Mobile Recruiting Strategy

In April 2015, Google announced an important change to their algorithm - it would now prioritize mobile friendly sites in search rankings. This shift was in reaction to an important discovery - over half of Google's search traffic was from a mobile device. It's no secret that people are enamored with their mobile technology. In 2016 alone, American smartphone users are expected to reach 198.5 million. From these smartphones, they shop, communicate, watch videos, and search for jobs. Yes, they even search for jobs. According to Glassdoor, approximately 90% of job seekers will search for new jobs on their mobile devices. Another 44% of those job seekers will apply directly from their mobile device. Employers whose recruiting process isn't mobile optimized may soon find themselves unable to compete for the best talent. To attract these digitally mature candidates, it will become important to establish a formal mobile recruiting strategy. Just as social media and video revolutionized hiring, so too will widespread adoption of mobile recruiting.

Mobile recruiting strategies

This year, the recruiting process has really come into focus. Increasingly, talent acquisition concerned itself with the candidate experience and how that helped or harmed their ability to hire. What they found out, however, is that candidates really wanted something more convenient. With 86% of users using their smartphone to begin their job search, it is important to get mobile recruiting right. But how do employers marry this convenience with their existing recruiting process?

Enhance social recruiting for mobile.

Approximately 94% of recruiters are active on social media, but the majority are using this powerful tool in the wrong way: they haven't considered the mobile experience. Consider the stereotypical recruiting email a candidate may receive on LinkedIn. It's a very long email describing every detail of a job position and the requirements to apply. When opened on a mobile device, it looks like a book. A majority of mobile users will hit delete right then and there and the message will never be seen. Few will read a few lines in before giving up. An even slimmer margin of candidates may actually read the email before likely dismissing it when they realize the process isn't mobile friendly. This isn't the mobile recruiting success story the recruiter was hoping for when they sent that email. The Hack: Restructure that same email to include a brief, two-sentence introduction and a link to a mobile- optimized landing page. This landing page could contain a mobile-friendly version of the job posting, salary, and benefits information and a brief description of the company culture. Employers can produce these custom landing pages relatively easily with existing open source software such as Wordpress with little to no knowledge of responsive web design. This strategic shift represents an important piece of the mobile recruiting process: ease of use.  Candidates on the go do not want lengthy emails, they want simplicity. It's important for recruiting teams to partner with their marketing counterparts to determine how to simplify their messaging for increased mobile recruiting success.

Optimize your careers page for mobile.

An estimated 20% of traffic to employers' careers pages is from mobile candidates. However, many employers have not yet optimized their careers page for mobile use. When opened on a mobile device, these employers' careers page looks cluttered and often leaves out key information. This kind of initial exposure does not inspire mobile recruiting success. These are the employers who may soon find themselves unable to remain competitive for talent. The Hack: Employers should optimize their careers page with the needs of the mobile candidate in mind. It should have a maximum of two clicks to direct candidates towards the end goal: the application process. Messaging should be simple and direct to avoid confusion. Avoid large flash media and simplify the graphics for faster loading. A slow and cluttered careers page can actively deter mobile candidates from applying. Consider a careful review of this entry point into the mobile recruiting process to enhance success.

Collect jobseeker profiles instead of resumes.

Approximately 70% of mobile candidates want to submit a resume to an online job posting. But how many candidates carry resumes on their smartphone or tablet? And how many are willing to sit through a lengthy ATS process on their mobile device? The answer is relatively few, if any. More mobile candidates click their back button instead of actually applying because it's too painful a process on their mobile device. The Hack:  Employers interested in mobile recruiting should offer an option to collect social profiles instead of resumes. According to mobile ATS provider Mobolt, over 60% of mobile candidates who apply from their devices finish the application. This represents a dramatic shift from current mobile recruiting statistics.

Screen and interview via video.

An important part of the mobile recruiting process is how employers screen and interview candidates. Sixty percent of employers have embraced the need for video interviews. The same digitally mature candidates seeking new employment on their mobile devices find it easiest to interview via mobile devices. The Hack: Conduct initial candidate screening by sending them a link to record their own video interview on demand. Candidates can record these at their leisure and send their results to the recruiting team to speed up the applicant screening process. Video interviews have been a driver for mobile recruiting, offering employers increased flexibility and a faster time to hire. This time and cost saving strategy offers an important final step in the mobile recruiting process. In 2014, SHRM declared mobile recruiting the future of talent acquisition. Mobile recruiting may sound daunting at first, but it can be incredibly easy for employers to implement. With a little thought and preparation, employers can adjust the way in which they source, attract, and ultimately hire mobile candidates. Using these hacks, employers will be able to hit the ground running with this new strategy.