Author: Buyer Advertising

Defining Yourself

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If you’re in the business of–well, business, and how you’re representing yourself to future employees is a large part of your preparations for overall engagement. How you represent yourselves to employees-to-be is very relevant to the success of your business. That’s because as you recruit talented people, your overall expertise and capabilities grow along with your employee pool. Your brands–your company and employer brands–don’t exist in a vacuum. There is always cross-contamination—for the better or worse. One example is Google—a fun, ultra-modern, Internet-savvy brand has since paved the way to an exceptional employee brand.

Even still, building an effective employee brand takes special attention. When it comes to your employer brand, take the time to get to know yourself. Conduct polls both inside your organization and outside to accurately gauge where you stand. From there, you can build a campaign that’s specific to hiring top talent—maximizing your advertising dollars spent. At Buyer Advertising, we recognize the critical importance of an employer brand, and in many cases, work specifically towards redefining that aspect of your company.

Signing off for now,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Jobs, Apps, and Fun (Oh My)

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Once upon a time, apps for mobile phones were code for fun–small games you could play to kill time while waiting for the bathroom. Short for application, these third-party developed software programs live on Droid, iPhones, and BlackBerry devices, tucked away inside pockets across the world. But it’s not all fun and games–applications today are providing real value. In particular, specialty programs are connecting job seekers with open positions.

Job hunting is an unemployed worker’s game. On-the-go types with current positions looking to further their careers may find themselves with less time to spend on the job hunt. Yet, they remain an important demographic for job recruiters. Mobile applications help HR staff link up with qualified candidates by reaching out through their phones–and on a job seeker’s own schedule.

Such search apps include CareerBuilder’s program and Job Compass, and are already providing value to seekers and recruiters alike. Functionality includes detailed job descriptions with searchable criteria, the ability to view vacancies on a map, and to forward details to a computer for further inspection. As the nation’s workforce migrates away from the desk and becomes increasingly mobile, consider mobile recruiting as an effective, long-term goal for your hiring strategy.

Until next time,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Turkey Day Hiring Strategies—Online Edition

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Congratulations—you’ve survived another holiday. As the season heats up, don’t fall in the habit of neglecting your hiring strategy. If you’ve taken a traditional approach to recruitment, it’s a great time to flesh out your online and social media plans. The best part: there are a lot of advantages attached to starting today.

The most important thing to remember is that an online hiring campaign isn’t strictly a game of numbers. You’ve furthering your employer brand. You’re increasing engagement. You’re disseminating information about your place of business. To evaluate effectiveness, you need to look at traditional online metrics including page views, landing page visits (if you’ve set up your system that way), and fan/follower counts. Actual conversions or hires remains a solid method to determine whether your campaign is working or not.

New, Web 2.0-savvy ways of tracking your hiring efforts include counting the frequency of re-tweets and searching out mentions of your campaign in other “new media” sources such as blogs and on personal posts. Using traditional and emerging metrics, evaluating your campaign makes a shift from quantitative to qualitative, but is still a very real and obtainable goal.

Until next time,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Higher Education and Social Engagement

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Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, LinkedIn–concepts that give way to thoughts about real-time interaction and a healthy dose of anxiety if you haven’t been keeping up with the trend. With an astronomical growth in popularity of Facebook and Twitter-—not to mention a user base who is spending more and more of their leisure time online—social media remains a premier way to tackle your recruitment initiatives. Recruitment trends in education have a distinct flavor. Read on and discover what strategies schools and universities are using to pull in top talent.

Feedback in real-time. Nothing is more discouraging to potential job applicants than submitting their letter of interest or resume and then waiting… and waiting… and waiting. Posting their interest as a Facebook entry or blog comment allows an administrator to acknowledge them as a person and give feedback.

Multi-pronged attack vectors. Facebook, Twitter, blogging: educational institutions have been using a comprehensive strategy to reach out to students and talent alike. As large educational institutions create spaces for sports and students activities, it’s a no-brainer for them to use separate Facebook and Twitter pages specially designed to advertise jobs opportunities.

A learning experience. Just as candidates can click through and explore the culture and information on an institution of a higher ed., so too can a school explore the personality of a person. The tables have turned, and some hiring decisions are being made without ever meeting a candidate in person.

Signing off for now,
Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Recruitment Challenges in Healthcare

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Be your operation a single treatment center or a healthcare system spanning several hospital locations, your challenges are unique. Not only do you have to appeal to a highly educated, specially-trained workforce, employers are already competing in a job market where professionals are highly sought-after. As a medical employer, here are strategies to keep in mind as you staff your halls with exceptional talent.

Consider demographics. Are you hiring young professionals? Established doctors? Seasoned vets? Different experience levels require you to target different age brackets—and in some cases, separate generations. Tailor your message to speak directly to the preferred age group that you’re looking to recruit and retain.

Who are you, really? Big or small, you have unique differentiators that make you stand out. Your employer brand may appeal to some, yet turn others away. Aim to honestly represent your company, and you’ll score employees who truly enjoy what you have to offer—leading to greater retention and a more pleasant work environment.

Concentrate on service areas. A hospital can be considered a library of skilled medical and healthcare professionals, all with separate talents and abilities. Hone in on your preferred professionals with distinct hiring campaigns—different yet tied together under your employer brand.

