Tales From the Digital Side

Has the New Facebook design (http://www.new.facebook.com) caused Facebook to “Jump the Shark”? [Definition: Jump the Shark: It's a moment. A defining moment when you know that your favorite television program (or in this case social network) has reached its peak.] Read the rest of this entry »

Excellent post by Marta Strckland at Three Minds! Facebook apps, like Second Life, have their place. But they have to add something to the community if it is going to succeed.

Read the full post here:
http://threeminds.organic.com/2008/04/are_facebook_apps_the_new_bran.html

If you haven’t heard of Affinity Circles yet, I strongly recommend checking them out. in a nutshell, they provide private communities to member-based organizations, mostly university & college alumni groups and professional associations. What is great about this for employers, is that you can take advantage of these trusted, verified networks to target the professional candidates you are seeking. Read the rest of this entry »

Just as you are settling down to enjoy your Holiday 2.0 and your New Year 3.0, looks like there will a be host of new buzzwords to learn for 2008! Feel free to do some “blog groveling”! Enjoy!

Thank you Pete Blackshaw and ClickZ. Read the rest of this entry »

Google has launched Google Gadget Ads. You can now serve ads within gadget s(also referred to as widgets). Advertisers can now create these branded mini-apps using Flash or HTML and incorporate data feeds, video, images, and more. Essentially, you can create a mini-website within the ads (similar in function to many of the rich media formats available). This has many uses for recruitment. Think jobs database integration, recruiting events, chat, games, etc.

Click Here for the full article.

This news made my week. According to this WSJ article, Facebook is working on a system that expands their already pretty nifty Flyer program. The Flyer program is a texted based ad that can be targeted by college, location or some limited demographics (age & gender). If they expand to include occupation, industry, interests, ethnicity, and employer - this will be huge for recruitment advertisers. Even some of these targeting options could get it to a “must include” status for recruitment media plans. If the program ends up being self-serve, as the flyer program is now, it will be even better, as there will not be barriers due to minimum buys for companies with smaller budgets.

Clearly it doesn’t take much to get me excited - but this could be an excellent source for recruitment marketing.

If you manage college recruitment initiatives, you are probably in the midst of preparing for the fall semester. As you consider your options of how to brand yourself to the millenial generation, take a look at MentosIntern.com. Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t think this information is news to anyone who works for a recruitment advertising agency, but many employers might be suprised by the costs of creating a Facebook Sponsored Group. As a media buyer, I have access to this type of information, but I wouldn’t post it to the masses, but recently Valleywag posted information from the current rate card. Since the info is out there, it’s worth a discussion. Sponsored Group costs are going from $150K for 3 months to $300K for 3 months. Even at $150K, the costs were steep for recruitment. It is very hard to make an investment like that prove a positive ROI for your organization. Read the rest of this entry »

Diddy is using Youtube to find his next personal assistant. Not only is this a great use of social media for recruitment, I think the video is also well designed for the target audience. Diddy does not describe the job in flowing, shiny, happy phrases, he presents as what it is… hard work. Transparency is important, candidates want to hear what it will really be like to work for you. Another note on this… Diddy, as CEO, is doing his own recruiting pitch. It says something that he’s personally involved. Read the rest of this entry »

As a recruitment advertiser, how is your relationship with your target audience? Are you keeping the passion alive, or are you about to get dumped via an awkward email, text message, or Post-it note?

I love the video below because it very clearly illustrates how advertisers have not grown with their consumers. Consumers (read: candidates) want different things now. They want to be part of the conversation, to have a “dialogue”with you. Are you listening? Read the rest of this entry »