assessing the authenticity of your recruitment marketing
TRANSCRIPT
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ASSESSING THE AUTHENTICITY OF YOUR RECRUITMENT
MARKETING A quick tour of best and not so great practices on web sites
ERE.Net Fall Conference
Dr. John Sullivan Author, Professor and Advisor to Management
www.drjohnsullivan.com
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Four goals for today
1. To get you to think 2. To show you potential weaknesses in your
current recruiting messaging 3. To highlight some key features that you might
want to adapt to your site
4. To have some fun
5. To answer your questions
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Website authenticity rules
Rules for assessing authenticity The determination is in the eyes of the reader The judgment on the same information will vary
based on demographics and their life experience When business, social & environmental factors
change, authenticity assessments also change Testing of authenticity must be done but it should
be done narrowly within your target audience You can assess the authenticity using usage rates,
focus groups and by tracking online comments
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Website identification process
The process for identifying today’s example
35 HR students were given a set of criteria for assessing the authenticity of corporate jobs/careers websites
The resulting examples and positive or negative assessments came from their perspective
I threw in a few examples in areas that were not covered
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Page design is “too corporate” Why Being overly consistent in messaging can make
your organization's messages seem controlled and working at the firm might be perceived as rigid and intolerant of diversity
Measure The overall design of the site cannot appear to be
overly "corporate," i.e. generic layout, tightly controlled content spaces & an extreme level of conformity in presentation of content
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San Francisco 49ers – Memo format
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No info on any type. No pictures, videos or current employee testimonials
San Francisco Giants – With an ad
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Apple – Casual format
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SW Air – a cause and star of the month
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It even encourages applicants to apply and submit a video cover letter instead of the “sooooo old fashioned” cover letters.
Zappos – encourages a video cover letter
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Pictures are real Why Pictures that are judged to be staged or “fake” are
not convincing Measures The pictures presented include real employees in
unscripted activities Not just managers are shown Few professionally staged photos where
everyone is smiling, photogenic, and every possible demographic group is represented are immediately identifiable as “fake” 11
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HP – Canned picture
-Unauthentic because picture does not look like an employee. This is just a portrait of a random person with well groomed hair. “Your about to enter unique places and see inspiring things” … What does that even mean??
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Authentic picture of staff and doesn’t try to stand out as perfect place to work
Subway – real people picture
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Google understands authenticity
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Zappos toga party and chug contest seems real
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Videos are included Why Videos can show the passion and excitement.
They can also be placed on YouTube Measures Not having videos is a sign that the firm is not
current in technology or has nothing to show Videos that are professionally made or edited
may be easily dismissed as propaganda The site should feature a link to externally
hosted employee produced videos offering non-scripted insight into life inside the organization?
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Deloitte’s film festival showed their excitement (Yielded 1,000+ videos)
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The video show clips of the original video they filmed when they finished developing the video feature which was used to test and launch the product.
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Zappos shows a music video made by their own employees!
Zappos – Employee music video
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Soleio, the designer of the Video feature, tells how he enjoys re-watching the videos of his girlfriend and him when they started dating and see how much they have grown and changed.
Facebook – employee video with personal story
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Website authenticity assessment factor
The degree of message filtering Why If all the messages appear like they have been
filtered and this may send a message that the same will happen to you when you are an employee
Measure The extent to which messages do not appear to be
scripted, screened or filtered by corporate executives
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“Nuts about Southwest’ brand building web site
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The Luckiest Girl in the Whole World
By: Beverly Behrens 06-05-08
My name is Bev B. and I am a Southwest Employee at our University for People, a self-proclaimed bookworm, and a lifelong learner. And, I think I just might be the luckiest girl in the whole world. Allow me to explain why ....
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Nut’s about Southwest
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CEO Gary Kelly as Gene Simmons
Toilet paper games
http://www.blogsouthwest.com/media_image
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Southwest fun for interns
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Employee profiles Why Candidates want to know that “people like
them” work and succeed at the firm. Powerful profiles cause the applicant to “identify” with the firm
Measure The page offers multiple employee profiles that
appear to be written by the employee and they give insight into what it’s like to work there
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BCG provides access to real employees and allows you to search for them based on what college they graduated from, what office they work at, their background etc. This makes the company appear more credible because outsiders can more easily contact actual employees and proves BCG has nothing to hide.
BCG – multiple searchable employee profiles
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Adobe – day in the life video profile
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Realistic job preview Why Everyone wants to know what it is “really like”
to work there every day. An honest picture will likely reduce possible fears
Measure The site provides at least a picture of the job site The site provides a realistic job preview of both
the positive and potentially negative aspects of the company, the region and the job
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The print screen of the video that shows how is to be working at a Hackaton which is a dedicated program that allows employee to work on whatever project they want.
