My top free social recruitment tools

For a number of years I have focused my resourcing activity around social media.  I believe it is a truly fantastic medium that allows a level of engagement that very few other channels can rival.  However, one of the main benefits of social media is the cost.  If you are a large corporate you can spend a fortune on it, but equally if you are a smaller business you can achieve many of the same results for free.  As someone who is often referred to as having short arms and deep pockets it is the low cost or free routes that appeal to me most! 

If you’re reading this you will have come via some social media route, so the chances are you know something about the medium, therefore I am not going to preach to you about the power of LinkedIn or Twitter; instead I want to discuss the tools that make such mediums effective.  Below is a list of the tools I use most frequently to recruit via social media.  It is not intended to be a definitive list, but just my favourites.  If you have any to add please do so; we’re all still learning about social media, so let’s share the knowledge!

• Google – This sounds a rather strange one to start with, but Google (or other search engines) are massively underused.  In particular Google is a wonderful tool to aid your LinkedIn searches.  If you conduct a search in LinkedIn you are limited to the results you receive by the type of account you hold and the number of people you are connected to.  However, if you conduct a search via Google you can gain access to everyone!  If you not sure how to conduct Boolean searches, then an easier option is to use Google’s advanced search tool to avoid having to be too technical.
• TweetDeck & Hootsuite – I personally prefer TweetDeck, but only because I am more used to it.  Both sites provide you with the ability to manage your various social media accounts, so rather than having to log into all of them you can do so in one fail swoop by using these sites.  They also provide an easy method to search Twitter.
• Followerwonk – The names of these sites are truly great!  Followerwonk allows you the ability to search peoples’ biographies on Twitter.  As many people will provide information about their location and career in their bios, this is an invaluable tool to reach out and engage with potential new hires.  You can also pretty much guarantee not many other organisations are doing this.
• TweetLevel – another useful tool to search Twitter, particularly if you are searching for a niche skill. An alternative site is Tweepz (I did say the name’s were great!).
• Socialmention – I have found this site useful if I am searching for a niche skills or trying to research a particular topic.  The site will search all of “the Universe” for mention of the topic.  As a tip, make sure you don’t have too broad a search otherwise you’ll have to wade through lots of unwanted information!
• FindPeopleonPlus – I will admit I am still relatively new to this site, but it is the best tool I have found to date that allows you to search Google+.  It may not need to be your central focus when resourcing, but you shouldn’t ignore Google+ as it has real potential to be an excellent sourcing channel.   But don’t take my word for it, instead you should take the far more credible word of Andy Headworth in this post who explains how to use Google+ and with some insight on Pinterest thrown in for good measure!

You will notice that there is a lack of information about Facebook.  The reason for this is that I have yet to find an app or site that allows you to use it for recruitment purposes that doesn’t charge you.  If you wanted to invest you could use sites such as Bullhorn Reach of BranchOut. 

Finally, there is an app or Google Chrome extension that will be released soon that will be invaluable when using LinkedIn.  Shane McCusker will be releasing an app soon that will allow you to see all the information of a 3rd degree connection on LinkedIn.  So this is definitely one to look out for.

Before you spend a fortune gives these routes a try.  Good luck!

Ed Scrivener

Has this inspired you to discuss HR?  Or actually discuss recruitment! Let us know about your favourite ways of using social media to recruit.

*****

Discuss HR is that HR blog brought to you by the people of Human Resources UK, the HR LinkedIn group with 11,000+ members dedicated to the world of HR.

*****

We welcome guest writers to Discuss HR.  To learn how to contribute click here

Any source