If you’ve never thought of using social media in your franchisee recruitment process, you could be missing a trick. More and more businesses are turning to sites like Facebook and Twitter to find suitable candidates to join their teams, and there’s no reason why you can’t do the same.
According to the UK-based recruiter directory Agency Central, 100 percent of the contacts in its network are active on LinkedIn, and 75 percent have a presence on Facebook. Additionally, 63 percent use Twitter to find job candidates and 53 percent take advantage of opportunities provided by Instagram.
If you’ve never considered using social media to recruit franchisees, keep reading to learn why you should change direction when it comes to finding investors.
Advantages of using social media as a recruiting tool
- You can post about available territory agreements, business milestones and other events to get word out about your franchise
- The vast majority of young people have profiles on at least one social media platform, so you can find fresh talent by using specific sites
- You can target people who aren’t actively looking for work and encourage them to consider your investment opportunity
- It’s been proven to be more successful than other techniques - for example, it’s roughly five times more effective than cold calling (Agency Central)
How to use social media for recruiting new franchisees
Here’s our summary of the best 14 tips on using social media for franchisee recruitment.
1. Build up a presence slowly
Having a badly organised or inactive social media account can be incredibly off-putting for users and give the impression your business is unprofessional or even unsuccessful. To avoid creating ineffective profiles, focus on one social media site at first and develop a high-quality page before increasing your portfolio.
2. Complete your LinkedIn profile page
LinkedIn is the most popular social media site for recruiters, but many bosses overlook the importance of a full profile page. Adding as much information and resources as you can will help improve your ranking on search engines and increase your chances of reaching your target audience.
3. Share original content
You can present your franchise as a leader in its industry and capture the attention of social media users by creating and sharing original articles, infographics and videos. Aim to develop interesting and high-quality content, as it’ll get more eyes on your brand.
4. Engage with followers
The clue is in the name - social media is all about connecting with others and creating a dialogue. So, don’t forget to interact with your followers. Reply to any comments on your posts and direct messages you receive. You’ll open the doors for prospective investors to make their first contact with your franchise.
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-5. Connect on a personal level
Investors want to represent and work for authentic brands, so you could consider stepping back from your shiny corporate persona. Experienced entrepreneurs will receive countless messages from LinkedIn recruiters, but you can stand out from the crowd with a personal approach.
6. Create videos
One of the best ways to grab people’s attention and show them what it’s like working for your franchise is to film a video. These days, you don’t need a professional camera crew - just a mobile phone. Consider sharing livestreams during special events, Q&A sessions or a ‘day in the life’ at your company.
7. Vary your content
A quick way to lose followers is to publish boring, uninspiring content, so mix up your posts and resist the temptation to focus solely on your recruitment schemes. Intersperse adverts for franchise opportunities with original articles about industry trends and conversation starters, for instance.
>> Read more:
- Recruitment: Why Your Employees Are The Face Of Your Brand
- 10 Ways to Boost Employee Happiness, Engagement, and Satisfaction
- Improving your franchise recruitment strategy
- Tips for Recruitment and Selection
- Tips for Managing Employee Turnover
- 5 Effective Employee Engagement Strategies for Your Business
8. Get your teams involved
While you might hire someone to manage your social media profiles on a daily basis, handing over the login details to other team members can work well from time to time. Employees know what it’s like working at the company and interacting with your customers, so they can provide insight and a new perspective for investors thinking of joining the franchise.
9. Know your target candidates
Before you decide which social media sites to use for franchisee recruitment, consider the type of investors you’d prefer to attract. Are you looking for fresh new talent for your dynamic, youth-focussed brand? Or do you need entrepreneurs with decades of experience in your industry? If you have a specific demographic, you may be able to tailor your social media strategy to target the sites they’re more likely to use.
10. Join groups
Becoming a member of various business circles can help you find and connect with the right people. Do your research to work out which social media groups to join. You can also boost your chances of reaching suitable investors by using relevant hashtags, such as #franchiseopportunities and #franchiseforsale.
11. Use analytics tools
Sites like Facebook have developed their own analytical tools to help users find out how their followers are engaging with their pages. By taking advantage of them, you can gain information on the people who are interested in joining the business and improve your social media strategies.
12. Connect your accounts
If you’ve set up profiles on a number of social media platforms, you can manage them all in one place, thanks to a growing number of software packages. Products from companies like Bullhorn, Jobvite and Recruiterbox can sync and schedule your posts and even send out responses to people who engage with your profiles.
13. Don’t overlook Pinterest
You may never have considered Pinterest as a place to attract franchisees, but employers are already using the site to their advantage. People are 80 percent more likely to read something if it includes colourful visuals (Digital Media Stream), so Pinterest has lots of potential for recruiters. Building up pin boards could increase the chances of investors stumbling across your brand.
14. Consider less popular sites like Snapchat
Finally, have you ever considered Snapchat as a franchisee recruitment tool? It isn’t for everyone, but it can help you give young and tech-savvy investors a peek behind the curtain at your franchise. You could encourage people to follow your account by publishing exclusive content and releasing franchising news before officially announcing it across other sites.
Franchisee recruitment
Learn more about mastering your franchisee recruitment scheme and other aspects of running a franchise network with our daily articles. You can use the search box to find information on specific topics.
Alice Tuffery, Point Franchise ©
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