Using Social Media to Hire Employees
DIY Sprocket Solutions
Recently, I heard a news story relaying how McDonald’s plans to fill 250,000 job openings in the US over the next few months. Good news, but what really caught my attention was the fact that the fast food chain is hoping to fill these jobs with Snapchat’s help. McDonald’s is using Snapchat to hire millenials.
Using social media platforms like Snapchat for something like this opens up a myriad of possibilities for businesses. You have to consider the audience and user demographic across each individual social media platform before you use it for hiring needs, but if the user demographic lines up with what you’re looking for –you may just find the perfect employees for you. McDonald’s, for instance, hires mostly employees between the ages of 16 and 24 years old. Conveniently, half of Snapchat's users fall into that same age range.
So, how does it work? McDonald’s has put out a series of Snaps intended to get people to apply. Applicants can then choose to send in a “Snaplication” with the “Snaplication” filter.
From Engadget:
McD's first launched the Snaplication filter, which shows you wearing a McDonald's uniform, in Australia back in April. You'll have to a record a 10-second video of yourself with the filter on and send it to the company. Once your video has been reviewed, McD's will send you a link to the application page also within the app, so you can formally apply for a job.
How can this translate to other social media platforms? It’s all about who is using what platform. Take a look at the age demographic of each social media platform your business is marketing on. Who are you looking to hire? Are you interested in millenial’s or high schoolers and college students searching for their first job? Do you want more experienced employees? Are you looking for professional know how? This will help you to determine which sites you might want to explore posting on. If you are looking for professionals, consider LinkedIn or Facebook with properly targeted ads. If you are looking for millenials, try Snapchat or Instagram.
Consider the application process and consider the type of applicants you are searching for. For applicants themselves, remember that social media is all seeing. If we are starting to merge business (applying for jobs) and personal (your social media profiles), be conscious of what potential employers can and can’t see.
This does open up a whole door for social media marketers. Not only can you use social media to promote your business and brand, but you can also use it to help your brand grow with a group of well fitting employees.
What do you think of hiring employees on social media? What are the positives and negatives? As a potential employee, would you consider applying to a job on social media? What are your thoughts? Comment below!
Breanne Bannon
Breanne is a Content Writer, Social Media Marketeer, and Sales Associate for Sprocket Websites.
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