Maybe engagement isn't the right social outcome after all

If you have spent much time at all the last few years researching, attending events and presentations, or consulting with experts, (term used very loosely), on how to incorporate social tools and social media into organizational communication, talent management, or recruiting strategy, if nothing else you would have come away with the firm belief that 'engagement' and 'conversation' have to be among your prime objectives and desired outcomes. No customer or potential candidate wants to engage online, the theory goes, be it on a Facebook page, a LinkedIn group, or with a Twitter feed with a faceless organization, a logo, and a stream of automatically generated updates, or worst of all, an RSS feed of job ads pushed to the social outposts from your corporate Applicant Tracking System. Jasper Johns - #6

Conventional social media and social networking advice would tell the organization to simply not bother with social as a channel if all they really plan to do is constantly broadcast, advertise, and push content. You're not ready for social, the experts would say. You have to engage, converse, be a part of a consistent give and take with the audience in order for your efforts to pay off in the long run.  And that seems like really solid, sound advice. Consumers and prospects don't want another stream of low-value add corporate messaging and propaganda.

Yep, great advice on how engagement and conversation is what matters.

But what if that advice, if not being completely wrong, is at least not as hard and fast as is generally accepted in the emerging social recruiting space?

A recent ethnographic study on the role of technology and social platforms in the real world from the digital media consultancy Razorfish raises some interesting questions about how average and casual technology users typically consume with and engage with digital content. Long story short, the Razorfish study showed that rather than seeking to actively participate and engage online and with digital media and content, most users were more than happy to passively consume said content. T o some of the study participants, the flow of information in the social space is seen as a more ambient activity and background noise.  From the summary of the findings on the Razorfish site:

Historically, digital pundits have promised a more interactive future, in which users move away from passive, couch potato viewing to more active engagement. While the amount of user-generated content and sharing supports this movement, we have found everyday users increasingly leaning back in their digital consumption habits. Social media is described as a more ambient activity. “[Facebook] is usually a drag. I just feel lazy like I’m seeing the same old stuff and looking at people’s profiles. I feel somewhat guilty about it sometimes, like I’m wasting time.” Twitter, originally categorized as a social tool, is described more as a curation tool. “I don’t really tweet anymore. I just see what I should think about reading.”

The folks at Razorfish advise organizations looking to engage with consumers, (in our terms as HR folks employees and candidates), to not be afraid to be a 'pusher', that is to offer content meant primarily to be consumed, and to focus less on stimulating ongoing and sustained conversation. The rapid rise of the the iPad and the other tablets seem to bear this out, they are primarily consumption devices. The little 'creation' that emerges from most tablets are simply shares, likes, and re-tweets, the simplest and most low commitment form of content engagement there is.

The net of all this?

Well the Razorfish study was very small, and certainly should not be the sole data point to base a social content and engagement strategy. But I think an important takeaway from the study is to take a longer and more critical look at both what passes for conventional wisdom in the social media and social networking space, and what can easily become a 'follow fast' strategy that may not necessarily be the right one for your organization. 

If nothing else, results from these kind of studies that make us examine carefully our assumptions on what is still a nascent space are worthwhile, and even if you disagree with them, as I imagine many will, occasional validation of your own assumptions is a good outcome in itself.

Better Job Ad Writing and Selling Snowblowers

The other day the SAI site featured this piece - This Epic, 900-Word Classified Ad For A Used Snowblower Has Canada Agog, a review of a story out of Northwest Canada and one guy's efforts to sell his used snowblower on an online classifieds site called Kijii.  The Machine of Snow Doom

The SAI piece links out to the full classified listing for the machine on the Kijii site, and I highly recommend you take a few minutes to read the entire ad, (even if you are not in the market for a used snowblower, and besides the machine did already sell for asking price). Then spend some time thinking about how this truly epic snowblower ad kind of debunks many of the typically held assumptions about writing ad copy, be it for machinery or even job postings on the corporate career site or job board.

Some highlights from the epic snowblower ad:

1. Opening Line:

"Do you like shoveling snow? Then stop reading this and go back to your pushups and granola because you are not someone that I want to talk to."

Boom - sets the context of the opportunity, challenges the reader, (or for you the job seeker), to immediately consider whether or not they should keep reading.

2. Connecting to the Need

"Here’s the deal. I have a snow blower and I want you to own it. I can tell you’re serious about this. It’s like I can almost see you: sitting there, your legs are probably crossed and your left hand is on your chin. Am I right? How’d I do that? The same way that I know that YOU ARE GOING TO BUY THIS SNOWBLOWER."

You need to read the entire ad to really see how Cho makes an effective and interesting case about how the snowblower will be the answer to the buyer's problems, but suffice to say that 95% of job ad copy does nothing to acknowledge the value proposition back to the job seeker. Mostly, throwaway lines like 'Join our firm and take your skills to the next level' pass for addressing the needs and dreams of the job seeker.

