With social distancing and stay-at-home orders in place due to COVID-19, consumer media consumption and candidate behavior has changed. The way job seekers are using and engaging with media is drastically different now than it was just a few months ago.
Here are the key changes we’ve seen in candidate media behavior:
- General consumer media behavior, media consumption and media usage trends apply to recruitment now more than ever because virtually all people (consumers) are candidates, whether actively seeking new opportunities or not, due to high unemployment rates. So, it’s important to be aware of these consumer media trends and how candidate behavior is impacted.
- Not surprisingly, in-home media consumption is up (i.e. social media, TV/video streaming, music streaming and radio, etc.) while out-of-home media consumption is down (i.e. views of billboards, outdoor signage, in-store signage, etc.).
- Increased digital media usage combined with lower marketing/advertising spend generally and across the board, means there’s been a shift in media supply versus media demand. There’s an opportunity to potentially advertise on particular channels at lower-than-typical costs and with higher market share, better ad positioning, and less market competition.
With all of these changes in mind, now is the time to advertise your hiring needs! It will likely be more cost-effective at a higher ROI than you may expect or that you may have previously seen.
So, it’s more important than ever for your recruitment advertising to reach candidates where they are, and now’s the time to try out some new advertising ideas while costs are low and opportunity is high.
Here are some recruitment marketing and media ideas for these unprecedented times:
- Video Advertising (TV Commercials, Ads on Streaming Services like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Hulu, YouTube Ads, etc.)
- Social Media Advertising (LinkedIn Ads, Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, Twitter Ads, etc.)
- Display Ads (on news websites, on help-focused websites on topics like homeschooling, home activities, etc.)
- Email Advertising (Gmail Ads, etc.)
- Email Marketing (nurturing talent networks, drip campaigns and engagement campaigns with past or current applicants, etc.)
- SMS Text Message Communications
- Radio Advertising (Ads on Local Radio Stations, Ads on Audio Streaming Devices like Amazon Alexa / Google Home / etc., Ads on Audio Streaming Services like Spotify / Pandora / iHeartRadio, etc.)
- Podcast Advertising
- Local Newspaper Advertising (Print & Digital)
- Street-level Out-of-Home Advertising (Street Signage targeting local walkers, bike riders, etc.)
- Drive-in Movie Advertising
If you’d like to try out any of these recruitment marketing and media strategies for your hiring initiatives, let us know! We’re just an email away.
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