If you are part of the recruitment team in a healthcare organisation then you will be well aware of the challenges finding skilled, qualified staff can bring. This is only likely to increase in the future with the additional questions that Brexit poses. The uncertainty around the continued use of nurses from abroad post-Brexit has left many organisations planning for potentially losing a large part of the current nursing population.
When you also factor in there is a shortage of nurses and other clinicians in the NHS and private sector then it becomes clear that a smarter, more effective recruitment process is required. While many healthcare organisations rely on agency staff, this is costly and not a long-term solution.
To really target and attract the very best candidates in the modern workplace, social media is highly effective. Using this kind of digital nurse recruitment tactic can see you reach more of the audience you want to with greater impact.
More people own a smartphone than a toothbrush…
A common fact that is published now is that more people own a smartphone than a toothbrush! This has led to social media channels like Facebook becoming very valuable tools to recruit with as they have a large audience. Indeed, in terms of healthcare marketing, most potential candidates will exist online at these social media channels rather than in the purely physical world. Why therefore are so many healthcare organisations still making use of traditional advertising methods such as print advertising to attract potential candidates?
Why is social media so effective for helping to recruit staff?
The main reason is that you reach many more of the people you want to when using a social media-driven recruitment and marketing campaigns. Facebook, for example, has a very powerful targeting feature that allows you to specifically aim your efforts at a particular demographic. With the ability to target potential candidates based on their job title or interests you can make sure your job ads are being seen by people with the right qualifications and who are likely have an interest in the role.
For HR managers, the other key advantage of using a social media campaigns to drive recruitment is how much better it is at fulfilling your objectives. This digital way of working makes it so much simpler and quicker to accurately track and monitor the success of recruitment campaigns. It can also help to let candidates know more about you in terms of your organisation’s USPs or requirements. This makes it an area that HR departments need to engage with and work with their marketing team on for best results.
Let Medico Digital help today
There is no doubt that social media is a fantastic tool for targeted recruitment but it also needs an expertly run, professional campaign to succeed. For many healthcare organisations, they simply don’t have the time to create engaging content or reply to messages that come back once the campaign starts.
If you need some help with using social media for staff recruitment, contact us today and let us make it easy for you.
