TikTok, once known as Musical.ly, has exploded in popularity over the past few years. The app has more than 1 billion monthly active users and was the most downloaded app in 2021 with 656 million downloads. It’s one of the most popular platforms for sharing short-form videos and has become a hotbed for recruiting talent.

The video platform, which Chinese internet giant ByteDance owns, has quickly become the app of choice for Gen Z. As they get older and enter the workforce, TikTok is growing into a powerful tool for reaching potential additions to your team.

With its focus on user-generated content, TikTok offers a unique opportunity for recruitment marketers to help businesses find their next great hire.

Benefits of Using TikTok for Recruitment

TikTok allows brands to reach potential candidates in an engaging way that doesn’t feel like they are being sold something directly (which could actually deter them from learning more about your company). Instead, users feel like they are consuming engaging, credible and unique content.

TikTok’s unique benefits make it a good candidate for recruitment marketing. Let’s take a look at why organizations are using TikTok to reach new talent and find the best candidates for their team in today’s competitive job market.

It’s Free and Easy to Use

TikTok is a free app that requires no extra software downloads or sign-up processes to use it. You can download the app and start creating recruitment marketing videos with your smartphone camera quickly and easily.

This convenience makes TikTok an ideal platform for general brand awareness and customer engagement, but it also has specific benefits when used in recruitment marketing.

It’s Easy to Build an Audience

Creating a branded channel on TikTok takes less than five minutes with its user-friendly interface and intuitive design. Once you make a channel for your recruitment marketing videos, you can post clips about your company culture or job openings. By doing this regularly, you will be able to quickly build a following.

Once you have gained a following, you can start interacting with potential candidates through comments and replies. Plus, TikTok is gaining a larger audience committed to finding jobs and career advice through the platform.

This interaction is important because it shows that you care about their interests while helping them learn more about your company’s culture and services. This helps to build trust between both parties so that candidates feel comfortable applying for positions at your company.

TikTok Is Great for Storytelling

TikTok has various tools that allow you to tell stories through your content — whether through quizzes or polls or simply by asking viewers questions at the end of each video. This helps to make your recruitment marketing content more engaging and relevant to your target audience.

By introducing your brand to your audience via video, you can express your vision authentically and start your relationship with customers on the right foot.

When to Consider TikTok for Recruitment

The demographics of TikTok users are diverse and so is the content. Generally speaking, the audience best suited for TikTok recruitment marketing includes young adults between 18 and 35 years old.

Recruiting on TikTok is a great way to reach a young, digitally savvy audience. You can share your company’s culture, values and mission in an authentic way that resonates with this demographic.

Gen Z (born after 1996) is more likely to engage with video content than other generations. It’s no surprise that they’re also the group most likely to be active on social media platforms like TikTok; studies show that they spend more time on their phones than other generations.

Roles to Recruit on TikTok

TikTok can be used to recruit a variety of roles.

Many organizations that typically depend on high-volume recruiting for customer-facing roles (including sales, customer service and support) are leveraging TikTok since you can reach a large number of potential candidates.

Other roles to advertise on TikTok include social media managers and content creators. These individuals will be more likely to use TikTok as part of their daily routine than the general population. Due to the nature of these roles, TikTok is a natural choice for recruitment.

Understanding the TikTok Algorithm

The TikTok algorithm is a master at identifying successful content creators and surfacing their videos in front of the right audience. The best way to understand how TikTok identifies its influencers is by looking at the factors that determine its algorithm.

Factors to consider when making TikTok recruitment marketing videos include:

• Video length
• Your intro, or “hook”
• Lighting and audio quality
• Audience engagement for the entire length of your video
• Sound (use a viral sound that pairs well with your video)
• Captions with the right hashtags

TikTok’s algorithm is constantly evolving, but as you follow best practices for creating content on the platform and you are consistent, your content will eventually reach its target audience.

Best Practices for Engagement and Interaction on TikTok

If you’re looking to hire employees who are passionate about your business and want to be part of a team that makes an impact, then TikTok may be the best place for you to find them.

Here are some tips for using TikTok as an effective recruiting tool.

Use Hashtags

TikTok’s hashtag feature makes it easy for users to find relevant content on the app. Use hashtags in your posts to increase visibility and boost engagement with your followers.

Use Location Filters

TikTok allows you to filter your posts based on location so that individuals in certain areas can see them. This makes it easy for recruiters who want to reach a specific audience — such as college students or young professionals living near their headquarters or offices.

Communicate What Your Organization Can Uniquely Offer

TikTok videos are short, so you have to make an impact quickly. If you’re looking to recruit employees or partners, you should consider creating a video that shows why they should work with you.

A good example would be showcasing the company culture or benefits package in action so viewers can see firsthand what it would be like to work there.

Post Relevant Content Regularly

Posting relevant content will make your brand more recognizable within the app. This means that you can expose your organization to more people as you create an identity on TikTok.

If you post often enough, people will start seeing your brand as an authority on specific topics. If you post recruitment marketing videos that showcase your employees’ skills or show what it’s like working at your organization, users will know who works there and what they do.

Challenges of Recruiting With TikTok

Recruiting on TikTok is a new frontier. The biggest challenge of recruiting on TikTok is that the platform isn’t built for recruiting. It’s built for entertainment and engagement. Recruiters have to understand how to use the platform and create content that resonates with their audience.

Reach Today’s Best Talent With TikTok Recruitment

Social media is rapidly taking over the recruitment industry. If you’re a business owner looking to find the best talent, then posting recruitment marketing videos on TikTok is something that you should consider.

The majority of people use social media, and a significant portion of the current demographic looking for new careers and job opportunities are present on TikTok.

Because recruiters are only now beginning to use TikTok, it’s a great source of untapped potential. Don’t let the moment pass you by — start recruiting on TikTok to find the talent your company is looking for. Want to learn more? Check out these recent articles about employer branding videos and social recruiting.