What Is a Recruitment Video and Why Should You Have One?

Envision a time when you were applying for jobs. You’d browse Indeed, LinkedIn, company pages—you name it—for hours on end. It was monotonous and quite frustrating, trying to find that “perfect job”. Not to mention, do you recall those super long, drawn-out explanations about the job, the business, the ideal candidate, so on and so forth? Sure, that stuff IS important, but it gets tiring after the 187th job description, only to have actually applied to 11 of them... 

Wouldn’t the job application process have been easier if there were videos that portrayed the company culture, the type of candidate they were looking to hire, and other pertinent details to know when job hunting? It would have saved substantial time, while also providing a clear depiction of whether or not the company was a good fit for you. 

This is where recruitment videos play a valuable role in helping applicants find the right career path for them, while helping organizations like yours find the perfect candidate for the job.

What is a Recruitment Video?

A recruitment video is visual content that provides a clear representation of your organization’s values and company culture. This video is shown during the talent acquisition phase (learn more by reading Retention: Key Mindsets that Retain Top Talent by Colene Rogers) to attract ideal candidates.

Benefits of Recruitment Videos for Your Organization

Creating a recruitment video can have numerous benefits, both for the job candidates and for your organization. Here are some potential advantages:

Attracts ideal candidates. A recruitment video paints a picture of what working at your organization would look like, eliminating applicants who do not align with your company’s culture. These applicants could have gone through the hiring process, only to determine that the organization was not a good fit (for you or for them). Or, they may have even been hired and accepted the role, only to realize months later that they were unhappy in it. A recruitment video can limit your interviews to exemplary candidates, excited about working for your organization.

Humanizes the brand. Reading text about a job description makes it just that—a job description. A recruitment video shows real people working at a potential organization of interest to the applicant. It creates a personable, relatable experience for job candidates, allowing them to “meet” potential coworkers, to get a glimpse of the office, and to hear why employees recommend working there. It becomes real and more attractive.

Stands out from competitors. If your competitors don’t have a recruitment video, creating one is a way to stand out. If a potential candidate is looking at two similar roles, but only one has a recruitment video, he or she will feel more connected to that organization, without even having stepped foot in it. People can view hundreds of job descriptions and barely remember which ones they applied to, but a video is a clear way to leave an impression and make your brand memorable, compared to others. Additionally, if your competitors do have a recruitment video, make yours better. ;) 

Saves time AND money. A recruitment video can help you receive applicants at a faster rate, which can ultimately lead to filling the role faster. If the role is filled faster, money can be saved on job sites and advertising.

Improves employee retention rates. Your employees are hired after getting a true glimpse of what it’s like to work for your organization. This process helps set expectations for the new hire, which can result in lower turnover rates and higher retention. 

Builds trust. Presenting your organization’s culture and expectations at the forefront fosters transparency, making it easier for a potential new hire to trust the company. 

Improves SEO (search engine optimization) rankings and builds brand awareness. Google loves videos! According to ClickZ, video drives a 157% increase in organic traffic from SERPs (search engine results pages). Promoting your brand through video (both for recruiting and otherwise) can improve your SEO ranking and get your brand noticed by more ideal applicants.

Important Tips for Making a Recruitment Video

Yes—a recruitment video can provide many benefits to your organization’s onboarding process; however, only a GOOD recruitment video will have these benefits. It is important not to create a video that will have an adverse effect. When making a recruitment video, it is important to keep the following in mind:

Keep it short. According to Talent Economy, recruitment videos should range between two-five minutes. People are busy, so you want to provide them with a clear vision of your organization, but spare them the nitty gritty. A good commercial can grab your attention in 30 seconds; a bad one will divert your attention to the kitchen to get a snack. Discuss the basics, but entice them to apply.

Be authentic. If it is clear that employees are reading off a script, it can come across as inauthentic. It is best to get people who are comfortable on camera and can speak without needing to read from a script. 

Hire or use a professional. Some of you may have a tech savvy videographer on your team, while most of you probably do not. The quality of your video is critical, so spend the money to hire a professional. While it may cost more on the front end to hire someone, you just learned that recruitment videos will save you money in the long run! 

Highlight common questions or concerns candidates typically have during the early interview stages. These questions can be about promotion opportunities, PTO, and other common concerns one has when job searching. Answering these questions prior to an in-person interview makes the job and its expectations clear, limiting the number of recruits who drop out of the interviewing process after the first round. For more advice on the recruitment process and interview tips, view our e-book: Top 5 Interview Tips: The Skills and Techniques You Need to Secure Top Talent. 

Include a CTA (call-to-action). A CTA is a form of content intended to prompt an immediate response (or sale). Once a potential candidate watches the video, your desired CTA is probably for them to apply. Therefore, providing a link to the company’s career site to complete the application would be perfect. 

Update every few years. Even though you may have filmed the best recruitment video of all time, it doesn’t do any good if the video was filmed ten years ago. You may have different employees, updated policies, maybe even a new building! Make sure the candidate can see what it’s like to work there—today.

Where to Share Your Recruitment Video

There are many opportunities for you to share your recruitment video with potential candidates. It would be beneficial to share it on multiple platforms to build awareness across each of your channels. Try sharing your video to the following pages:

1. Career sites and microsites 
2. Social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram, Youtube, etc.)
3. Review profiles (i.e. Glassdoor)
4. Advertising networks 

If a potential new hire has not viewed the recruitment video, but is going through the interview process, it would be a great opportunity to share it during the interview or to send it via email after the first round. 

Check out some of the best recruitment videos, according to Vervoe (an AI company designed to find the best candidates) for more inspiration.

Additional HR Resources

You can stay informed, educated, and up-to-date with important HR topics using BerniePortal’s comprehensive resources:

• BernieU—free online HR courses, approved for SHRM and HRCI recertification credits
• Resource Library—tools, templates, and checklists on an extensive list of HR topics
• BerniePortal Blog—a one-stop shop for HR industry news
• HR Glossary—featuring the most common HR terms, acronyms, and compliance
• HR Party of One—our popular YouTube series and podcast, covering emerging HR trends and enduring HR topics