue that most companies are using to attract new employees. The internet offers the variety and cost savings that every company needs to consider.

You have everything from the very large, multinational sites (Monster, Careerbuilder, etc) to thousands of local and niche job sites. The choices are truly staggering.

That is both the good and bad news.

With so many choices, what is the best path to quickly and cost-effectively attract top candidates? While I could certainly write a book on the subject, in this article you will be presented with set-by-step process to get started.

Five Step Strategy To Jumpstart Your Online Recruiting

Research

The first step is to research both your position and the available places to post your job online.

Start with your job. It is critical to clearly understand what you are looking for in a new employee. What does the person need to accomplish to be labeled successful? What must the person know? What skills does the person need to meet your performance expectations? And, how does the person need to behave to be successful on your job?

The answer to these questions allow you to build a template of the successful person. This template leads to some additional questions. Where is the person working now? Where does the person live? What does the person do for fun? What does the person read? How does the person stay current?

The answers to all of these questions help you to "WORK BACKWARDS". Your online recruiting will be much more effective when you reach the person where they already are. Instead of trying to attract candidates to you, you want to spend your efforts in the places the candidate is already looking.

Armed with the answers to all these questions, you can start to identify the best places to post your online ad. There are literally thousands of job boards where you could place your ad. You want your ad posted where your target candidates are most likely to see it.

The best way to find local or niche job posting sites is to pretend you are looking for a job. Go online and act as if you are trying to find a job identical to one you want to post. Use multiple search engines and see what results you find.

This simple research technique often identifies the best places to post your job. Try it now. If you were in Seattle and had an opening for an HR professional you might search: hr job seattle

Strategy

The next step is putting together your strategy. This can be as simple as choosing which job board to post your ad. But you should also think about budgeting, timing and resource utilization.

Start by putting together a calendar that lists each site and the date you will post your ad. Have a place to record the cost if the site requires a fee. Have a place to record your results. Also, it is critical to determine the logistics of responding to the submissions. (This is critical to your company reputation)

Finally, who is going to manage the project? Make certain to assign responsibility.

Write Your Ad

All good ads have three components: Headline, Body, Call to Action. Your online ad needs to have all three if you are going to be successful.

Your headline has to be attention-grabbing and enticing. You just can't get away with the old boring "Project Manager". The purpose of your headline is to grab their attention and get them to read the rest of the ad.

The body copy must be written about the candidate! Don't talk about you or your company. Instead make the ad about them. Instead of, "We have been in business for 25 years ..." try "Imagine working for a stable company with 25 years of positive results..." The difference is staggering.

Write each line of your ad with "What's in it for them" at the front of your mind.

The final piece of your ad is the call to action. Before you write your ad you need to decide what is your most desired response. Do you want the person to call? Do you want them to send a resume? Do you want them to visit your website?

Make your most desired response crystal clear to every who reads the ad.

Track Results

There is a bit of trial and error to online recruiting. Make certain you track the results from every ad you place. This lets you know which ads are working and which sites are delivering the best results.

Adjust as Necessary

The final step to your online recruiting efforts is to adjust as necessary. Test new sites. Test new ads. You can try winning ads on different sites. And you can new ads on sites that you know draw well.

By following these five steps you can optimize your online recruiting efforts.

For a list of sites where you can post your ads try http://www.recruitersnetwork/com.careersites/

Social Networking and Online Recruiting

Social networking, including sites like facebook, myspace, twitter, etc., is beginning to transform candidate recruiting. It is opening new doors for employers and job seekers to connect in ways not possible before.

Social networking sites will continue to evolve and appeal to more and more targeted audiences. Pay attention and take advantage of the trends in social networking. Specifically, keep track of the tools that help you identify and attract candidates.

In conclusion, online recruiting is here to stay. It is not a fad. The internet has created an environment where identifying and attracting candidates online is faster and more cost effective.

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