These days, it seems positively archaic to ask a hiring manager whether they’re still struggling along with the time-honoured paper cover letter and CV – of course they aren’t. Instead, they’re utilising all of the latest technologies to get the best results from their staff recruitment in Belfast.

However, there’s one technology that many in HR are still curiously under-using: video. Just think back to the last time you read through an entire job advert, from top to bottom. Then, consider how often you watch a video from start to finish.

If it’s just a few minutes long and is engaging enough, you probably normally get through the whole video. Now, just imagine how powerful such a thing could be when you use it to perfectly communicate the latest job opportunities at your firm, and why someone should work for you.

Isn’t video a waste of time and money?

Sure, video might seem a tricky thing to do in-house, at least convincingly. You’ve probably got horrific visions in your head of shaky smartphone footage that does nothing for your organisation’s carefully-nurtured corporate image.

Don’t dismiss video quite that readily, though. You’ve actually got a lot of freedom to get a recruitment video ‘right’, as long as you stick to just one basic guideline.

That guideline is this… never stray from your already-treasured brand values, in whatever recruitment video that you put together. That’s crucial if you are to attract the right kind of candidate to your company.

That means being intelligent in your use of tone, humour and style.

The forms that your hiring video could take

Just type the name of any brand that you admire into YouTube, and you are likely to see recruitment videos. These can take an extremely wide range of different approaches, and yet all work perfectly well for the organisation in question.

Some videos, like those of the world’s biggest brands, might be quite serious, placing an emphasis on how the candidate can change the world. Others – such as, perhaps, a tech start-up – might be quite informal and humorous. They may even go as far as parodying their own industry.

Whatever you do with your recruitment video, you’ll know that it’s right when it gets the right response from right people – those who you actually want to work for you.

Social media allows for the rapid distribution of any recruitment video and instant feedback, while the amount of time and money required for video is as low as it has ever been. We therefore wouldn’t underestimate video when you’re looking to get more impact from your staff recruitment in Belfast.