The Connection Between Social Media and Hiring

By Emin Kara | June 29, 2023

It’s absolutely no secret that labor shortages are disrupting the hospitality business right now. I mean, who could forget the sleepless nights, headaches and overall stress about this issue? It’s one of the many diseases plaguing the industry right now, and it’s probably infecting your hospitality business too!

Everyone is scrambling for a solution. The common one seems to be focusing on retaining existing staff. While that’s a good strategy, it’s personally not my style.

During a recent panel discussion at the BITAC Operations event in April, Claudia Infante, Sr. Vice President of Revenue Strategy at Margaritaville, sounded the alarms on the future of our industry. She demanded we look to increasing the popularity of hospitality among the younger generations.

“I think the hospitality industry is in a state of emergency,” Infante said. “We don’t have enough people coming into the hospitality industry. I think if you look around the room, right, we’ve known each other for so many years, all of us, we need to bring young people and make them part of this industry because this is an industry of passion and of service. I don’t think that the labor is going to get better if we don’t bring the people that can deliver service with passion.”

Now, as much as the hospitality industry likes to think they’re ahead of the game, what I’ve noticed is there are very few that actually are, especially when it comes to technology and understanding the psychology of the youth. What if you could create your own buzz? What if you could create a Staff Supercharger?

Social media is the answer.

Now I know what you’re thinking. Social media? Recruitment? How the heck are they even related? Make sure you’re locked in because I’m about to blow your mind with the capabilities of TikTok and Instagram Reels! These platforms are the secret weapons you’ve been waiting to know about, armed with the power to reel in young blood that our industry so desperately needs! Picture this: capturing the attention of the younger demographic, enticing them with our passion-driven world of hospitality and creating an army of new recruits!

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of things, first I need you to understand this very simple story. Stay with me. You need to think like a fish, not a fisherman. Captain John Rade is a legendary fisherman from New York. He’s the BEST! He’s so good, he just goes out with a regular fishing rod. Nothing special! Now John would catch way more fish than anyone else, even when they were using high-tech equipment!

The press decided to write an article on him, and they asked how he did it. John’s response was “Think like a fish, not a fisherman. I think about what’s going on in the ocean and the environment. Because if I was a fish, I’d be thinking, where shall I swim today? What will I respond to?”

How this relates back to labor shortages is as follows:

With our prospects, we want to think about:

• Their environment.
• What are they thinking about?
• What are they hearing?
• What’s their emotional mood?
• What’s going on in their world?

And once you understand that, you’ll understand what bait to use!

According to Hootsuite, a big hitter in the social media industry, the top three social platforms among younger members of Gen Z are YouTube (95%), TikTok (67%), and Instagram (62%). Additionally, 60% think digital first impressions are more important than in-person ones. With this in mind, what you put online should meet (if not exaggerate) an ideal first impression for you/your business that you’d set in a physical environment.

Another stat from Hootsuite is that 97% of Gen Z say social media is their top method for researching shopping options. It’s highly likely Gen Z will research your company before even thinking about joining your team of staff.

Hopefully, those statistics have got you FIRED UP to jump in and start creating content to inspire the younger generation! If not, maybe stick to handing out flyers, I’m sure that’s going great so far.

Now, all this might be completely new to you. Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you in the dark to figure this out on your own! Below I’ve laid down some no-nonsense strategies for you, check them out!

1. Peeking Behind the Curtain: Unleash the magic of behind-the-scenes footage. Show them the wild and dynamic beast that is the hospitality industry! Spotlight the infectious camaraderie among your team, the teamwork that fuels the engine, and the adrenaline rush of delivering mind-blowing service! Allow them to really experience your business, the team, work dynamics, etc.! You want it to be as authentic as possible.
2. Employee’s POV: Put your team members in the spotlight. Feature their stories, their triumphs and their journey within your business. I’d recommend not sticking them in front of a camera and making them give you a testimonial, it comes across ungenuine to the younger demographic. Instead, allow individual team members to record “day in the life videos” each injecting their own personality, thoughts and day-to-day into the video for a more personal touch!
3. Titan Training: Highlight the stellar training and development programs you offer. Inspire young talent by showcasing the sky-high potential for growth and advancement in your business/industry! Let them know this isn’t a dead-end gig! Just look at some of the greatest industry leaders, most of those started out at the lowest of the low, you might be one of them!
4. Unforgettable Experiences: Show the highest of the highs of your business! Get them excited! If you’ve ever attended a BITAC Event, showcase the type of experiences they could enjoy in the future.

Social media is constantly changing, what was working yesterday doesn’t mean it’ll work tomorrow! You need to act fast! Right now, short-form video content platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels and YouTube Shorts all offer the highest amount of reach and engagement. So, focus more on short-form videos and less on the photos!

Here are some tactics you can implement:

1. Ride the Trend Waves: Stay up to date with the latest trends, whether that’s memes, trending audios, challenges or templates. Then, figure out a way to use that medium and relate it back to your business. Doing this will SKYROCKET your visibility.
2. Go Against the Grain: The problem I see most with businesses is they’re too scared to be bold. They’d rather push the same old story of being “the perfect business.” Let me tell you, most people are sick of it. The reason why Lotus Cars do so well on TikTok is because it’s a well-known car company that uses memes and breaks away from the confines of traditional marketing! That’s literally it, it’s that simple.
3. Short & Snappy: Those are your two best friends. Short-form content is supposed to be exactly that… SHORT! Create bite-sized, attention-grabbing, visually appealing content.
4. Engage with the Community: Interact with other users by commenting, liking and sharing their content. Engage with your own followers by responding to comments to build a community. Pro-tip: Always ask a question to further provoke discussion and boost engagement!
5. Call To Action: Make sure to use a bold, clear CTA. Tell them exactly what action you want them to take! Do you want to send them to a recruitment form? Do you want them to like the post? Do you want them to follow? You decide. Just make sure it’s bold and clear!

Now, there’s much more to these platforms than I can describe in a single article! So, I’ll be in the Hotel Interactive threads ready to answer any questions you may have, to offer guidance in your efforts to utilize social media! So, get curious, get to work, and get winning!