With the decline of print classified advertising and the increase in interaction online, it is no surprise that many recruitment companies are attempting to keep ahead of the curve by utilising the possibilities of web 2.0.

 

The dawn of web 2.0 has allowed for greater access to, and interaction with individuals. Blog posts, social networking, podcasts and vodcasts (video casts) are among the myriad of ways that people now communicate with each other online and all are valuable e-recruitment tools.

 

With the greater access to information and word of mouth referral online, job seekers are now able to perform more thorough and detailed searches for vacancies online, meaning it is important for recruiters to make full use of the various marketing means available, for example tweeting job listings on twitter, creating facebook pages, search engine optimisation and pay per click, and generally adding value to their website and online marketing efforts.

 

The ability to conduct specific job searches online has also seen an increase in both niche, industry specific, recruitment websites, such as IT recruitment websites, and the development of industry specific micro-sites or site sections on larger, established recruitment sites.

 

However, while online recruitment provides recruiters with access to more candidates, as ever, the quality of candidates often outweighs the quantity. It is for this reason that the more nimble movers in the e-recruitment market have begun to utilise one of the defining traits of web 2.0, social networking and profiling, to enable candidates to create their own profile web page.

 

Complete with CV, photograph etc, candidates are even able to perform some simple Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) on their page in order to enable them to appear in search engine rankings for particular terms and be contacted directly by companies recruiting. The candidate pages can also be searched through by the recruiters to find the most appropriate matches for vacancies. 

 

This type of format relates very closely to functionality we at Web Wise Business have currently been working on for financial advisor lead generation and is certainly a developing trend for numerous industries online.

 

Without doubt, the way people recruit and hunt for jobs is, and already has, rapidly changed from the more traditional methods. Job seekers have greater access to more jobs, and recruiters have greater access to more candidates. But the key to success from online recruitment, as a recruitment company, is ensuring that you effectively utilise these changes so that employers can more easily find more of the right candidates and job seekers can more easily find vacancies for the right jobs for them.