Video is Not the Next Big Thing, It IS the Big Thing

And other lessons learned at Social Media Boot Camp in Honolulu.

Hawaii’s leading social media workshop for employers opened with an eye-opening look at how video is being used to communicate workstyles and company values, promote career opportunities and events such as job fairs, and storytelling. In fact, video is now the single most important tool when using social media for employment branding and recruitment.

On July 13, 2017, corporate recruiters, staffing agency professionals, industry vendors and social media practitioners representing a cross section of Hawaii’s employment marketplace gathered at Dave & Busters for peer-to-peer sharing. The event was co-sponsored by Social Media Club Hawaii(SMCHI) and SHRM Hawaii. Highlights included a discussion of innovative ways local businesses are using social platforms to engage with job seekers, current employees, and the community.

Everyone is a recruiter on social media
The half-day program began with Beth Busch and Audra Dinell of Success Advertising Hawaii and WorkForce, Hawaii’s leading Career Fair, and an outstanding presentation on Leveraging Social Media in a 2.6% Unemployment Market as well as strategies on how to throw out old thinking. With social media tools, “everyone can be a recruiter” to share the company message about unique jobs and workplace culture. Emphasis was on how video is the number one way to “show, don’t tell” the company story, convey authenticity, and attract passive candidates with several examples of what local employers like the Navy Exchange are doing.

Top candidates look for shared values
The next presentation by Marie Kumabe, of Kumabe HR, featured a two part look at Recruitment And Retention Of Millennials. Participants explored the defining events, values, similarities, and differences in communication styles of the six generations that make up today’s workforce. Younger workers and Millennials seek advancement opportunities and are most attracted to employers with a purpose they can identify with. Participants learned the importance of listening, mentoring, and continuous learning; everyone can learn from everyone else if they just listen more.

Share your “WOW” with images and videoa
After a delicious luncheon buffet, Boot Campers were treated to an information-packed presentation on “Employer Branding for Candidate Attraction On LinkedIn.” Vanessa Machin Perez of S3 Career Counseling discussed the “wow factor” for branding and how to position your organization as an employer of choice. We learned that job seekers are three times more likely to believe what employees say on social channels than what’s posted on the company website, and that a whopping 75% of candidates assess a prospective employer’s brand on LinkedIn before applying for a job. This includes 52% of candidates searching social channels to learn about the company culture and gather information on what it’s like to work for the organization. It was noted that in many ways, LinkedIn is not a “social channel” like many others, it’s more like a business networking event, and 80% of all B2B leads and selling activity now comes through digital networks. This portion of the program also stressed the importance of using images and video, such as a one-minute introduction, to convey “personality” and tell your story.

Your brand is your voice, heart and soul
The afternoon sessions continued with Lara Holt of Wahine Media and Social Media Club Hawaii board member delivering insights on Content Strategy. This presentation featured practical advice on tailoring content to the audience, and strategizing on the who, where, what and why of your message. Social media is about engagement, and being prepared to interact with your audience is the key to successful communication and branding. Your brand is your voice, your heart, and your soul, and these are the key elements for creating compelling content to both inspire and attract top talent to your employment message. This was demonstrated with a few humorous #RealityCheck videos that Wahine Media created for long-time Boot Camp sponsor and leading local staffing firm Bishop & Company.

Bridge the gap between marketing and recruiting
The final speaker of the day, another Social Media Club Hawaii board member, Thomas Obungen, Digital Strategist at Upspring Media, shared ideas on how to bridge the gap between recruiting and marketing with a case study on #WeFlyTheIsland Way – How Island Air Uses Employees To Tell Its Story. This winning strategy illustrated how people are more than just our jobs, and this is what employees are really looking for – a company that treats them as people first and shares their personal values. The presentation focused on the need to give employees a voice and find an employee spokesperson. This was dramatically showcased with personal-story videos of Diana Higbee, a pilot and ground instructor, and ramp agent Chad Kawailani Kalele that garnered over 52,000 Likes on Island Air’s Facebook page. We learned that 74% of web traffic is online video and the various options for production from DYI to professionally produced clips.

Keep on learning
Portions of the program were recorded and posted on Social Media Club Hawaii’s Facebook page. You can also contact the speakers directly for a copy of the presentation materials and handouts.

Bonus Track: Life After LinkedIn
Two previous Social Media Boot Camp events featured webcasts presented by sourcing super-star speaker Shally Steckerl of The Sourcing Institute. He presented a recent webinar on Life After LinkedIn with practical tips on finding candidates on Facebook and Twitter. Thank you to webinar sponsors Talent Crowd, Hire Daily and moderator Joel Cheeseman for making the recording available.

Mahalo plenty
My congratulations to 2017 Boot Camp Program Directors Mae Russell Nishimura, Raelyn Batacan, Lynn Krupa, and Ashlee Badua of Social Media Club Hawaii for an outstanding learning event.

SmartSearch is also proud to be a sponsor and facilitator of the Social Media Boot Camp for Hawaii Recruiting, Staffing & Human Resources since its inception in 2011. We also wish to thank Social Media Club Hawaii past presidents Roxanne Darling and Tara Coomans, as well as current SMCHI president Grant Shindo for their leadership and support over the years.