Overview
There’s a continuous need to promote the vital roles that are urgently required within the health and social care sector. Today’s job-seekers are finding alternative ways to find new jobs and, in order to keep up with the competition, we need to think alternatively about the way we promote our vacancies in order to attract new talent.
Not everyone automatically thinks about applying for a health and social care role and, if they do, they don’t necessarily use traditional job sites to find vacancies. But by using a range of promotional engagement tactics, we can break down these barriers and create a more inclusive process by attracting new people and closing the vacancy gap. Widespread promotion that’s inclusive and accessible for all is the key to successfully ‘spreading the word’ and attracting the best possible candidates.
Key challenges
- Limited budgets for wider channel advertising
- Reduced number and quality of candidates coming through traditional channels
- Lack of knowledge and organisational cultural barriers to doing things differently
- Limited capacity and resource to try new approaches
Benefits
- Time is used more effectively if the right type of candidates apply
- Reaching the right people, at the right time, in the right place
- Not just relying on traditional routes enables links to be forged with new elements of the workforce
- A more diverse pool of people can be identified
Takeaway tips
Job sites
Use websites such as GM Access which is a central hub signposting people to job vacancies, learning opportunities and career development support for all individuals and disciplines within health and care for Greater Manchester.
Social media
Job specific
Creating a LinkedIn profile enables previous and current colleagues to connect with you. It also helps potential employees find you/details of your vacancies. Where possible, encourage team members to share your vacancy updates as soon as you publish a LinkedIn post about them.
For best practice inspiration and insight on what this looks like, check out Stockport Council’s activity. They are active on LinkedIn and frequently post job updates and share posts that support achievements, council information and good news stories from within the local community.
Organic outreach
Join local Facebook community groups, advertise your roles and engage with people at the heart of the community for free.
For example, see the GM Step into Care Facebook Page, which has successfully generated enquiries from local people without using any paid tactics.
Paid promotion
It’s possible for you to ‘boost’ your posts to a certain demographic with paid promotion. This is a really useful way of guaranteeing your vacancies are viewed by a highly-targeted audience.
For example, take a look at this TikTok purshed advertisement example from Learndirect that invites users to consider a career in midwifery. It’s promoted through TikTok targeted algorithm and driven by content creators, such as Midwife Millar, who have relevant high follower engagement.
Facebook also provides the functionality to ‘boost’ posts to people within a certain demographic to promote content and engage potential clients.
For example, the Facebook advert below, produced by the B2W Group in partnership with the GMCA, is being used to attract applicants for a pre-employment course that’s aimed at unemployed people, who are looking to upskill in digital.
Engaging communications materials
Investing in professional-looking marketing content helps your vacancies stand out and supports your social media efforts. Take a look at these GM marketing examples that have been used to help promote Personal Assistants in care.
Case studies and testimonials
Building an ongoing bank of case studies and testimonials is a really effective way of bringing vacancies to life and encouraging people to find out more and apply. Whether they are focused on employers or employees, strong case study stories and testimonials are capable of attracting the right person.
Job matching organisations and third party support
- Jobcentre Plus helps support people into roles. Job coaches match candidates to positions and provide job-seekers with the support they need to secure roles (see the Supporting Organisations section for more details)
- Bolton PA web is a dedicated job-matching tool for people looking for work as a Personal Assistant in care or employers with a personal budget, who are looking for candidates to hire for their own support needs
- Greater Manchester Workforce Connect – see the case study details below
Career progression opportunities
- Highlighting potential career pathways and future opportunities helps showcase current and future opportunities to candidates and encourages them to apply and envisage their future career development
- Step into Care – One page example graphic
- Guide to becoming a registered nurse in social care
- Social Care: A rewarding career
Attracting out of area candidates
Reaching outside of the GM landscape via international recruitment tactics or UK-wide campaigns can help attract fresh candidates, who want to start a new chapter in Greater Manchester into the workforce. For example, the Bury locality held a widespread campaign to promote Bury as a great place to live, work and study.
Case study
Greater Manchester Workforce Connect
Greater Manchester Workforce Connect is a free job-matching service that connects employers and individuals across Greater Manchester with primary care employment opportunities. Employers can use Workforce Connect to find people, who are interested in working in the roles they are recruiting for. It’s possible to search for individuals based on the roles they are looking for and where they want to work.
Primary care employers across Greater Manchester, including all General Practices, Primary Care Networks, GP Federations, some NHS Foundations Trusts and other relevant organisations are pre-registered with Workforce Connect profiles. Practice Managers, Business Managers and HR leads can take ownership of their employer profiles to post current job vacancies and information about the any roles that they have recruited.
If you are an individual looking for a job you can register and create a profile to let employers know about the role that you are looking for and the locations that you would like to work in. You can upload a CV to let employers know about your skills and experience.
Greater Manchester Workforce Bank
Greater Manchester Workforce Bank enables general practices to post shifts they need locum GPs to cover. It’s also used by GPs to book on to shifts they would like to work. Locum GPs can use the GM Workforce Bank Passport to keep a digital record of their employment documentation, such as passport identification, DBS check and Right to Work in the UK. It can also be used by GPs to keep a record of the statutory and mandatory training they have completed.
Locum GPs can start using the GM Workforce Bank by following these 3 steps:
- Register with the GM Primary Care website. Remember to tick the checkbox labelled ‘Workforce Bank Passport’ under the field labelled ‘Your GM Primary Care Passport/s’
- Logging in to their GM Workforce Bank Passport and upload their employment documentation
- Register and book your shifts on the GM Workforce Bank
Useful links and resources
- Greater Manchester Access
- Greater Manchester Workforce Bank
- Greater Manchester Workforce Connect
- Bolton PA Web
- Skills for Care
- Greater Manchester PAs
- 11 clever and unique ways to promote job openings from RecruitingBlogs
- 20 recruitment techniques from Recruitee.com
- Step into Care
Next » Hyperlocal recruitment
Targeting prospective candidates within a specific geographical area promotes inclusive recruitment practices and works particularly well for entry-level roles.