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Revolution for 2024: Generation Z should for the first time exceed the number of active workers the baby boomers. What are the repercussions? A transformation in the way that employers will need to attract (and retain) young talent, by focusing on aspects different from those that their older colleagues are concerned about. What stands out? High expectations for transparency and diversity, equity and inclusion in the companies where they work, but also a new way and new ways to communicate.
Recruiting Gen Z is not an easy task. A better understanding of Gen Z—what they're looking for in a potential employer, how they spend their time, and what catches their attention—can help you effectively attract, engage, reach, and ultimately recruit these rising job seekers on social media and beyond.
To recruit Generation Z, you have to get to know
As stated above, for the first time, Generation Z is expected to surpass the number of active workers than the baby boomers generation in 2024. This is the big news announced by Glassdoor in their Study of labour trends in 2024.
For Understanding Generation Z, it is first necessary to understand how this group differs from previous generations. Born between 1997 and the beginning of the 2010s, the members of the Generation Z are increasingly present in the labour market and are expected to represent over 30% of the workforce by 2030. They are more educated than older generations, with 57% of 18-21 year olds enrolled in college, compared to only 52% of millennials and 43% of Gen Xers at the same age. It is interesting to note that Generation Z was the most affected by the pandemic on a professional level, compared to older generations, due to its low level of professional experience. Some have had trouble finding jobs due to the recession, and they are the most likely to have lost their jobs or to have had pay and schedule cuts.
Building on trends introduced by Millennials, this emerging workforce expects businesses to be transparent. Gen Z people value diversity and flexibility, and they expect their employers to be socially responsible, not only by donating to charities and organizations, but also by doing on-the-ground work in their communities. For this reason, businesses must have a strategy of HR marketing clearly established. Generation Z is even more tech-savvy than previous groups, having grown up in an entirely digital world. It is therefore more possible than ever toattract and recruit top Gen Z talent through social networks.
Generation Z and social networks
Most Gen Z members are digital natives who can't remember a world without the Internet. They are frequent users of social networks. So it's no surprise that 74% of them say they spend their free time online, making digital socialization more likely than in-person interactions. Therefore, these applications and platforms are important channels for reaching Generation Z members, both as consumers and as potential employees.
The social recruitment, a burgeoning strategy for recruiting professionals, is even more effective due to the increased social presence and activity of Generation Z. Therefore, with so many channels and content format options, a defined plan that is informed by Gen Z's social media preferences can be a cost-effective and fast social recruiting strategy.
Here are 3 tips for developing your Gen Z social recruiting strategy:
1. Focus on popular Gen Z platforms
As a group, Gen Zs have clear preferences when it comes to social channels. Since its launch in 2016, TikTok has established itself as one of the favorite social networks of Generation Z, ranking in the top 3 applications used daily and competing directly with Instagram and Snapchat. According to the data, 84% of digital brand users use Instagram, 79% use Snapchat, and 74% use TikTok. So make sure that your recruitment strategy includes creative content developed specifically for these channels. This generation has largely abandoned platforms that were once popular, like Facebook. Instead, they spend their time on newer applications that promote content that is more current and highly visual in nature.
2. Prioritize the creation of video content
Compared to other generations, your potential Gen Z workforce is less attracted to text-heavy content, like long-form blog posts. Their preferred formats are more visual in nature, which goes hand in hand with the format of their favorite social platforms. Graphics and photos can certainly get attention, but videos are the most engaging content format for this group of potential candidates.
Videos can have a dual purpose when you want Targeting Generation Z : support your brand marketing and highlight your employer brand, while contributing to recruitment for specific positions. Consider using testimonials from employees of this generation, also called EGC (for Employee Generated Content, a variant of UGC for User Generated Content), with excerpts from behind the scenes of the work and short videos presenting exciting projects and innovations.
Also discover more generally how improve your employer brand.
3. Highlight your values and social efforts
Generation Z is very committed to actively supporting causes that are important to them, and this has an impact on their expectations of brands: they want to work for companies that act on social issues. They also value ethical and sustainable practices when it comes to evaluating a potential employer.
As a recruiter, you will need to take these priorities into account in your social media recruitment campaigns. When you promote your business on social media, the usual benefits aren't going to impress Generation Z. Instead, use graphics and video content to highlight your company's values and its positive influence in the workplace, community, and world.
Generation Z is your future workforce
Generation Z is a unique and emerging audience which will have an increasingly significant impact on the workforce over the coming decades. As they are highly engaged on social media, it is crucial that recruitment strategies use social media as a leading recruitment tool. By focusing on the right channels, prioritizing visual content, and promoting values, you can successfully engage this generation as future talent.
If you are new to social recruitment or if you are looking to develop your recruitment strategy on social networks, a solution of HR programmatic will not only allow you to use social networks in a relevant way, but also to transform your HR content into dynamic, attractive and mobile-friendly advertising, which will directly reach your ideal candidates on their usual browsing spaces, based on socio-demographic and behavioral data, thus affecting both active and passive candidates.
Are you intrigued by HR Programmatic for Social Recruiting? Get personalized audience analysis to find out the cost and the results of your future targeted HR marketing campaign, even before launching it!
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