Everything is NOT Awesome

A message for recruiters.

I was on a long trip recently with an in-flight movie option, and thankfully I had my headphones. By now, you've probably guessed which movie was showing. Full disclosure: I really enjoyed The LEGO Movie. But one of the most contagious parts of the story (many parents know this song by heart now) got me thinking about how much our words matter.

When you overuse something, it loses its relative meaning. The same is true of the words that recruiters use to describe a job or company for which they're recruiting. Here's some Boolean for lazy recruiter messaging:

(Great OR Cool OR Exciting OR Awesome)

AND

(Company OR Job OR Team OR Culture OR Role OR Opportunity)

AND

"Who do you know?"

Some of the worst offenders that I see are actually good recruiters. But they're too busy or have simply forgotten about their automated job feeds that they set up way back when they had 30 minutes to spare. So it's considered 'good enough.' Got 30 minutes/week?

Let's take a look at the most common definitions of the word 'awesome' for example. You know, just for grins.

• Causing of terror; inspiring awe. The waterfall in the middle of the rain forest was an awesome sight. The tsunami was awesome in its destructive power.
• Exciting. That was awesome! Awesome, dude!

The only thing causing terror for me is that some of these tactics actually pass for 'recruiting.'

Speak to Your 'Special' Audience

Everything isn't awesome. But it IS relative. So what's cool or exciting to one person with a specific skill set or challenges, is just normal and accepted by others. Knowing the difference helps you put the most compelling details of a job first in your message. In journalistic terms, this is known as NOT burying the lead.

In my experience, there are 5 main candidate drivers for recruitment messaging. Which one are you leading with?

Screen Out the Mis-fits

Every job is not for everyone. So every recruitment message or social update shouldn't be for everyone either. What happens when you target your message to the right audience? You alienate people who aren't a fit.

What happens when you alienate people who aren't a fit? You attract fewer "serial job applicants" and spend less time screening through unqualified resumes.

What are some of the most ludicrous recruitment messages you've seen, here on Linkedin or beyond?

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Bryan Chaney is a global talent sourcing and attraction strategist. He is currently a Sourcing Executive for IBM and previously led employment branding and social media for corporate recruitment at Aon. Bryan has worked in recruitment, technology, and marketing providing him insights into the marketing of hiring, the importance of technology and the buying process candidates make when applying for jobs. He is the founder of CareerConnects and serves on the board of Social Media Breakfast in Austin.