Recruiting where they scroll
Most of your future colleagues aren't on a job board. They're scrolling during their break and on the couch. Being visible there with the right story, that's social recruitment.
What is social recruitment?
Social recruitment is hiring via social media: being visible to candidates with targeted campaigns and content on channels like Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn, even when they're not actively looking. At SocialFind it's a tool within the RPO approach: the channel follows from the target audience, never the other way around.
How we determine what your vacancies needRecruitment via social media in 5 steps
STEP BY STEPThis is how we build a social recruitment campaign that does not stop at reach, but carries through to the hire.
- 01
Define target group and channel
Who are you looking for, where are those people online and what moves them? The channel follows from that: LinkedIn, TikTok, Meta or Snapchat, or a combination.
- 02
Create content that stops the scroll
Short videos with your real colleagues, on the real shop floor, in the right format per channel. No stock images, no corporate film.
- 03
Set up campaign and targeting
Region, age, interests and job profile translated into targeting, plus retargeting for those who watched but did not respond yet.
- 04
A funnel without barriers
From ad to application in a few minutes, mobile and without a CV requirement. This is where you would otherwise lose most of your reach.
- 05
Follow up, measure and adjust
Follow up every candidate quickly and personally. Meanwhile we test ads, audiences and budgets and adjust weekly towards what delivers applications.
Targeting is no magic button
On Meta much of the real selection sits in the creative, the message and the proposition. And social does not lead to a careers site first: our first goal is contact, depth comes later. Then we follow up, assess and steer towards the hire.
Also the people who aren't looking
LATENT REACH
If you only advertise on job sites, you only reach active seekers. On social you reach exactly the people who are open to something new but would never search for it themselves. For scarce target audiences, that's often the only route.
How to reach latent talentSocial recruitment is one of the tools within our RPO approach. We use it when your target audience can be reached on social, and always in combination with recruitment marketing, content and the funnel behind it.
Which channel fits which target audience?
That's the key question, and the answer differs per role. Channels like Meta and TikTok are examples that can work very well for practical and operational audiences, while LinkedIn tends to fit specialist profiles. But we never promise a channel up front: the analysis of your vacancy, target audience and labor market determines the mix, and the results determine whether that mix stays.
More than placing an ad
Anyone can switch on a campaign. The difference is in the combination: content that connects with the target audience, targeting that's right, a funnel without hurdles and fast follow-up afterwards. If one link is missing, you pay for reach without results.
What a post says decides whether anyone stays with it, and on LinkedIn almost all of that sits in the first two lines. What belongs there, what does not, and who is best placed to post it is set out in How do you write a LinkedIn post that gets replies?
With Meta ads from our own account we reached an estimated 3.7 million accounts between 10 August 2023 to 31 August 2026 (Meta's estimate, our own ad account only). See our measurement methodology.
Of the submissions to our application forms, 45.8% come straight from the Instagram app (10 August 2023 to 31 August 2026). That share is high because we advertise almost only on Facebook and Instagram and that audience is on a phone, so it says something about this channel and not about applicants in general. If you recruit on Instagram, the form has to work on a phone.
When and how candidates apply after an ad on Facebook or Instagram is covered in What do three years of Meta ads for recruitment actually deliver?
What makes social recruitment effective?
Four conditions that determine whether social delivers results or just costs budget.
- The target audience determines the channel
- We choose channels based on where your target audience really is, not on what happens to be trendy.
- Content that stops the scroll
- Real colleagues and real work floors outperform stock images. We create fitting content per channel.
- Targeting and retargeting
- The right message for the right people, and staying visible to those who already showed interest.
- A funnel that finishes the job
- From scroll to application in a few minutes, mobile and hassle-free. Otherwise the reach leaks away.
Examples of social media recruitment
Two campaigns we ran under the client's name, with the figures as they appear on our case pages.
