A solid majority of job seekers use online search applications. How can organizations increase the effectiveness of their presence on these sites?

Even though job seekers are most likely to use personal connections and resources during the job hunt, the data indicate that it is important for organizations to make an effort to improve their Web-based job search communication. Why? One job seeker said, "Sending résumés online seems like a black hole, where I have a random chance of being considered." Others say it is hard to stand out in online databases, in part because of the lack of human contact. "You cannot sell yourself this way because you cannot get face-to-face interviews without knowing someone," one respondent said. For applicants to perceive this experience as effective and avoid feeling like the online job search is a "black hole," an organization's Web-based recruiting pitches and its employment branding communication must be clear, accurate, and honest.

Whether making changes to their career or recruiting Web site or developing new job descriptions and ads for online databases and networking sites, organizations need to provide as much credible, compelling, and connecting information as possible about their work, culture, mission, and values. While keeping the content easy to navigate and truly reflective of the group's employment brand, the organization should apply as much of a "human touch" to the content as possible. Images of current employees, dynamic and creative content, and informative videos featuring a "day in the life" in the company are just a few ways that organizations can creatively and effectively convey their employment brand.

Crafting a message that's consistent with your employment brand is just the beginning though. It is essential to communicate with applicants via the Web by sending a thank you e-mail upon receipt of an application, by clearly describing the next steps in the hiring process through career Web sites and online databases, and by regularly updating applicants on their status. These proactive measures can help bolster job seekers' opinions of the organization's employment brand. (See "Job Applicants Are Customers Too" in the "See Also" area on this page.)

Companies should embrace the opportunity to communicate via the agile nature of the Internet; those that can harness the unique and dynamic options available online can effectively reach job seekers and applicants. However, the availability of constant, nearly unfiltered content on the Web is both a gift and a curse. Companies must be aware of their existing employment brand presence on the Web and what is being written and said about them online. Audits can be conducted by searching job database sites, social networks, Internet search engines, blogs, etc., to study the types of information job seekers can find about the organization on the Web.

Maximizing the old and the new

It is nearly impossible to recreate the Web's ability to transmit and disseminate information about a company and its jobs to any and all seekers. However, the use of Web-based recruiting sites and tools is still in its infancy, and it is too early to stop using them and rely solely on the channels that job seekers currently use most and find the most effective -- namely, referrals and recommendations from friends and family and organizations' employees and customers.

Trying to find the right balance between emphasizing the search functions job seekers say they use and improving offerings in the tools and resources potential employees say are most effective during the job hunt is an ongoing challenge. But no matter what the balance, organizations that spend the time and resources to develop a truthful and dynamic employment brand and then properly and effectively communicate the brand will appeal to today's job seekers.

Ultimately, organizations should research and understand which channels are used most frequently by their most talented applicants -- and then spend their time improving their recruitment processes based on this research. This will have a direct impact on the number of talented individuals they can bring in to strengthen their workforce.

Results are based on an online survey conducted with a targeted U.S. sample of 1,376 adults aged 18 and over who were seeking a job. The data were collected between August 28 and September 16, 2007. To participate in this survey, participants had to be looking for a full-time or part-time job within the past six months. For results based on the total sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±2.7 percentage points.

Copyright Ó 2008 The Gallup Organization, Princeton, NJ.  All rights reserved.  Reprinted with permission.  Visit The Gallup Management Journal at http://gmj.gallup.com/

Article from The Gallup Management Journal