Short on time? Try these shortcuts!
Know who’s where: find your audience’s bullseye
If you got it, flaunt it: use that LinkedIn premium account
Post, post, and post again: blanket social media
Everyone has an inbox: send original (and funny) emails
Launch a screen takeover: use digital signage
Got a shirt: Get a QR code
Since you're already here: engage registered participants
Get your name in print: reach out to local news outlets
Check the calendar: announce on shared sites
Lights, camera, action: make a video
Carry a micro-billboard in your pocket: share business cards
Surprise donuts are awesome: pop-up with food (or prizes)
Choose smart: partner with a technology company that shares
Here’s an intriguing thought: according to Mark Twain,
“There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn, and they make new and curious combinations.”
Our Career Fair Plus (CF+) team decided to test this theory in the context of promoting recruiting events. So, have fun reading them all, scroll to whatever intrigues you, and please share your new and re-imagined ways to promote recruiting events on LinkedIn, #newrecruitingwithCF +!
Know who’s where: find your audience’s bullseye
However you market your recruiting events, it is imperative to know who you want to attract and where to find them. Consider contacting licensing authorities and exam prep businesses if you're looking for licensed professionals. Association websites and newsletters are smart ways to reach a specific demographic like K-12 job seekers. Better yet, offer to write an email blast they can blast out on their listserv.
Nationally recognized job boards often allow free posts. Search for “job boards that allow free ads” for a screenful of promotional opportunities.
Design your marketing (free) and advertising (paid) social media campaigns to reach candidates by location, degree, licensure, or years of experience. Join the digital version of happy hour networking to share your recruiting events in online groups. And hey, talk your program up at those in-person after-work hangout spots, too!
Finally, if you’re hosting a university-based recruiting event, ask club and student group leaders to encourage attendance. You can also invite popular student-athletes or campus influencers to be spokespeople for fun promotional videos broadcast on school networks.
If you got it, flaunt it: use that LinkedIn premium account
Most event hosts use LinkedIn to promote recruiting events, but our “mental kaleidoscopes” suggest not everyone’s maximizing the platform. If the budget allows, step up to LinkedIn Premium for direct contact with employers and third-party recruiters you want at your event. Start with InMail, follow up with a personal call. This approach also helps you find professionals currently job searching, considering a career change, or in touch with someone doing either.
Post, post, and post again: blanket social media
Social media is the “it place” to promote your recruiting events to employers and job seekers–as long as you’re on the right platform for your target audience. Looking for mid-career professionals to attend? Post on LinkedIn and Facebook. If you’re targeting recent graduates, it’s time to set up a Tik Tok or Snapchat account. If you’re on Handshake, promote your recruiting event in the banner space.
Do you want multinational employers and international candidates? Then ask the Internet which social media platforms perform best in which country. For example, according to Statista, India has the largest Instagram audience and France the smallest.
Share your social media copy and hashtags with your employers so they can easily promote their presence at the recruiting event. You know about tagging but do you do it? Make sure you tag, mention, or “@” registered companies to get their attention and make it easy for them to keep spreading your event news.
Everyone has an inbox: send original (and funny) emails
Sure, our inboxes are full, and we all delete without reading at least once a day. But an intriguing subject line will likely increase your open rates. For example:
Typical subject line:
Our recruiting event is almost here!
Intriguing subject line:
What’s that sneaking up behind you?
13 reasons to smile without leaving your screen
Shoe polish, QR codes, and car windows
Micro-billboards + shoe polish: recruiting in 2022
Regarding timing, Career Fair Plus suggests weekly emails to job seekers beginning three weeks before your recruiting event. Send something at the three-week mark, follow up two weeks prior, and finally three days before the program.
Secret tip: if CF+ is your technology partner, this is super easy because we’ll give you email templates!
Launch a screen takeover: use digital signage
You likely have a landing page or even a unique website for your recruiting event. Sam, the SEO guy, hooked you up; the URL appears in every email, social media post, and digital correspondence about the program. All good, right? Wrong.
Go above and beyond with a screen takeover. If you don’t have one already, create a YouTube channel and post promotional videos. And good news here, cheesy is in these days! If you’re university-based, hold up a giant QR code poster with the school fight song playing. Corporate event hosts, how about a video background promoting what, when, where, and contact info?
Got a shirt: Get a QR code
And speaking of QR codes, do you have an iron? Great. Here’s a new twist on the tried & true one-pager. Along with emailing and/or hanging that flyer where your target audience will see it, put it on your shirt! Gather a printer, one piece of iron-on transfer paper, and an iron--a few minutes later, you're a walking billboard for your recruiting event!
Since you're already here: engage registered participants
Give recruiters and job seekers already attending the event email, social media (including hashtags and links). Make it easy for them to help promote the program. And, of course, thank them for sharing with their talent pipeline, databases, co-workers, and peer groups as appropriate.
It’s easy to forget about traditional news outlets in today’s digital world. Contact area newspapers, radio stations, and community magazines if you're looking for local employers and job seekers. #newrecruitingideas #newrecruitingwithCF+
Get your name in print: reach out to local news outlets
It’s easy to forget about traditional news outlets in today’s digital world. Contact area newspapers, radio stations, and community magazines if you're looking for local employers and job seekers. Many large metropolitan papers have county or suburb-specific insert sections.
Ask if they’ll mention your recruiting event as a public service announcement or post it on a community calendar. Request coverage in print and online, if possible. You can also search their websites for “career fair” to find similar articles in previous years and reach out to the name in the byline about covering your event.
Check the calendar: announce on shared sites
We’re letting Captain Obvious sneak in to remind you to post on your organization’s or university’s shared event sites. Distribute through the listserv. If appropriate, post on shared Google calendars with a “P.S. tell your friends” reminder.
Lights, camera, action: make a video
We mentioned YouTube above as part of a screen takeover but it’s important to know some people use YouTube as a search engine. So create a channel, make a few short videos, and mention your recruiting event in each clip. Consider interviewing recruiters for registered companies and maybe past attendees who found their dream job at last year’s event. Be sure you post a registration link or your QR code.
“If you want to stand out from the crowd, give people a reason not to forget you.” ~Richard Brandson
Carry a micro-billboard in your pocket: share business cards
Business cards are still a thing. Think of it as a small, rectangular flyer with the critical information: event name, date, and….wait for it, the QR code. Or a short, easy-to-type link. Put a stack on your desk, maybe in a common area or at the local deli. You’ll be surprised how many people will grab a card, or scan the code.
Surprise donuts are awesome: pop up with food (or prizes)
Pop-up stores, parties, and entertainment (you know, flash dance mobs) aren’t new. But a pop-up promoting a recruiting event? That’s unusual. Which means it’s likely to attract interest. Use social media to tell people where you’ll be when and what, if anything, you’re giving away. For example, recruiters might respond to a registration discount, whereas you might give job seekers a donut if they register for the event at your pop-up. If you’re partnering with CF+, perhaps provide prizes to candidates who have already downloaded the CF+ app. Or up the game with various giveaways based on the number of one-on-meetings they’ve booked!
Choose smart: partner with a technology company that shares
Make sure your technology partner will help without blowing your budget. You deserve individualized registration links, unlimited onboarding, live and recorded training, and real people delivering patient tech support. You deserve Career Fair Plus with all our customizable and fun promotional tools. You'll get everything from ideas to templates!
Along with suggesting we use our “mental kaleidoscopes” to refresh our thinking, Mark Twain also said, “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”
So, let’s get started. Career Fair+ is uniquely positioned to help you build in-person, virtual, and hybrid career fairs. Request a call with one of our super-friendly problem solvers today.
