Short post today because I’m preparing for a presentation I have to give at lunch to a local SHRM chapter. The title is as bland as they come–Social Media for HR–but it isn’t the usual “rah rah for social media” content you hear. Here’s my opening:

If I was a lawyer, this is where I’d start talking about how social media is the biggest liability your company has ever seen.

If I was a recruiter, this is where I’d start talking about social media being a silver bullet for hiring great candidates with free tools.

But I’m not either of those. I’m an “in the trenches” HR pro, and I have a real job to do. I manage to integrate social media into what I do to some degree, and this is how I do it.

I talk less about statistics (yeah, we all know that social media is the next big thing). I skip the part about how Company X has a great Facebook page you should copy. I like to focus on professional development, networking, and how to use the social tools to be more effective and efficient on a daily basis. It’s something you can walk out of the room and put into action much easier than a twenty point plan for using Twitter.

Just my two cents, but it’s working, so that’s what matters.

AKA: How to use employment videos for social recruiting

Social recruiting is discussed often, but one of the lesser mentioned facets is video. While many companies know it’s something they should pursue, they don’t know how to be successful. Below you’ll find some ideas to pursue in the area of employer videos. Just a quick word of warning, I’m going to be technical at times, because the subject warrants it. However, I’m happy to help if your organization is looking to make a move into the video arena.

First off, you want your videos to be found when people search Google, right? That’s where search engine optimization comes in. It’s a methodology for getting your videos indexed in a way that makes them easy to find by searchers.

Five tips for Video SEO (search engine optimization)

1. Make the video something people want to share (more detail on this below).
2. Don’t dilute your videos by posting on multiple sites (YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler, etc.).
3. Titles, tags, and descriptions are useful when uploading and posting videos online, but backlinks to the videos (with relevant keywords in the anchor text) are more important for search engine rankings.
4. YouTube is the #2 search engine in the world and the #1 for videos. Use that to your advantage.
5. If you’re using WordPress as your content distribution platform, create a video sitemap and submit it via Google Webmaster Tools. Every little bit helps!

Now, let’s elaborate on #1 above. That’s usually the first question people have: what do the videos need to be about? Well, there are several ways to go with that, but I like to think of two kinds of people when considering these types of video: customers and potential job candidates. Think about what they would like to know about your company and give it to them!

Five ideas for your employment video content

1. Interview employees and ask what they do and what they like about the job, dept, or company
2. Get staff members to discuss the culture and how that affects what they do.
3. Ask employees to talk about their favorite benefit/perk that you offer.
4. Film the fun, unique events that make your organization special.
5. Create content that is outward facing and valuable to your industry. Hint: if you’re providing thought leadership and value at a level that entices competitors to link to you, then you’re on the right track.

This list certainly isn’t all-inclusive, but it’s a great start to generating ideas that would specifically benefit your company.

Thinking about creating some employer branding videos for your company and looking for some help? Feel free to contact me if you’re looking for assistance. 

Think  this social recruiting thing is a fad? 80% of employers are using it in some form or fashion to find talent, so that theory doesn’t fly. Check out the video below for more observations from the new Jobvite report on the state of social recruiting.

Email subscribers need to click through to view the video.

• My post on last year’s survey-70% of employers perform social search on candidates
• The 2011 survey results (PDF)

Every once in a while I hear someone talking about needing a “social media policy” at work. Ugh. If you know me at all you’ll instantly guess that I’m against such things. I would rather offer training instead of more regulation. Here are four reasons you probably don’t need a social media policy at all:

• Conversations can happen anywhere. You don’t have a “parking lot conversations” policy, so why create a separate, special policy just for social media? People can do as much damage talking about your company in a crowded restaurant as they can with a Facebook post, but you don’t see anyone creating policies on that.
• Is it worth your time? Is your core business function monitoring social media or creating/delivering a product or service? You can stand over peoples’ shoulders as long as you want but it’s not going to add value to be business.
• We’re listening to the lawyers on this? When has a lawyer ever said, “You know what? You really don’t need a policy for that specific situation” with regard to the employer/employee relationship? I’m guessing never. If we listened to the lawyers and their scare tactics we’d have a handbook that rivals the size of the Alabama state constitution.
• Are they adults or not? If not, then you’re breaking a few child labor laws. If so, then we need to treat them like it. If you act like they are childish and incapable of handling themselves, then they will be. If you treat them as respectable, functional adults, then they will be (for the most part). Don’t make policies for outliers. That guy who clips his toenails on his desk? Don’t make a toenail-clipping-at-your-desk policy. Pull him aside and tell him it’s inappropriate. I’ll say it again: don’t make policies for outliers.

I’m sure there are more! What are your reasons for companies to forego a social media policy?

Recently I had the opportunity to visit Washington D.C. to work with the Society for Human Resources Management and a great team of individual contributors on SHRM’s social media tool, SHRM Connect. While some of us have criticized SHRM for moving slowly at times, it looks like they are making great strides on this project.

Check out the video below for more information.

I love the idea of referral bonuses as a recruiting tool and I have a proposal in the pipeline for our leadership team to offer referral bonuses for each position (not just “key” ones). I’ve always wanted to write on them but this great post I saw the other day combined two fun topics for me: social recruiting and referral bonuses.

Here’s a word for word snag from the post. If every job ad looked like this, the world of recruiting would be wildly different.

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Engineers: Challenging Problems, Brilliant Co-Workers & Some Cool Bonuses Await You, Too Continue Reading »

This is a tribute to the TrenchHR LinkedIn group created by my friend Charlie Judy. Recently I joined and asked a question about how to respond to people who say they are too busy to use social media tools. In less than 48 hours I had a great number of responses from people who practice HR every day and have combated this issue in their own lives. Read on for some great ideas and a lively discussion on the value of social media in the life of an HR/recruiting professional!

“But I’m too busy already…”

So, when I’m pushing HR people to join LinkedIn, start reading blogs, etc., the first response is usually “but I’m too busy already” or “I don’t have time for something else.” Looking for some good responses to those comments. I can say, “Look at me!” But that really doesn’t help my case. These people think they want to start doing this stuff, but they are talking themselves out of it before they even start. Suggestions?

Ben Eubanks Continue Reading »