In a crucial recovery period for the U.S. economy, many recruiters are finding hiring is time-intensive but easy. Full time, minimum wage jobs have hundreds of applicants in many markets. But as a driver recruiter, you probably know things aren’t so easy in the trucking industry.
Though many outsiders may not realize it, the truck drivers that you are trying to recruit are skilled workers. There are qualifications and prerequisites that have to be met by law. It’s not a low skill position that anybody off the street can come in and apply for. And this pool of drivers is small.
Building a great fleet starts with hiring great drivers. For you, using social media is a way to connect directly with high-caliber drivers. With the amazing growth of social media, you have unprecedented access to drivers. You no longer have to rely solely on drivers stumbling upon your job ads.
Social media now makes it possible for you to seek out and contact drivers directly.
Here are a few key pointers to remember when getting your social recruiting started.
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Remember Your Presence
It’s easy to judge profiles of drivers on social media, but remember that they are researching you and forming their own judgements too. Social media is a two-way street. That means you have to present your fleet in the best light possible. Your fleet needs to be seen as providing the best opportunities for drivers and a respectful corporate culture. Your social media profiles should be active, filled in, and branded.
You also need to consider your employees social media presence. Candidates will try to learn the identity of interviewers ahead of time, and they will look for others who hold similar positions. A well qualified, high caliber driver could turn down a position because of what they find in social media. Don’t be afraid to ask or institute a policy regarding social media and requiring profiles be kept clean and respectful regarding your fleet.
Social recruiting is about getting drivers engaged and presenting your fleet in the best possible light.
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Get Creative
When you begin your social recruiting efforts, you are entering a space where both active and passive job seekers are already receiving a massive amount of information daily. To make sure that drivers are seeing your jobs, your message needs to stand out. You need to make people take note. Presenting your job openings in a creative way not only makes drivers pay attention, but it allows you to show your personality, which helps drivers get a feel for your fleet.
Even straightforward job descriptions can become viral on social media if they are written in a way that sparks discussion. But if you have a bigger budget, try making a video. Your videos can present material in a more engaging way. As new generations of drivers begin looking for jobs, you really can’t assume that these younger candidates will read a full page of text. But they will watch a video.
Creative social recruiting helps you show your personality and differentiates you from hundreds of other fleets.
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Drive Applications
Social recruiting, really all recruiting, is only useful if drivers are applying to open positions in your fleet. For many recruiters, it is adequate to tweet, post, and share links to a careers page on a corporate website where drivers can directly apply. However, there are other ways to drive applications.
Driving applicants to your landing pages is one good option. Landing pages allow you to do things a little differently than your corporate website. First, they are specific, unlike your corporate website which has to be general enough for all visitors. Second, they don’t give drivers an opportunity to get distracted and move to other pages. Finally, you can track things seperately, and get a better idea of how many drivers are being directed from social media and converting.
You can also advertise job opportunities directly through social media. In Facebook, for instance, you can embed a form into your brand page and have drivers apply directly from Facebook. Through LinkedIn you can advertise your job postings and drivers can apply directly with their profiles. In both instances, you don’t have to redirect drivers and run the risk of losing them.
Ultimately, the goal of your recruiting is to drive applications and there are a number of ways that you can accomplish that.
You need to have the best fleet on the road. And to have the best fleet, you need to be employing the best drivers in your trucks. Part of the answer is social recruiting. By taking the time to build strong social media networks you can connect directly with the drivers who will make your fleet the best.
