Recruiting for local government? Use Instagram to strengthen your employer brand
Instagram is a great social media tool for employer branding. If you’re recruiting for the public sector, there’s no reason you can’t use it to attract more candidates to your vacancies.
It is a common misconception that working in the public sector means that there is no room for creativity when it comes to recruitment. With recruitment becoming more candidate-driven, being an employer of choice is becoming more important.
Research suggests that 68% of active candidates look at social media when searching for work and 22% investigate the social media of the employer before applying.
As the fastest growing social media site, Instagram is becoming a critical tool for candidate attraction. Here are three reasons why your local government organisation should leverage Instagram as a recruitment tool.
Instagram adds authenticity to your brand
Organisations and people who use Instagram for business are using it to promote themselves or their brand, so it’s an excellent tool for local government. By promoting the great work you do for your community, you can improve the way your community and potential candidates view your work.
Plus, when you create an open discourse about the positive work in your organisation (i.e. the fun events you have planned or the success and stories from your employees), it authentically communicates the type of work people do and enables potential candidates to see themselves in a role. Those who do not work in local government don’t often see what happens behind the scenes. By giving insights into the fun and positive aspects of working within your organisation via Instagram, you reach a large audience and improve the way your community views your work.
The visual aspect of Instagram
As an image-based social media platform, Instagram is great for graphic recruitment advertisements. Advertise your vacancies using an eye-catching image or graphic that will capture your audience’s attention and encourage them to apply. You can also make your organisation’s Instagram feel personal, speaking directly to your audience by featuring photographs of community projects that are underway or even a fun aspect of the working day (see example below of a local government post from Cumberland Council in NSW).
Plus, the beauty of Instagram doesn’t require you to always have professional photographs. While professionally taken images are going to enhance the look of your Instagram profile, images can also be taken on your team members’ phones. This technique can help to create the impression that your local government is right there in the action and present a more personal angle to your employer brand.
Your current and future audience is on Instagram
You may think Instagram is just for millennials and Gen Z. While a large majority are of this age bracket, 33% of Instagram users are between the ages of 30 and 49. That is a huge chunk of your mature community and audience that you want and need to promote your employer brand to.
Plus, with the majority of those on Instagram being a younger demographic, your future audience and voters are very likely to be present on the platform. Presenting local government as being an important aspect of adult life and a great place to consider starting a career, you can begin promoting your employer brand to your future workforce, earlier.
If you’re interested in having a discussion about strengthening your employer brand, Employment Office’s Employer Branding specialists can help you become an employer of choice. Read more about our Employer Branding services here, or get in touch to speak directly to our experts on 1300 366 573.
