The Power of Paid Advertising in Staffing and Recruitment

Recently on ASA Central, a marketing executive posed some fantastic questions about running ads for recruitment and staffing sales, and I wanted to share my experiences and insights in a bit more detail.

High-Level Strategy Tactics

Content Promotion: If you're investing time and resources into creating content (blogs, landing pages, social media posts), it goes a long way if you also allocate some budget to ensure your content is seen by your target audience. Organic reach on social platforms is limited, especially for business pages, so even a modest investment can significantly boost your visibility. For example, boosting a LinkedIn post about a new blog or job opening can ensure it reaches the right professionals and/or candidates, driving engagement and traffic.

Job Promotion: Create landing pages for specific job types, industries, or locations. These pages should include SEO content, sample job listings, and links to pre-filtered job searches on your site. Use these pages for SEO, targeted Google Ads, and social media posts to reach the right audience. For instance, if you're targeting healthcare professionals in the Midwest, create a dedicated page that speaks directly to their needs and showcases relevant job opportunities.

Reverse Marketing: Similar to the landing pages described above, you can flip it on it's head with job type or industry landing pages that attract your target client. Using these pages to promote your experience and ability to recruit in specific areas will allow you to hyper target ICPs across multiple channels.

Primary Goal for Running Ads

For most of our clients, the goal is a mix of finding candidates and driving staffing sales. The exact balance depends on current priorities. For many firms, the focus has shifted closer to 80% B2B and 20% candidate recruitment. Before creating an ad strategy, it's essential to align your goals with your leadership team or board's objectives. Determine your quarterly and annual targets to ensure your ad efforts support your overall business goals.

Types of Ads

If budget allows, it's most effective to run ads throughout your sales and recruitment funnel. If starting small, focus on what's closest to driving revenue—conversions and lead generation.

By Intent:

• Awareness: Promote your company culture and brand identity. This can be done through engaging content that tells your company’s story and highlights your unique value proposition. Use video content, employee testimonials, and behind-the-scenes looks to humanize your brand.
• Consideration: Offer content that addresses your audience's problems, establishing yourself as a potential solution. Whitepapers, case studies, and informative blog posts can position your firm as an industry expert.
• Conversion: Encourage actions, such as applying for jobs or filling out lead gen forms, from those already aware of and considering your services. Use compelling calls-to-action (CTAs) and make it easy for users to take the next step.

By Channel:

• Brand Awareness Ads: Ensure people know who you are. These can include display ads on relevant websites, sponsored content on industry blogs, and social media campaigns.
• Search Ads: Capture job seekers and clients actively searching for your services. Use keywords that reflect the needs of your target audience, such as "IT staffing agencies" or "nursing jobs near me."
• Display Ads: Increase visibility and leverage retargeting. These ads can follow users who have visited your site but didn’t convert, reminding them of your offerings and encouraging them to return.
• Social Media Ads: Use LinkedIn and Facebook to reach candidates and clients, amplifying your existing content. Share success stories, job openings, and company news to keep your audience engaged.
• Retargeting Ads: Provide multiple nudges to candidates and prospects as they move through the funnel. Retarget users who have shown interest but haven’t yet taken action, such as filling out a contact form or completing an application.

Platforms

LinkedIn: Ideal for B2B sales and professional candidates. Use LinkedIn to share thought leadership content, job postings, and company updates. LinkedIn's targeting options allow you to reach specific industries, job titles, and geographic areas.

Facebook: Effective for broad candidate searches, especially in high-culture job categories like travel nursing and office personnel. Although Facebook’s targeting has become less robust due to PII laws, it remains a powerful tool for reaching a diverse audience. Utilize Facebook Ads to promote job openings, company culture, and employee testimonials.

Google Ads: Perfect for capturing search-intent users. Bid on keywords relevant to your job openings and services, and create targeted landing pages to convert visitors into applicants or clients that are well coordinated to your individual campaigns.

Instagram: Great for engaging a younger audience and showcasing company culture. Use Instagram Stories, Reels, and IGTV to share day-in-the-life videos, employee spotlights, and company events.

YouTube: Excellent for brand awareness and sharing in-depth stories or case studies. Create video content that highlights your company’s success stories, job openings, and industry insights.

Measuring Success

We track these KPIs using GA4, campaign data, and conversion tracking by source:

• Click-Through Rate (CTR): Measures how often people click on your ads after seeing them.
• Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, such as applying for a job or filling out a contact form.
• Cost Per Acquisition/Conversion (CPA): The cost associated with acquiring a new customer or candidate.
• Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): Measures the revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising.
• Engagement Rates (likes, shares, comments): Indicates how your audience is interacting with your content.

While you'll start seeing some results in the first few weeks, full optimization typically takes 1-3 months. It's important to continually monitor and adjust your campaigns based on performance data.

Content That Gets Results

• Engaging Visuals and Videos: Highlight job roles and areas of expertise that appeal to both candidates and potential clients. Use high-quality images and videos that capture the essence of your services, team and differentiators.
• Clear and Compelling CTAs: Encourage actions like clicking, applying, and contacting. Make your CTAs stand out and clearly state what you want the user to do next.
• Success Stories and Testimonials: Build trust and social proof. Share stories from satisfied clients and successful placements to showcase your expertise.
• Informative Blog Links and Resources: Showcase your industry expertise. Provide valuable content that addresses the needs and challenges of your audience.

In-House vs. External Partners

Both approaches can work well. It depends on your team's skill and available time. Before hiring someone for this exclusive role, consider a multi-faceted agency to help get your strategy and assets off the ground and optimized. Agencies can bring specialized knowledge and resources that can enhance your in-house efforts.

Recommended Resources

• Blogs: HubSpot, Gong, and Moz for sales marketing insights. These blogs offer valuable tips and best practices for running effective ad campaigns.
• Courses: Google Ads courses are invaluable. They provide comprehensive training on setting up and optimizing Google Ads campaigns.
• Tools: SEMrush for keywords, Paiger for social media, GA4, Dashthis, and Google Ads for tracking. These tools can help you research keywords, manage social media, and track the performance of your campaigns.

Summary

Running ads in the staffing and recruitment space requires a strategic approach that aligns with your business goals, uses a mix of ad types and platforms, and continually measures and optimizes performance. From promoting your content and services to targeting specific audiences on LinkedIn, Facebook, Google, and beyond, the right ad strategy can significantly boost your visibility, engagement, and conversions.

Remember, the key to success lies in understanding your audience, creating compelling content, and leveraging the right tools and resources to track and optimize your efforts. Whether you choose to manage your ads in-house or partner with an agency, the ultimate goal is to ensure your brand stands out and attracts the right candidates and clients.

If you have more questions or want to chat, feel free to respond here or email me at [email protected].