Over the last couple years, there have been many posts written about companies using Instagram as a marketing tool to raise brand awareness, drive leads, even increase in-store or online sales.
But there haven’t been a lot of posts talking about how companies are using Instagram to recruit and retain employees.
But that’s exactly what I’d like to talk about today. Because, somewhat surprisingly, there are a number of companies out there using Instagram in this way–they’re just a little tougher to find.
Let’s take a look at four companies using Instagram to recruit and retain talent–and what they’re doing right:
Marriott
• Creative idea to ask employees to hold signs of employment dates. Simple, but effective, for Marriott.
• Visual use of quotes from Marriott leaders. Similar to what you see a lot of brands doing on Facebook. Translates well to Instagram.
Yelp
• Behind-the-scenes shots at Yelp headquarters—daily-in-the-life vignettes. Yelp does a nice job here of giving job-seekers a glimpse into what it’s like to work for the company.
• Images showing progress for Yelp (NYSE shot) as a start-up company. I think this is important for a start-up as it shows growth, potential for the future and potential for employees. Remember, employees want to work for winners.
• Yelp is not taking itself too seriously—Instagram photos show personality so prospective employees know what they’re all about. It won’t work for all brands, but Yelp pulls this off well. But, even more conservative brands have a personality. Let it come through in photos.
CME Group
• CME Group lets employees snap photos for its Instagram feed—giving followers a glimpse into many different offices/perspectives. Love this idea as it also offers different kinds of shots–which give a more global perspective for a company as large as CME Group.
• Great use of historical photos to give followers a feel for the company’s roots. Loved what CME Group did here, using archived pics to highlight their history.
• Simple shots of the cityscapes the different CME Group offices are in—giving followers a sense for the markets it works in. Again, simple, but smart. What markets does CME Group work in? The cityscape shots tell the story.
Starbucks
• Starbucks links its employer branding efforts to its master brand work on Instagram—one account for both. I tend to think this is the right path for most brands. After all, how many employer branding-type shots would you really include each week? Better to work it in with the main brand account–more interaction, visibiity that way, too.
• Starbucks using Instagram to highlight its work in the community. Great use of the tool–using Instagram to showcase its hard work in the communities it serves. I see all sorts of potential for companies here on the recruiting front to highlight the causes they care about.
• Using a combination of single photos and collages to pull people in. Much like Facebook, don’t forget about the “album” format to show more than one photo at one time on Instagram. Great way to tell a story of an event or day with a collage!
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