How can employers show their organizational culture prior to hiring? One way is through creating a recruitment video. A recruitment video is – a short film, which captures the look, feel, and authenticity of the company to demonstrate to potential candidates what it would be like to work for you.
In this article, we’re going to give you a few tips on making a recruitment video, as well as tell you how to promote it.
Why should you include a recruitment video in your hiring process?
If you’re wondering why you should include a recruitment video in your hiring process, then here are a few reasons:
To reduce turnover
High employee turnover can cost businesses a fortune. According to Gallup, firms in the US lose $1 trillion annually due to a voluntary employee exodus. One of the reasons why that happens is a lack of culture fit. In fact, 46% of candidates say that culture is a very important factor influencing their decision about which organization to work for. Using a recruitment video is a great way to give your candidates a glimpse of your culture, which should help them decide whether they’d like to work for you or not.
To attract more applicants
The video is no longer reserved for marketing, it actually became the Holy Grail of HR, as it positively impacts hiring. Job postings with videos have an application rate of 34% higher than those without one.
Source: TalentLyft
To reach a wider audience
Traditional recruitment methods are no longer sufficient to attract the best candidates. Using recruitment videos is a great way to remain competitive and to gain wider exposure. In fact, 72% of people say they prefer video over written text.
To improve your employer branding
A picture is worth a thousand words, and since organizational culture is like a living organism, you’ll never be able to show your company’s personality through words as well as through visuals.
To gain a mobile edge
에 따르면 유리문, 58% of people today are looking for jobs on their phones, with 35.3% of software developers searching for new job opportunities using their mobiles.
What’s a better way to capture their attention on the move than with a good recruitment video?
Source: 유리문
A few recruitment video ideas for inspiration
If you need a bit of inspiration before you start creating your own recruitment video, then here are five videos that deserve recognition.
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Enova
Enova’s recruitment video features employees who are genuinely pleased with their jobs, which is great as it makes it very authentic. They focus on what makes the company unique i.e good career progression opportunities (an aspect frequently valued by candidates), workplace diversity, and teamwork.
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Appian
Appian recruitment video is inspired by Vogue’s 73 Questions video series. It features Business Development Representatives who answer a few personal questions like what did they just have for lunch, what their favorite taco is, and how the rest of their day looks like. It shows what kind of people work at the company, and what their day-to-day jobs look like – it has a very casual vibe, which might be a good reflection of their work culture.
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Dropbox
Dropbox’s recruitment video is extremely entertaining. It features puppets instead of people which makes it very memorable. They talk about why it’s great working for Dropbox with everyone mentioning the people as the company’s greatest asset – which speaks highly of their organizational culture. There is also a mention of Dropbox’s perks which the brand is known for like free food, free gym, etc.
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Shopify
Shopify has chosen a slightly different approach than the abovementioned brands. They feature their CEO and their Talent Acquisition Manager but without giving any information about the company itself. It’s very amusing which shows that their company culture is relaxed and that it’s OK not to take yourself seriously all the time.
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Apple
Apple’s video is really well-made, which isn’t surprising. It strongly focuses on defining the kind of candidates they are looking for: people who’re the best in their field or who have the potential to be the best. It says a lot about their company culture which revolves around perfection. The video also features employees speaking in different languages which emphasizes the company’s global presence.
How to make a recruitment video
Time to get our hands dirty, and discuss the best tactics for creating a recruitment video.
Recruitment video tips
- Define your goal – think about what you want to achieve with your video. If your goal is to attract potential candidates, then what kind – similar or complementing your existing staff? Maybe your aim is to enhance the way your company is perceived?
- Explain what makes you unique – try to focus on the aspects which make your company exceptional. Do you have an incredible office space which won a design award? Show it – to some candidates workspace is important. Maybe you organize annual company trips that your employees love – display it in your video.
- Feature people from different points in their career – don’t limit yourself to senior positions only, introduce some variety, and include employees from different departments and from different ethnic backgrounds – if you value workplace diversity.
- Keep it conversational – show off your employee’s personalities by asking them interesting, personal questions, and keep it relaxed and friendly.
- Make it fun and genuine – make it fun for both your employees and potential candidates. Jeff Hyman, adjunct lecturer of management and organizations at Kellogg School of Management, says:
“I want to see the video and say, this is a place that sounds interesting, and these people sound interesting, and I’d have an interest in learning more, and although people should consider what they’ll say in advance, scripts should not be part of the video. It’s got to demonstrate authenticity”.
- Make sure it really reflects your culture – showcase the office, the employees – anything that would tell what it feels like to work at your company.
- Keep it short – people have short attention spans. According to Skill Scout, you have 1min 36 seconds to impress the candidate, so make the most of it.
- Highlight the questions that candidates tend to ask – Will Staney, founder and principal consultant of Proactive Talent Strategies, says:
“The more you can answer their questions pre phone screen or pre-interview, the more you can get down to just assessing the mutual fit rather than the typical FAQs [during the interview]”.
- Include a call to action – what should the candidate do after watching your recruitment video? Inform them about the next steps you want them to take.
Production tips – what equipment to use?
You don’t need a lot of equipment to produce a recruitment video, all you need is:
- A good camera – use a smartphone or an SLR camera if you have one. You can also consider hiring a videographer if it’s within your budget.
- Good audio – good sound quality is crucial, especially if your video includes interviews. Avoid recording in loud places.
- Lighting – ensure you have enough light in your recording space. If you can’t use natural light, or it’s insufficient, you can use an external lighting kit.
- Shoot in a landscape mode – to make your recruitment video more attractive, shoot in a landscape mode.
- Video editing – Don’t forget to edit your video. You can use a free video editor that allows you easily to change the duration of your video, and add titles or music, to make your video more attractive.)
How to promote recruitment videos?
You have your video ready, what do you do now – you have to start promoting it. Here are a few ideas on how to promote your recruitment video:
- Share your video on your social media channels to reach a wider audience
- Ask senior staff with a large social media following to share the video on their private social media accounts, especially on LinkedIn, and ask your employees to like it or share it
- Post it on YouTube, since it’s the second most popular social media channel with over 1.9 billion users and a daily number of active users at over 30 million people, it will help you get more exposure
- As mentioned earlier, job offers with a video attract more candidates, so make sure to include your video in every job posting
- Last but not least, feature it on your career site. Landing pages with videos tend to convert better.
Summary
Incorporating recruitment videos into your hiring process is a great way of showing your organizational culture and grabbing the attention of the right candidates. It’s easy to produce, all you need is your smartphone, good audio, and decent lighting.
Don’t make it all about your senior personnel, include employees at various career levels, make it short and fun. Don’t forget to promote your recruitment video – add it to every job posting, include it on your career website, and share it on your social media channels.
The best tech players use video to attract more talent, if it works for them, it will work for you!
Image credit: Alexander Dummer on Unsplash
