I recently dispelled 2 of the 5 myths of recruitment marketing.  Today, I want to discuss Myth #3 and share some important studies and surveys from recruitment professionals that clearly dispel this myth. They contend that newspaper recruitment advertising is widely used but is not a cost effective strategy.

Myth #3: Posting jobs in the newspaper is a cost-effective recruitment strategy.

“A survey of human resource executives revealed that print ranked the lowest when it comes time to finding good candidates. Seventy percent of respondents said print was either “very ineffective” or “ineffective” up 60% from 2006.”  from Classified Intelligence Report.

Mary Maxwell wrote in Nursing Economics, “I have seen many hospitals spend several thousands of dollars on an oversized classified advertisement for the local Sunday paper that nets few, if any, qualified candidates. Newspaper advertisements are one of the least cost-effective methods for attracting candidates.”

Most of us are creatures of habit and take the path of least resistance. Recruiters have used print successfully for many years and have strong relationships with newspaper staff. They have built their budgets around print as the center piece of their campaign and in the past it has served them well.

In today’s job market, the competition for talent is fierce.  Today’s job seeker (Gen X, Gen Y) has changed. They are more mobile, live on cell phones and Facebook, don’t read the newspaper often, selectively watch TV, change jobs every 2 years , and searching for a company that fits their values. In many industries the job seeker is the “buyer” of a position and the company is selling the job. This demonstrates a role reversal.

The Bernard Hodes Group conducted a retention study and surveyed information from 751 employed, active, and passive job seekers.  They surveyed the sources they are using or would use to look for work and how they actually found their current position.  Results of the survey were shared by Leslie Stevens in her post Where people are looking for jobs. 49% of the respondents, “would use or are using newspaper resources to find a new position”, but only 12% say they “found their present job through an newspaper source”. 

“Posting vacancies externally through the various arms of the media ( e.g., Newspaper, TY) or via employment agencies reaches a wider audience and may turn up a greater number of potential candidates from which the organization can choose. At the same time, this method is relatively expensive and time-consuming …limit(ing) the frequency and duration of the job posting, as well as the amount of information made available, thus making it difficult for a job seeker to accurately judge the worth of the position being offered. “  Margaret A. Richardson, RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES:MANAGING/EFFECTING THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS  

Progressive companies face the challenge of making their recruitment strategy relevant to the new job seeker demographic. The old print recruitment strategy is one dimensional (sterile), not cost effective, rich in information, interactive and doesn’t provide a full picture of the employer.  Companies need to re-invent their recruitment strategy focusing on integrated media (including social media, video, and search engine optimization) to attract scare talent and passive job seekers. They need to let go of the “print habit” and go with a more responsive, results-oriented approach that reflects their target market!  Why waste valuable budget dollars on “eyeballs” that are not interested in your postings. 

I will talk about Myth #4: Posting jobs on national job sites is a cost effective recruitment strategy in my next post.

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Tags: human resource, recruitment advertising, Recruitment Marketing, recruitment strategy

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