Mobile technology has completely reinvented the ways in which people interact and carry out their day. So much so that it’s all but assumed everyone around us uses a smartphone, both in their professional and personal lives, from project management tools to dating apps. Surprisingly though, we still deal with a lot organizations that haven’t fully integrated mobile practices into their business. What’s more, in a candidate driven market, failure to adapt could mean missing out on that next placement. Here we’ll discuss a few key areas where companies need to prioritize mobile functionality to stay competitive.
Update Your Application Process
According to a recent survey, 89% of job seekers say their mobile device is an critical tool for job searching, while 45% of them say they search for open positions on their smart phone daily. But despite the overwhelming statistics, a lot of organizations still haven’t implemented a mobile friendly process. As of 2018, only 39% of organizations had optimized their career pages for mobile. With today’s record unemployment, companies that are slow to adapt mobile optimization are likely to miss out on quality talent, as highly skilled candidates prefer to work for employers they view as innovative and cutting edge.
Depending on your business, it may also be beneficial to your organization to use mobile recruiting apps, too. New platforms like Switch and JobR can help staffing organizations quickly improve their talent search and expand their overall reach. JobR, for example, is for candidates and recruiters alike: Hiring managers can connect the application to their LinkedIn profile page, create a job posting based on their requirements, then swipe through potential candidates on the job hunt. If you’re in fast paced recruiting environment, these apps can give you a competitive edge over other organizations.
Start Texting
It’s estimated that millennials will make up a majority of the workforce by 2025. That being the case, recruiters need to establish text messaging as a form of communication to engage younger workers. Your young employees already know this, but it’s important to get your senior recruiters on board with this strategy too. Statistics show that text messages on average have a 97% open rate, and that 73% of job seekers like to receive targeted job opportunities via text. And from an efficiency standpoint, it doesn’t take a whole lot of time out of your day to send off a quick SMS. Getting your recruiters to use this tactic will allow them to allocate their efforts elsewhere and be more productive.
Optimize Your Emails for Mobile
According to a recent survey, 3 out of 4 individuals check their email most often on their smartphone. So, if you’re sending out a lot of emails to candidates, you need to ensure that they’re optimized for mobile, especially if you’re sending marketing emails. We’ve all received those emails that don’t display correctly our phones, or the ones that have links to a less than mobile friendly website. In fact, 32% of respondents say that emails that are too small to read are the biggest annoyance, while 26% say un-optimized landing pages are their biggest turnoff. So if you have concerns, use plain text emails. But if you want to include graphics, video or hyperlinks, send a test email to yourself to make sure everything displays properly. Taking the extra step and the attention to detail will help you and your firm lessen any potential candidate fallout
In Conclusion…
The numbers don’t lie: Mobile is the new norm, yet there’s still a surprising amount resistance to adopt mobile practices across their organizations. If this you or your firm, consider implementing some of these tactics above to keep pace with your competitors. The more you wait, the more it’ll hurt your business in the long run, especially if candidates have to endure a long application process or can’t read your emails. The recruiting field is constantly shifting; and while we can’t predict the future, it’s all but guaranteed that mobile practices will become the standard throughout the industry.