3. Call to Action

"Here’s what you do. You go to the bank. You collect $900. You get your buddy with a truck and you drive over here. You give me some cold hard cash and I give you a machine that will mess up a snowbank sumthin’ fierce. I’ve even got the manual for it, on account of I bought it brand new and I don’t throw that kind of thing away. Don't want to pay me $900? Convince me. Send me an offer and I'll either laugh at you and you'll never hear back from me or I'll counter."

Nice one. Here Cho lays out what you are going to de next, after making the case for why you would do it in the first place. He even allows for some real-life negotiation for people genuinely engaged in the process. The connection to the job ad? Mainly the impersonal, one size fits all, same generic and cold process steps for every person, every job that is posted, and no real connection to the organization and the opportunity as something the job seeker can see themselves a part of. Mostly job seekers just feel like they are entering the abyss when they hit 'apply'.

The end result was that Cho did sell the snowblower as I mentioned, but not before attracting over 500,000 views of the online ad, and receiving over 1,400 responses, including (according to Cho), job offers, requests for dates, and advice on writing ad copy. Wonder what other benefits better job ad writing might accrue to the smart organization?

The big point in all this? That a random guy, (not a trained writer or marketer), can use real, simple, and creative communication to attract attention, engage an audience, and make a boring 4-year old snowblower seem like a dream-fulfilling wonder machine.  

What do you think? Could any of these approaches or ideas help your organization advertise its opportunities?

The Most Interesting Corporate Career Site in the World?

It just might be this one, from stealth start-up Scopely. Scopely is clearly after talent that will match up well not only with the skills and experience that their opportunities require, but that will fit with its, let's say, out of the ordinary culture. When your CTO takes front and center on the company career site, complete with martini and a series of irreverent pitch lines like 'Did GOD use your wireframes to CREATE the HIMALAYAS?', candidates certainly get the impression that Scopely, at least taken at face value, is not looking for 'average' talent.Are you sure you want a job here?

And beyond the CTO as the Dos Equis man picture, and the pithy come on lines, Scopely sweetens the pot with an aggressive and creative sign-on/referral program. Newly hired engineers, (or their friends that make a successful referral), are eligible to receive a package that includes some of today's 'must-have' tech wizard items like a speargun, a 'fancy tuxedo', a year's supply of the aforementioned Dos Equis beer, and oh yeah - $11,000 in cash. Face it, no matter how cool your employee or alumni referral program is, unless you can find some 'sex panther cologne' or have some Cuban cigars laying around in the supply room, our clever friends at Scopely have you topped.

What does Scopely even do you might be wondering? Who knows, exactly? And the careers site, for all its fun and wackiness, doesn't make it easy at all to figure out. But perhaps that is part of the point. While the 'Dos Equis Man' takeoff, and the promise of beard oil and bacon wrapped cash, (did I forget to mention the $11K bonus comes wrapped in bacon?), are mostly designed to grab attention in a really competitive market for start-up software development talent, there is also just a hint of expectation that prospects, (or referrers), would have to do some digging to really learn about the organization and the potential opportunities. Sort of the same way most of us expect candidates for our organizations to do.Your referral bonus

And one more point about Scopely, their sort of insane careers page, and the most bizarre referral package I've seen in ages. No matter what you think of it all, and you're probably thinking it's either stupid, or just amusing, and NOT AT ALL what would be appropriate for your company, they have done all of us a favor of sorts. By setting a new kind of ceiling for recruiting fun and surprise, they in a way have given any of us a type of permission to get more creative and fun ourselves.

No matter how offbeat, unusual, unexpected, and crazy by your standards idea you have seems, the kind of idea that the suits and the bigwigs would NEVER approve, there is almost no chance it would top Scopely in those departments. So you have a kind of out, an excuse, a way to play the 'Look, I know this idea seems wild, but it really isn't all that crazy, just look at what these idiots at Scopely are doing. See, my plan is actually kind of conservative.' 

Maybe the comparison won't get your idea approved after all. But even if it doesn't, you'll at least get to have a few laughs with the boss while you Google 'Sex Panther Cologne'.

Recruiting on Facebook? Like Fishing Where the Fish Are

Today the folks at BranchOut, the professional networking application built on top of Facebook announced the general availability of Recruiter Connect, their new recruiter focused product designed to provide a platform to allow corporate recruiters to more effectively source candidates from Facebook's 800 million or so users, build private talent networks from which to cultivate candidates, and tap into the social graphs of employees and other recruiters in the organization.

