Instagram Recruiting â€“ Friend or Foe?

I ran across this interesting article the other day and thought itâ€™d make a great topic for discussion on our blog. Instagram is the latest platform to rock the Social Media world and with 150 million plus active users, itâ€™s no wonder that itâ€™s getting all kinds of attention.

I know what most of you are thinking â€“ how can an App that centers around pictures possibly be useful in the recruiting space? Not to mention the stigma surrounding Social Media for HR since it has the potential to create biases. Here are a few things to think about relative to Instagram Recruiting:

Create a Cohesive Social Media Approach

If youâ€™re already using Facebook and Twitter to recruit or to enhance your employer brand, then adding Instagram to your company profile is a no-brainer since social media sites are all inter-woven. Itâ€™s really easy to post something to one and then upload it to the others as well. The key is to garner as much exposure as possible. Someone who may be a great fit for your position, may have Instagram and not Facebook or vice versa.

Social Media Makes Employee Referrals Easy

Chances are, at least one of your top employees will either have Instagram or be willing to spread the word about your company through their social network. Itâ€™s really a win/win â€“ the more people that promote your companyâ€™s Instagram, the more people that will follow it helping to spread the word about both your company brand and your employer brand. Some companiesâ€™ best hires come from employee referrals.

Engage Current Customers/Employees

Instagram is a great way to keep employees and customers in the loop in for whatâ€™s going on in the company. It will help them feel more involved and it also helps engage future employees because they have the opportunity to learn more about your company through these social media outlets. This gives you an advantage over other employers because if job seekers see current employees participating in and invested in your organizationâ€™s online presence, it will likely make them want to work for you that much more.

Here at ApplicantPro, my focus is really about creating the most optimized hirers from my clients and one of the best ways to accomplish this is by keeping an open mind and thinking outside of the proverbial recruiting box now and again. Especially when those trends have the potential to reach 150 million plus people than you wouldnâ€™t have otherwise been exposed to.