Facebook – employee video on a free-form project
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Google’s Zurich office sends a message
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Candid information is provided Why Whenever a site provides candid information or
encourages the candidate to visit external information sites they are demonstrating their confidence and that they have nothing to hide
Measure The site shares candid information about current
challenges, weaknesses, and past mistakes and that you are aware and acknowledge your shortcomings
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Informs applicants of current merger with Continental Airlines and offers supplemental
information regarding the merger
United – Straightforward info on the merger
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Adobe – Shows external info sources
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Self assessment opportunities are offered Why Potential applicants want to know if they can
actually “do the job” and if they would be a “fit” at the company
Measure The site provides you an opportunity to self
assess your fit and to solve problems
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Facebook’s puzzle page contest
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Facebook invites budding computer engineers to try one of their ‘puzzles’…in order prove their worth and attract the attention of the company bosses
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Blog postings & social network links are listed Why Employee written blogs that are available on the
corporate site send a message that you trust your employees and whatever they might say
Measure The organization posts the blogs of decision
makers, managers, and regular employees These blogs cover their work experience and
learnings
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Intel – Candid blog saying what its like to work there
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Website authenticity assessment factor
An opportunity to interact and ask questions Why Even if individuals choose not to take advantage
of this option, soliciting feedback, questions and comments sends a message that you are willing to listen
Measures The site provides visitors with the ability to
comment on your content Or to ask questions
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Virtual forums – Chat and Q&A
Discuss the possibilities with one of our recruiters!
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Job descriptions seem real Why Employees that are concerned about whether
they can do the work expect honest job descriptions
Measure Provide job descriptions with honest wording and
include some aspects that are not 100% positive
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Google – job descriptions can be interesting
Philosophy – “We work hard and play hard”
7/16/08
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Website authenticity assessment factor
It highlights the job search process Why Potential applicants want to know what to expect
in the job search process in order to alleviate at least some fear and anxiety
Measure The steps of the process are highlighted Information that previous candidates wanted is
included
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Reduce “ surprises” to alleviate anxiety
Research In Motion… describes each hiring step
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Daxko – offers how not to get a job advice
Insist on a fist bump instead of a handshake…
Steal free sodas from our fridge, calling 12 cans, “one for the road”
Sneeze on the hiring manager
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Quotes from regular employees Why Candidates want to hear from real employees but
they will ignore quotes that seem phony or staged
Measures A majority of the quotes that appear on the site
are attributed to a named employee in a non-managerial or recruiting related role
The quotes are not overly polished
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Facebook – great employee quote
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Putman, the engineer in the video feature, got hired at age of 19.
Facebook – employee video of a 19-year-old
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Overuse of glowing adjectives and trite phrases Why A long list of glowing adjectives in copy
doesn’t inspire action. Research shows it may actually turn the audience off!
Measure When presenting something positive, is it
presented free of a long list of glowing adjectives such as excellent, great, leading, infinite, etc.
There are no trite employment related phrases like “we put employees first”
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Zappos – casual language… Sin city
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-“Perhaps more than anything else, our people are what make Gap Inc. a great company. Gap Inc. employees around the world are smart, creative and passionate individuals working in areas from product design to distribution to marketing.”
-cheesy
Gap – our people make gap a great company
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-”trust me its rewarding”. Cheesy, why trust him?
- “
Kohl's – employee quote - trust me it’s rewarding
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Eltron Research – One word descriptions
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Values and culture are demonstrated in examples Why Simple words alone are not credible because
every firm has values but not everyone “lives them”
Measure The information that covers the corporate culture
and values provides specific examples of how your organization acts in certain situations that bring the culture and values to life
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Zappos - Adidas day and employee contest
Held Adidas day for it’s employees, which included a shoe lacing competition, a float contest, a costume contest, and a design a pair of Adidas shoes contest
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Diversity goes beyond words and pictures Why Diverse candidates are cynical of words, so they
want to see specific examples, numbers or actions related to diversity
Measure The website discloses how your organization
defines diversity What percentage of the workforce falls into
each diversity classification What unique programs exist to support diversity
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Virgin America – Blah Blah
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Jack-in-the-Box – Diversity picture
Where are the real people that we always see that work at Jack in the Box? Totally unrealistic and not believable.
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Benefits Why Benefits are an important part of the decision for
many applicants so they need enough detail in order to make comparisons
Measure If your site discloses information about benefits,
the information is detailed enough that potential candidates can compare it to past packages or offerings from other organizations
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Pepsi - emphasizes words in its benefits
h
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Benefits related videos can excite
Microsoft shows it’s perks
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Website authenticity assessment factor
Customization/ personalization Why Potential employees want more than general
information, they want information tailored to their specific interests
Measures The information is customized to the job family The information provided automatically changes
to fit the location of the visitor
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Northrup Grumman – Customized info by job type
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Microsoft’s “Genius Lounge”
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For the “Millennium Generation”
Inquiring parents - Enterprise rent a car offers information to the parents of perspective applicants…
And nearly half accept
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Did I make you think?
Any last questions
www.drjohnsullivan.com
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4 additional authenticity assessment factors
1. Support data – the availability of data or specifics about a program that support the subject of the message
2. Credibility of the source – the credibility of the source based on the accuracy of previous messages
3. Podcasts are offered – the site provide access to podcasts made by managers discussing their group’s work without an identifiable script
4. Numbers and dollars provide proof – words are backed up with numbers and proof
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