Recruiting new talent can make or break your start-up business. Often though, recruiting managers and firms are too expensive for companies just starting out. Social media however, when used effectively, can introduce a company to a larger applicant pool, enable pre-screening and offer more direct communication.
Scott Gerber, founder of the Young Entrepreneur Council and Sizzle It!, a sizzle reel production company based in New York City, spoke to eight young entrepreneurs for Mashable about how to use social media to recruit.
Here are some of their tips:
1. Become the expert.
“Use social media to help build a strong brand and then let the top talent come to you.”
— Colin Wright, Exile Lifestyle
2. Use hashtags in your company’s tweets.
“When promoting any new openings at your start-up, tweet out with special hashtags for #hiring, #startupjobs and whatever industry or trade you’re hiring from to get the attention of the right candidates.”
— Danny Wong, Blank Label Group, Inc.
3. Use Twitter to scout.
“Scout for start-up talent using Twitter search with hashtags and terms relevant to your industry. Compile a list of potential candidates and evaluate their Twitter activity by looking at their number of followers as well as the quality of their tweets.”
— Andrew Saladino, RTA Kitchen Cabinets
4. Pick the right team.
“When you’re still early in the start-up process, you have to make sure that you’ve got the right team. That means knowing as much as possible before even suggesting that you’re looking.”
— Thursday Bram, Hyper Modern Consulting
5. Host a contest.
“Choose an important trait you’re looking for and host a contest via social media. Get creative with submissions and guidelines. Share the contest with influencers and hubs and invite them to send talent your way.”
— Lisa Nicole Bell, Inspired Life Media Group
6. Ask your followers.
“Referrals are the lifeblood of many a business. It works the same when it comes to recruitment via social media. Ask your Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn contacts for solid leads for the new position in your company.”
— Erin Blaskie, BSETC
7. Engage in many channels.
“Besides LinkedIn being amazing for recruiting start-up talent, I’d say monitoring job trends on Twitter and keeping your job board updated is also a great pull strategy.”
— Ryan Holmes, HootSuite
8. Make a video.
“You have to get people to believe in your story. Especially when you’re in start-up mode. So record a short video where you describe your vision, progress and motivations. Help prospective talent connect with your deeper story.”
— Michael Margolis, Get Storied
Read more on Mashable.
