Healthcare Recruiting Videos: the strategy HR directors need when everyone is hiring
Healthcare human resources and recruiting directors know the deal. Everyone is hiring these days, so it’s a challenge attracting quality candidates. If you want your organization to stand out from the crowd, you better be able to sell it better than your competitors.
Which is why recruiting videos are an essential tool.
The Significance of Recruiting Videos
Gone are the days when recruiting videos were considered a luxury reserved for large corporations. Whether you’re a huge health system or a local clinic, you need to be able to not only tell people why they should want to work at your organization…but show them as well.
A recruiting video to HR is like an About Us to marketing. It plays a vital role in introducing prospective employees to who you are, what you do, and why you do it.
While a well-designed recruiting webpage is appealing, incorporating videos takes the experience to a whole new level.
Engaging copy on an online recruiting platform is commendable, but a video showcasing the work environment and culture of your healthcare institution is even better.
Social media posts and ads can be useful, but incorporating videos is likely to generate more clicks and engagement.
Consider these staggering statistics from Stories Inc.:
Video posts on LinkedIn are shared 20 times more than other formats.
Job postings with video icons are viewed 12% more than postings without video.
Job ads with embedded video receive 800% more engagement.
Job postings with video experience a 34% higher application rate.
Videos capture people's attention and, if done well, compel them to take action and apply. Recruiting videos serve as your initial step in creating a positive first impression of your healthcare organization.
Crafting a Recruiting Video Plan
Before we dive into the details, let's address a crucial point: you need a well-defined plan. This is where sooooo many healthcare organizations go wrong.
They’re struggling to hire, so the solution becomes… let’s produce a video.
Wrong.
Merely producing a video and considering the job done isn’t good enough.
You're investing substantial time and effort into creating these videos, and the costs associated with video production can’t be overlooked. Therefore, it's imperative to approach this process with the same level of consideration as your marketing team applies to their promotional videos.
Let's go through some key steps together:
Audience: Identifying your target audience is huge. While it may seem obvious that the videos are intended for job candidates, fine-tuning your audience will significantly enhance the effectiveness of your videos. For instance, you might create a broad video aimed at anyone applying to your healthcare institution, while another video could focus on specific job types within your organization.
Channels: Determine where you plan to showcase your videos. Naturally, your website is a primary platform, but consider other relevant channels as well. This decision will impact the perennial question: "How long should my video be?" The answer lies in understanding the dynamics of push versus pull. If you intend to primarily use the videos on social media, keep them short (1-minute or less) since you are pushing the content onto viewers who didn’t seek it out. Conversely, if candidates visit your website or discover your organization on a job recruiting platform, it's a pull situation, and you can provide more content (1-3 minutes).
Goal/Measurement: Establish clear goals for your videos and devise metrics to evaluate their success. This step is big. It not only informs you of the most effective video types but also provides tangible data to secure a budget for future videos. Whether you aim to increase click-through rates on ads or drive more application submissions through your recruiting platform, documenting the video's launch date enables you to compare performance against pre-video metrics. Did you achieve more clicks? Are there more completed applications? With solid data in hand, you can make informed decisions moving forward.
Types of Recruiting Videos
Now that we have defined our audience and determined where to showcase our videos, let's explore the various types you might consider producing. You’re only limited only by your imagination. Here's a list of popular recruiting video types to inspire your creativity:
About Us: Your marketing department may have already produced this video, which introduces your company, its mission, and its values.
Company Culture: Similar to the About Us video, this video dives deeper into what it's like to work at your healthcare organization, emphasizing your unique culture.
Mission/Values: Think of this as a culture spin-off video. Chances are your healthcare organization has a defined mission and specific values you expect team members to follow. Show job candidates all about the mission/values by producing a video.
Employee Features: These videos focus on individual employees, offering glimpses into their roles and experiences within your healthcare institution. And it doesn’t have to just be providers either. You'll be amazed by the compelling stories you can uncover when you ask the right people to participate. We produced an entire series for Catholic Health Initiatives on its corporate values. Each one featured an individual and how they embodied a particular value. Awesome stuff!
Company Initiatives: Showcase the various initiatives your healthcare organization has implemented to create an exceptional work environment.
Product/Service Videos: While marketing might typically handle these videos, they can be repurposed to provide prospects with a better understanding of the products or services your healthcare organization offers.
Watch this example of how you can bring your company values to life.
If you wish to explore more creative options, go for it! As long as your audience connects with the content and it aligns with your goals, feel free to produce innovative videos that stand out from the crowd.
The Final Step: Promote Your Videos
While following all the above suggestions is great, it's vital not to overlook this last step. You need to promote your videos.
Don’t take this lightly. It should be an integral part of your plan. You can produce the best recruiting video in the world, but if no one watches it, what was the point?
To ensure success, be intentional about crafting a comprehensive promotion plan. Determine where you plan to share your videos and whether they will live on specific pages or require continual posting.
Consider leveraging the following channels for promotion:
Social media: Capitalize on the power of social media platforms to share your videos and engage with your audience.
Company newsletter/email campaigns: Utilize your existing communication channels to reach out to your employees and potential candidates, sharing your videos and inviting them to engage.
Company website: Display your videos prominently on your website, particularly on your Careers page and About Us page.
Blog: Leverage your blog to share stories and insights related to your videos, generating interest and driving traffic to the respective videos.
Recruiting channels: Explore specialized recruiting channels where you can feature your videos to maximize exposure.
Remember, creating a promotion plan requires careful consideration of how and when you will share your videos with the world.
Your typical employee profiles are fine, but even better if you can have them tell a personal story with some real emotion. Watch the example.
Where Most Healthcare Recruiting Videos Fail
I have watched a few healthcare recruiting videos. Okay, I have watched A LOT of healthcare recruiting videos. Dozens and dozens of them. And I have noticed a common mistake.
Many of them fail to tell a story.
They’re mostly a collection of employees singing the praises of their employer. Some have team members walk people through a typical day. And there are a lot of videos featuring a voice over, videos, and graphics.
Blah.
I totally understand this. They’re trying to give job candidates information, facts and figures about the organization in hopes it will inspire them to apply.
There’s just one problem.
Video isn’t about facts and figures. Video is about emotion. And the shortcut to the heart is storytelling.
In many cases, the videos posted at Career pages are basically delivering the same message as the text on the page. What a shame! Videos can do so much more!
Let employees share their own stories. The “why” behind what they do and why they work where they work.
I’ll take one good employee story over a scripted and sanitized corporate voice over any day.
The Job Candidate’s Journey
Finally, I encourage you to consider the path your jobseeker takes all the way through until they submit an application.
You should be giving them a video to watch every step of the way. It might look something like this:
Candidate visits a jobs board.
The company’s About Us video accompanies the listing.
⬇️
Candidate then visits the Careers page at the company’s website.
Finds the culture video there.
⬇️
Candidate then clicks to learn more about the mission/values.
Sees a video detailing what the company believes in.
⬇️
Finally, the candidate clicks the link to the page with their career field (nursing, support staff, leadership, etc.).
Finds a video profile on someone in that role.
Did you see that?
Each step through their journey, they were given a video.
This is exactly the type of thought you should be putting into your healthcare video recruiting plan.
Wrapping Up
Recruiting videos have transitioned from being a luxury to a best practice in the healthcare industry. If you want to attract the most talented applicants for your organization, incorporating videos into your recruitment strategy is essential.
Producing high-quality recruiting videos will position you for success, captivating your audience and enticing them to join your organization.
Embrace this powerful tool, and watch as your recruitment efforts thrive in the competitive healthcare landscape.
