How the internet has shaped recruitment

The internet has become a powerful tool enabling brands to reach consumers regardless of location. Research indicates 99% of adults aged 16-44 are internet users in the UK, demonstrating the vitality of this tool for modern marketeers.

As consumers are increasingly becoming digitally led, the impact on the performance of physical high-street stores is significant. On National Internet Day, this got us wondering how changes in consumer behaviours have affected us as recruiters.

To gather the best insight into this, we spoke to our Managing Consultant Sally, about some of the changes she has seen during her time in recruitment.

Email is now a key communication tool for recruiters, with 85% relying on the tool to build relationships with candidates and keep in touch with clients. As it is seemingly more cost effective than older methods, this platform now generates the highest ROI for recruitment firms, demonstrating the internet is a pivotal tool for streamlining business practices.

With the introduction of email and social platforms, the strategies behind recruitment have shifted significantly. Employer branding and having a marketing presence is now vital to candidate acquisition. Linkedin members following your brand, for example, are 95% more likely to accept your InMail messages - prompting access to the passive talent market which we previously would not have had direct access to.

The days of using the local newspaper to source jobs are disappearing, as 60% of candidates now use online job boards to search for roles, with a further 56% using professional networks like LinkedIn. From a recruiter perspective, this has opened up the talent market, where we are now able to easily access candidates looking to re-locate and to access different sectors.

Though the internet has increased recruiter accessibility, brands need to be careful of the online image they are portraying to ensure continued candidate attraction. When applying for jobs 75.9% of candidates seek information on the organisation through social media. Followed by research into culture, positioning, career opportunities and existing employee profiles. This highlights that though the internet has increased accessibility, brands should exercise a level of caution.