Any business currently recruiting will understand how difficult it is to stand out from the competition and attract the best candidates.

We're here to help you navigate this tricky landscape with a not-so-secret but under utilised weapon: recruitment videos!

Why recruitment videos are your secret weapon

Recruitment videos are not new, but there are still plenty of companies who are not using them as part of their recruitment strategy. Oh dear!

If you're one of the only companies in your industry not using video, it will be hard to stand out from your competition. On the flip side, if you're the first in your industry or local area to make a recruitment video, you'll instantly be ahead of the rest.

A great recruitment video is like a virtual introduction to your company. Very quickly, the viewer can understand your mission and get a sense of your employee culture. This helps you establish a connection with potential candidates before they've even had an interview.

Why candidates love recruitment videos

A big part of job hunting is research. And a recruitment video provides the information a candidate needs to know in one accessible place.

People love to envisage the lifestyle they'll have if they join your team. What will the offices look like? What would a typical day look like? What kind of people would I be working with?

Without a recruitment video, the only visual references potential candidates have are your highly edited website and social channels. And even if you have posted regular video content on those channels, it's likely to be client or customer facing content that hasn't been specifically designed to showcase the behind-the-scenes moments that a candidate will be more interested in.

Authenticity is key

It's important to note that a recruitment video is another piece of marketing content. If a candidate watches some over-produced, self congratulatory, disingenuous showreel, you could come across wanky and inauthentic. The more candid you can be, the more authentic and trustworthy you'll come across.

Simple differences like cutting together interviews from a range of people in your team instead of delivering a script to camera will instantly make the video feel more approachable and less salesly.

Different styles of recruitment videos

You'll need to get the tone right to appeal to the kind of candidates you want to attract. What kind of videos and content does your candidate usually consume? If you're attracting Gen Z candidates, a slow-mo corporate style video probably won't appeal, whereas that might be perfect for a local law firm trying to attract Gen X professionals.

Here are some examples of different styles of recruitment videos:

Ask Me Anything

A fun recruitment video concept is an 'Ask Me Anything' session with various team members answering questions like 'what does a typical day look like at XYZ' or 'What's surprised you the most about working at XYZ'.

This can be shot relatively simple set up, similar to the 'You can't ask that' ABC series.

The highlight reel

Think 'a week in the life of an XYZ employee'. Showcase as many aspects as you can to give an overarching view of what it would be like working at your organisation. Include shots of the team on site, the office or WFH set up, the social events, meeting with clients, and of course the office doggo for brownie points.

This can all be shot in a day or two with multiple staged set ups. Cut this b-roll footage with interviews from staff, and you'll have a holistic view of what it means to be a part of your team.

The sketch comedy recruitment video

Don't be afraid to add some personality and a sense of humour into your recruitment video. Whether you're recreating an episode of The Office, showing your workplace from the office dog's POV, or creating an anti-recruitment 'here's why you shouldn't work here' video, comedy allows you to show off you personality and company culture in a lighthearted way.

It's important to say that comedy is hard to pull off so it is best to hire professionals with experience in this genre, but with the right team, you can create something unique, entertaining and memorable.

Staff-generated-content

A simple way to feature your team and talk about your company is through staff submitted content. Professional editors can work wonders even with phone footage, so ask your team to film themselves answering the same question or prompt such as 'sum up the workplace in 1 word' or 'what does being a XYZ employee mean to you'.

This is a more relaxed style of staff testimonial video that can be cheaper to put together than a fully produced shoot.

Team interviews

Communicate the information through interviews with various team members who the potential candidate is likely to interact with. Interviews are great for getting information across in a less formal way than with scripted content.

How to get the most bang for your buck

The good news is that your company culture, purpose and missions don't change frequently (hopefully), so a well-planned recruitment video should last you a few years. Depending on the tone and style of your video, often the footage shot on the day can be multi-purposed and edited into bite size videos that can be used on social media channels, in email marketing campaigns, and on your website.

For example, most recruitment videos will feature someone in your team talking about the business, the brand story and its mission. That section could serve as a perfect brand awareness piece of content for client facing purposes. If planned correctly, you'll get enough content to satisfy multiple departments.

How to get started on a recruitment video

You can get in touch with our team to chat about making a recruitment video for your company. We'll discuss the audience (your ideal candidates), your brand guidelines, and the style of recruitment video you'd like to create.

Armed with a great recruitment video, you'll be attracting the best candidates in no time.