Brekerz (demolition and renovation company) was looking for a foreman, assistant foreman and back-office employee. Videos with their own people, a short application funnel and follow-up via WhatsApp. Result: 373 applications through our forms (July 2023 to August 2024 inclusive) and 266 candidates in our recruitment system (January to October 2024 inclusive).
JWM Metaalservice (metalworking) recruited skilled technical staff with us for the production hall and office: press brake operators, machinists, estimators and a working foreman. Rugged recruitment videos, and as an experiment classical music underneath instead of rock. Result: 324 candidates from our campaigns and sourcing (June 2024 to October 2025 inclusive) and 7 hires recorded in our recruitment system (June 2024 to August 2025 inclusive).
You will find more campaigns at our client cases and on the page with results.
Social media recruitment within RPO
We do not sell standalone social campaigns. Social media recruitment is part of Recruitment Process Outsourcing: we determine the mix per vacancy, create the content, run the campaigns and follow up candidates. All white-label under your name, so every campaign also builds your employer brand. The media budget is included in the monthly fee; on our pricing page you can see exactly what is included.
Social media are strongest with people who are not actively looking, and that group is growing now that fewer people change jobs of their own accord. More on this in Why are fewer Dutch workers changing jobs, and how do you still find staff?
Is your target audience even on a job board?
Probably not. Let us determine where your future colleagues really are and how to reach them there.
Frequently asked questions about social media recruitment
Yes, but differently. For specialists it's less about volume and more about targeted visibility and credible content, for example via LinkedIn and methods like Thought Leader Recruitment. For operational target groups, broader campaigns with low-friction funnels often work better.
Always under your brand. Campaigns, content and funnels run white-label under your name, so candidates get to know you and every campaign helps build your employer brand.
The first signals, like reach and click-through, appear soon after launch. How quickly that translates into applications and hires differs per role and market. We report continuously, so you see exactly how the campaign is building up.
There is no best platform, only a best platform for your target group. Meta (Instagram and Facebook) reaches practical and operational roles most broadly, TikTok and Snapchat young people and starters, LinkedIn specialists, office roles and management. Anyone who says a channel always works has not analysed your target group yet. That is why we start with the vacancy and the people you are looking for, and only then choose the channel.
That depends on your target group, the region, the scarcity of the profile and the number of vacancies you want to fill at the same time. A technician in a tight region costs more reach than a side job in hospitality. Within our partnership the media budget is part of the monthly fee, which starts at EUR 6,500 per month and is all-inclusive within the agreed scope. In the reporting you see exactly where every euro goes.
Some recruiters do, and candidates know it. We use social media to reach candidates, not to judge them on their private profile. Our screening is about motivation, experience and the match with the role, in a conversation. What we do: make sure your channels look good, because candidates certainly look at you as an employer before they apply.
Start with the target group and only then choose the channel. Use real colleagues and the real shop floor instead of stock images. Make the application mobile and short, without a CV requirement. Use retargeting for those who watched but did not respond. Follow up every response within a day, preferably via WhatsApp or phone. And measure per ad what delivers applications, not just what delivers reach.
Yes. LinkedIn Recruiter is a sourcing tool for searching and approaching candidates, and it can be useful for scarce specialists. But the biggest effect on LinkedIn comes from visibility: posts from your own people, targeted campaigns and content that takes your target group seriously. We combine campaigns, personal outreach and Thought Leader Recruitment, and only choose tooling if the target group calls for it.
You recruit through social media by advertising where your audience already scrolls, not just by sharing a vacancy. First decide who you are looking for and which platform they use, show real colleagues and the real work, and make it possible to apply on a phone in a few minutes. Follow up responses quickly and personally, and optimise for applications and hires rather than likes or clicks.
Social advertising is one part of social recruitment. Social advertising covers paid ads on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. Social recruitment is the whole process around it: your employer story and content, organic visibility, direct outreach to candidates, the application route and the follow-up. Advertising alone produces clicks; the other steps turn those clicks into applications and hires.