Attracting the right candidates to fill positions is challenging for every business. While many factors influence talent acquisition, a company's LinkedIn presence is often overlooked. How a company and its employees come across on LinkedIn provides important insights to job seekers and influences their decisions to apply or not to apply.
People are not just looking for a good job, they’re looking for a company that resonates with their interests and values. In fact, 91% of job seekers will research an employer’s brand before applying. They want a glimpse into the people and culture to see if there’s a potential match.
Point Road Group has seen countless companies fail to attract top talent because they don’t pay enough attention to how they come across on LinkedIn. We help companies identify their areas of weakness so potential job applicants have more positive brand experiences.
These are 5 of the most common mistakes we’ve seen and how to correct them to attract quality candidates to your company.
First, ask yourself - "What is your company truly about?" Many companies only include a dry summary paragraph or two which makes it hard to tell what the company does. Page visitors struggle to tell who the company serves and what makes them unique. If this isn’t communicated, how can you expect job candidates to identify your company as a place they’d like to work?
The "About" section of your LinkedIn company page should clearly and concisely answer who you are, what problems you solve, how you solve them and who your customers are. It should also give a sense of your company’s mission and values, workplace culture and why people like working there.
Posts about products/services and customer success are important but don’t forget to spotlight departments and employees who are the real “boots on the ground,” too. In addition, posts should show through examples that the company is a great employer that values its people. Celebrate accomplishments, milestones and a variety of people on your team (not just the highly visible all-stars). Showcase staff development and other attractive initiatives.
In a competitive hiring market, this can be a real differentiator that draws people in to want to work at your company.
LinkedIn profiles of company leaders can change how people feel about your company – and this can influence recruitment. Candidates look at profiles of leaders, department heads and other staff to get a good sense of who they’ll be working with and for, if hired. Ideally, each profile should be complete, current and informative. If they’re outdated, overly self-promotional or sparsely filled, discerning talent may get the wrong idea about your company and lose interest.
Every employee is a brand ambassador. Certain people, like the executive team and leaders in sales, marketing and HR, must be visible ones. If they don't wear their brand with pride on LinkedIn -- meaning, at minimum, link to the company logo under their Experience section and use a branded banner image -- they miss an important opportunity to send a positive message. If people are proud to work at the company, they should show it. Plus, highly visible employees have the responsibility to model this behavior for their teams.
Being positive is infectious -- and attractive to potential talent!
When candidates look at Company post activity to get a better sense of the company culture, they should see some interaction from employees. Little-to-none suggests that employees are not engaged -- and that’s a red flag. For instance, if a company posts a photo recapping a company charity event, but very few employees like or comment on it, candidates may wonder why. Reactions and comments from employees enhance the authenticity and credibility of Company posts.
Additionally, when employees engage with company posts, they amplify visibility and reach beyond company followers to their personal networks. Wondering how much more traction a “We’re Hiring!” post could gain? According to LinkedIn, engaged employees influence 7X more job views and 4X more applications. Employee engagement reaches more potential talent than company posting alone.
If the right candidates aren’t coming to you or staying in your recruitment pipeline, look closely at your LinkedIn presence. Review what message you’re sending to potential talent. They need information that goes beyond the surface to drive interest and connection. Are you taking the right steps to make this happen on your company page? What about on your career page and in your job posts? Don't forget to review employee profiles, as well. According to LinkedIn, candidates are almost twice as likely to apply for a job when they’re familiar with the company. So make your company easy to get familiar with!
Contact Point Road Group and we’ll help you develop a consistent, positive brand experience on LinkedIn, so you always attract quality job candidates.
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