5 Effective Ways to Use Social Media for Physician Recruiting
Technology has profoundly altered the way recruiters perform their duties, and social media is one glaring case in point. As Epocrates, Inc. reported in a 2013 study, 94% of physicians use smartphones in their jobs with almost one-third of physicians using social media to network professionally. One significant appeal of social media to both recruiters and physicians alike is that it’s completely free. You don’t even need to use paid advertising to use social media for physician recruiting.
Despite this, however, barely half of physicians were contacted about potential jobs via social media, and half of them failed to respond, according to an April 2018 PracticeMatch survey. More, barely over one-third of physicians even bother using social media to find work. So, how, in this conflicted environment, can recruiters effectively utilize social media for physician recruiting? Read on to find out.
1. Go Prospecting
No longer do recruiters have to lock themselves in to the talent pool that comes to them seeking placement. Thanks to work-related social media sites like LinkedIn and Doximity that allow physicians to post their CVs regardless of whether or not they’re actively seeking a position currently, recruiters now have a treasure trove of potential new prospects to court who may just be amenable to the right offer.
2. Go General
As the above-referenced survey also showed, physicians are, generally, far more active and engaged on generic social media sites like Facebook than they are on physician-specific social media sites like Doximity. For example, of the 90% of physicians who use Facebook, 70% do so daily, half of whom do so several times a day. The lesson here is to be sure to maintain an active recruiting presence on those more popular generic sites in addition to the more industry-tailored ones.
3. Get Specific
Social media allows recruiters an unprecedented degree of targeting in their recruitment efforts, and, when demographic trends look set to remain the main drivers of physician demand over the next decade, at least, harnessing those trends with clear, specific targeting is key to successful physician hiring and retention. For example, it can be useful to a recruiter’s efforts to know that, according to a CDW Healthcare survey, 65% of physicians between 56 and 75 years old use social media, while 87% of physicians between 26 and 55 are on social media.
4. Brand Management
Whether you find physicians on social media to recruit or not, once you reach out to physicians, wherever you find them in your recruiting efforts, there’s a good chance they’re going to check out your facility on social media. It is, therefore, of utmost importance you make a good impression on those potential recruits when they get there. Make sure your own social media presence represents your organization and its mission and vision clearly, accurately and compellingly. Include photos and videos to allow visual elements to help tell your story. Share testimonials and news of your philanthropy and community outreach efforts as well as any accolades or awards you’ve received. Remember that recruiting is as much about you impressing a recruit as it is about him or her impressing you. Nowadays, social media is often your first opportunity to do so.
5. Produce Content
Whether you utilize paid social advertising for recruiting or not, you can still harness the power of social media to build your pool of qualified and interested prospects by providing consistent, relevant, high-quality content. Content includes blogs, photos and videos, and can cover any subject you think might be of interest to your audience of physicians. Making the best use of content marketing to recruit physicians, as with any goal, does not stop with posting fresh content, but rather only starts with it. After posting every new piece of content, you must next track its performance, including the number of times people viewed, liked, shared and commented on it. This can help you glean what people want more of and what they don’t care about so much. You can, then, use this information to develop new content your audience will find even more valuable, making them even more likely to like, share and comment upon it. Through these likes, shares and comments, you gain credibility and broaden your reach across a highly targeted and relevant community of potential future prospects and the people who know them. Remember, while you’re at it, to post your real-world events on social media as well, both to increase attendance and to extend the activity surrounding it to spheres remote from the actual physical event itself.
For more on social media and physician recruiting, browse our free online resource, physician recruiter 101.