Terra Firma Associates Blog

We have been reading about lots of predictions for 2013, so we thought we would share our top 10:

1. Press advertising will continue to fall – no surprises there, we hear you say. However, press had survived longer with our international organization clients than with many other sectors due to the exacting regulations surrounding the recruitment process. However, 2012 was the year in which budget constraints went head to head with the requirement to make campaigns as visible as widely as possible and press fell precipitously. What has filled the gap…? read on.

2. Access to social media in the workplace comes of age – when we ran a survey of our clients just over a year ago, most of them did not have access to social media in the workplace. This was a clear block to many of our clients being able to explore social media as an attraction strategy. Things have changed significantly based on a quick straw poll we took at the recent UN-EPSO Career Development Roundtable which showed that far more organisations are giving their staff access to Facebook and Twitter. So, how will organisations use this increased access…?

3. Social media advertising will continue to rise – clients have been getting some good results with social media advertising – particularly on LinkedIn. As prospective candidates spend more and more time in the social media sphere, this is an obvious way for recruiters to go when it comes to targeting. The apps themselves are also offering a wider range of targeting options and tools – although they will need to tread a fine line if they are to avoid being seen as too intrusive. Recruiters will also need to watch for user concerns about overly aggressive advertising channels to ensure that their approaches are seen as appropriate.

4. Use of social media will increase but slowly – the adoption of social media as a tool for attraction and engagement has not moved as quickly as in the private sector. Key challenges that recruiters cite include lack of time and resources as well as concerns about being flooded by applications from candidates who don’t have the relevant qualifications. However, case studies are beginning to emerge such as CERN’s experiences recruiting using social media which you can read about here. (http://recruitmentbuzz.co.uk/cern-sees-surge-in-job-applicants-after-turning-to-social-media/?goback=%2Egde_4749959_member_200459353) We think that these success stories combined with the need to attract more qualified candidates more cost effectively will see an increase in organisations exploring social media in the coming year.

5. LinkedIn usage will continue to grow – LinkedIn has long been seen as the “acceptable (i.e. professional) face of social media. They have and continue to grow significantly. However, uptake of their services is being hampered by the challenges with their customer support – particularly for “smaller” organisations (i.e. those with more limited budgets!) who just don’t get on their priority list for service. Whilst they offer some good products, their pricing is not cheap and some of their services are not always financially viable for clients with limited budgets. They have made a lot of changes to their offering in 2012 but there is still room for improvement in their targeting options. Definitely to be watched in 2013.

6. Facebook usage will increase – Facebook is now the top social media app in 127 countries around the world as reported in the latest “World map of social networks” (http://vincos.it/world-map-of-social-networks/). The demographics of users are shifting to include more experienced people – indeed, there are rumours that some teens are actually turning away from it as being for “older people.” As a company, Facebook is continuing to seek out ways to generate revenues from this vast audience and will need to become more company friendly to do so. It already offers a number of different ways to engage candidates and we see these options increasing and also becoming increasingly targeted.

7. Mobile accessibility will become a must have – the growth in people using their mobile phones to access both the internet and social media is changing the reach of organisations’ digital presence dramatically – in regions like Africa, mobile has simply leapfrogged broadband access offering reach in places which were previously inaccessible. However, to take advantage of this shift, it will be important for companies to ensure that their websites look good on a mobile platform and that they can be engaged with socially. Other mobile tactics e.g. mobile advertising and mobile apps are worth exploring, but are not for everyone.

8. The power of visual engagement continues to grow – Pinterest has been a huge hit in 2012 – people have been talking about how to harness it for recruitment but we haven’t seen any examples yet. However, video has taken off – channels like YouTube have had a big impact. Beyond the platform itself, the principle that a site needs to be visually engaging as well as content rich is truer than it has ever been.

9. You CAN produce your own visual content – traditionally, organisations felt they had to produce high end (for which read expensive) visual content. Whilst the cost of high quality content has come down significantly, companies are also feeling more confident about producing their own content inhouse on a shoestring. It has the added advantage of being seen as more authentic by viewers.

10. Media planners aren’t going to disappear! Of course, we would say this, but as the channels and routes for engagement continue to grow almost exponentially, the need to share experience with your peers and get support and guidance from people operating in this space every day is only going to get more important.

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