All said and done, be honest, different, clear, and unique—you’ll find that great people will follow in your wake.

Signing off for now,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Recruitment Pain Points (and Remedies)

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Employees. Every company needs ‘em. Whether yours is a bustling enterprise of hundreds or a smaller operation of 10 people, the quality of your hires will eventually reflect the quality of your organization. High-powered individuals make for a red-hot organization. As you build out your recruitment strategy, keep in mind these pitfalls and the best way to avoid them.

1. Small applicant sizes. You spend all day writing up a beautifully-worded job description, and the following week you receive only 4 resumes. Boo. Creating an attractive workplace starts at home. If you haven’t already, sit down and define the value you provide to employees in the form of an Employer Value Statement, or EVP. Using that as a tool, get the word out through print and online that you’re looking for the next great employee at a great place to work.

2. Falling behind on the times. New technology based around the Internet allows virtual interviews, electronic portfolios, pre-qualifiers even before potential hires arrive at the office. Technology and digital interview tactics allow you create a “short list” of candidates that reduce overhead and narrow down on quality candidates.

3. Not keeping what you’ve got. Employee satisfaction extends beyond wages and bonuses. The culture you create at the workplace and affects both retention and productivity for the years your employees call your office home. Work in the concept of flexibility. Find creative ways to reward (and not punish) hard work and keep your base engaged. Good luck!

Until next time,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Helping You Post Jobs to Facebook… Is Facebook.

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Facebook is huge, and it’s looking to get even bigger. As part of its joint agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor, the social media giant is looking to buff up its arsenal and service offerings by posting jobs online. The effort comes from a government-approved attempt to lower the nation’s 9.1% unemployment rate. One nice side effect (for Facebook): they’re increasing their offerings even further.
What does this mean for companies looking to recruit talented job seekers? Something to watch. Still in its formative stages, Facebook promises a “system where new job postings can be delivered virally through the Facebook site at no charge.”

It will be an interesting road ahead. This move puts Facebook in direction competition with sites such as Monster.com and LinkedIn.

Stay tuned for future developments. The infrastructure that the social network already has in place is a great vehicle for propagating hot jobs—and better yet, would do so at no cost.

Signing off for now,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

4 ‘DON’TS’ FOR TWEETS

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Investing in your social media strategy—for recruitment or marketing initiatives—is a sound plan. Not only can you get your message out to more people in record time, social media can do it cheaper, faster, and more effectively.

The trade-off? There are a lot of pitfalls to make as a company exploring Twitter, especially those who are taking a first stab at the big blue bird. Here are 5 no-no’s to consider as you prepare to tweet.

1. Honking your own horn constantly. Good news is great. Good news 100% of the time is bad. Aim for a mix of announcements, industry information, and peeks behind your office doors. Above all, provide a reason for people to subscribe to your feed. Which leads us to number 2…

2. Not being a resource. Even though your social media output is free, provide value to your customers. Let people know what’s happening in your business, your field, and how they can improve themselves or their operation.

3. Spamming up followers’ feeds. Nothing makes netizens click “unfollow” faster than 5 tweets in one hour. Keep content brief and information moderate—a post a day, at most, will do the trick.

4. Being dull. Be confident. Be whimsical (but still professional). Mix up your messaging and use clever headlines to hook interest.

Signing off for now,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Steve Jobs and the Timelessness of Innovation

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Last night, the nation began mourning the loss of Steve Jobs. His personality and brand represented more than just the genesis of a successful company (Apple Computer)—his vision and pursuit of new user experiences, as well as infusing life and charm into an all-too-often dry technology sector, changed history.

But if one were to distill his legacy to tactical moves, there’s a lot to unpack. Black turtlenecks instead of suits. Revolution instead of status quo. Calm, personal speeches instead of hackneyed, over-exuberant displays that similar companies had employed in the past (cough, cough, Microsoft). Above all else, Steve employed a willingness to ignore everyone else while following a rhythm all his own.

Innovation comes in many forms. For Steve, they were in the promotion of the user experience, and a new amalgamation of great music and geek tech. For you, they can be an exploration into new arenas, a marketing message unique to your organization that’s never been heard from before. Above all else, never stop innovating and amazing results will follow.

‘Til next time,

Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com

Weird-vertising

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Finding the balance between “edgy” and “on-point” can be a tricky tightrope to walk. You watch in wonder as the goofy commercials from Old Spice become viral hits on YouTube, and can only sit back and contemplate if a similar strategy would work for your company. But for every successful venture into the land of bizarre advertising, there are a hundred examples of spacey videos, confounding print ads, and even re-brands that have left company loyals confused and consumers scratching their heads.

As always in our industry, we need to think of the customer first. Old Spice is deodorant that goes under the armpit so you smell nice. Medical instruments and baby formulas have an entirely separate consumer base—weird shouldn’t be part of your vocabulary. In order to be different, make sure your customers are hip enough to “get it”. Even if you do decide to take a plunge in to the odd, make sure
you still convey your message. Advertising that doesn’t make a point is just… well, weird.

Above all, challenge the conventional with a fresh approach that doesn’t sacrifice your integrity, offend the masses, or lose track of your message. You’ll be surprised at the results.

Signing off for now,
Buyer Advertising
www.buyerads.com