I was able to see a demonstration of the product and ask some questions of the BranchOut team in advance of the launch today. From the functionality that I saw, and as you might be able to tell from the screen grabs attached to this post, the Recruiter Connect application is clean, easy-to-understand, and has a nice intuitive design and flow. As I watched the demo one of my notes simply read, 'This is really cool.' Maybe not a particularly insightful observation on my part, but still important I think. Enterprise applications, in a way, are not just for the enterprise anymore. Meaning that users of enterprise apps today, especially ones tied to consumer oriented social platforms, need to almost mimic the design, layout, flow, and feel of the fun to use and no explanation required to get going public social networks.Click for full size image

I'll have to admit I was personally kind of slow to come around to the idea of recruiting on Facebook, at least conceptually. Perhaps it was too many grad students over the past few years indicating they'd never see a reason or desire to want to be recruited via a social network seen to be a personal space, meant for sharing updates and photos with close friends and family. But over the last two years or so attitudes even among the most reluctant seem to have shifted, and as social networks in general, and Facebook in particular, have become such a central component of online identity, for the making and sustaining of social connections, and these days for seeking job opportunities and strengthening professional contacts; the ability to successfully tap into Facebook for sourcing and recruiting is fast becoming an essential capability for many organizations.

So if you are warming up to the idea that since everyone is on Facebook, (something you really can't say for LinkedIn, and definitely not Twitter, and certainly not some of the other job board or professional communities out there), then understanding the unique Facebook environment, articulating the correct approach and strategy, and importantly, finding the right tools to enable your social sourcing and recruiting strategies on Facebook; are probably on your agenda or soon will be as a corporate recruiting leader.Click for full size image

And for now BranchOut is leading in that space. Yes, there are lots of other applications and solutions that have either centered on Facebook as a sourcing/recruiting platform, or have augmented their existing ATS or other solutions to connect with and attempt to exploit the Facebook social graph, and I am sure they will be many more to come; but for now it seems like they're all chasing. Either chasing the platform itself and the attitudes and inclinations of its users, or chasing the first movers, (like BranchOut), in fear of missing their passage to social recruiting success.

Though the future past 18 months or so is just about impossible to predict, Facebook isn't going away anytime soon. And neither is most organizations' need to continually feed the talent beast, even in these tough economic times. So if the talent are mostly swimming around on Facebook, then you probably ought to consider how to drop a line in that ocean, and the tools from BranchOut are a good place to start. 

The Employer Brand, New and Improved (if it exists at all)

Tonight on the HR Happy Hour Show, (8PM ET, if you don't know what time that equates to where you live, then you have bigger issues than catching a recruiting podcast to worry about), we will welcome Jake Dunlap, VP at Glassdoor.com to tackle the always interesting and occasionally controversial topic of Employer (or Employment) Brand. Glassdoor is the leading destination for employee and candidate authored company reviews, salary information, interview experience, and a whole lot of 'What's it really like to work here' testimonials.Cubs legend - Mordecai 'Three Finger' Brown

Controversial in the sense that Bigfoot, unicorns, or a Chicago Cubs World Series title are controversial - some folks are adamant and passionate that these things exist, attempt to point to (at times) circumstantial evidence to prove they are right, and eventually end up resorting to the 'nyah, nyah, nyah' line of argument to cement home their intellectual triumph.

Like unicorns, we want to believe the Employer Brand exists as more than just a concept, but rather an almost tangible, manageable, and potentially leverageable (I know, I hate that word too), component in our Human Resources and recruiting strategic toolkit. The idea that the way the organization presents and helps shape their brand message - the collection of what the organization values, represents, promises, and rewards its employees, (and by extension its candidates), can help that organization achieve superior results in recruiting, retention, and employee performance is certainly quite compelling.

But whether or not the Employer Brand actually exists is still not a given across the HR profession. Yesterday, Brent Rasmussen writing on TLNT.com shared some of the results of a recent Careerbuilder survey that indicated nearly half of HR managers questioned reported they did not have an employment brand. So despite some evidence to the contrary - that same Careerbuilder survey also indicated that job seekers strongly take into account elements of 'brand' in their decision processes, the idea of organizations possessing a distinct employment brand from whatever face they paint on themselves on the consumer side still has not seemed to achieve widespread or mainstream acceptance in the halls of HR.

Tonight on the show we will talk with Jake Dunlap from Glassdoor about the concepts of employer brand, whether or not it really does exist, (FYI - the Cubs last won the World Series in 1908), and more importantly whether debating about its existence is kind of a silly exercise anyway, and that sites like Glassdoor and a few little social networks you may have heard of called Facebook and Twitter can 'prove' the point of the employer brand advocates and end the debate in about five minutes.

We will also discuss how smart organizations are using all available resources, both ones they can control, and ones they can only guide, to try and portray their unique value proposition to effectively compete for talent, both on the open market, and inside the enterprise.

Employer branding is a great and interesting topic, I hope you can join the conversation tonight.

You can listen to the live stream of the show starting at 8PM ET tonight here, or by calling in on 646-378-1086. You can also follow the backchannel conversation on Twitter on hashtag #HRHappyHour.