Ryder’s driver, Maurice Walker, was featured in a driver testimonial on the fleet’s YouTube channel. (rider)
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When Maurice Walker started driving Ryder two years ago, he never thought he would become a social media personality. Walker then agreed to appear in an article about the driver on his YouTube channel.
“I was shocked. It was my first day with a trainer,” he said of the experience. “But I said, ‘We’ll see what happens.’ I was a little nervous being put on the scene, but other than that I was fine.” Since then, the video of him has been viewed more than 1,200 times. I did.
Companies like Ryder are turning more to social media platforms to increase brand awareness, reach new customers, and even find new employees. This is a trend that has its origins in the digital revolution decades ago, but has rapidly accelerated, forcing businesses to rapidly evolve to take advantage of new media opportunities.
Abigail Lawson, Ryder’s senior director of recruiting, said the push for social media began when traditional ways to connect with potential employees began to shut down.
“Essentially, we’ve all been forced to go outside of traditional job sites and look for candidates where they are. Social media has a lot of people flocking to it,” Lawson said. explained.
Ryder Supply Chain Solutions, ranked No. 9 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list and No. 10 on the TT 100 Logistics list of North America’s largest rental carriers, uses this channel to share career opportunities with potential candidates. We are promoting. Other businesses are leveraging other social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to target specific audiences or increase brand awareness.
āWe knew we were going through this digital revolution. We knew how quickly it would happen and how this technology would actually impact recruiters. They didn’t understand,” said Priscilla Peters, chief marketing officer at recruitment agency Conversion Interactive Agency. She also argued that as companies change the way they communicate their messages, the messages themselves are also changing.
“If you had told me 10 years ago that drivers on TikTok would do a little dance and tell people why they should drive for the carrier they drive for, I would have said, ‘Well, that’s not true. You thought, “That’s a little far-fetched.” “But here we are,” she continued.
Successful social media campaigns tend to be attention-grabbing, interesting, humorous, and created to connect with a wide audience. Popular accounts feature interesting characters found in garages or feature drivers sharing their life on the road. Others interview long-term drivers about their career and love of the lifestyle. Peters says showing videos will have the most impact and emotional connection, and using humor and wit to appeal to a wide audience will give your posts the best performance.
Jane Jazrawy, CEO of CarriersEdge, added, “Just using it as a big ad won’t cut it.” She says, “When you want to attract people, you can’t just say, “This is great, we’ll pay this price, come work for us.””
She says a better strategy is to engage and involve the company’s existing employees in creating videos and acting as brand ambassadors online, similar to how Ryder approached Walker on her first day on the job. He said that this is true.
āThe more we create a community that involves current drivers, the stronger it will be,ā Jazrawi said.
Starting a social media recruitment campaign doesn’t have to be a money- or technology-intensive project. Recruiters across the industry agree that launching a successful campaign starts with your existing employees.
“If you have a man or woman who is your driver, they are already an ‘influencer,'” Peters said. She noted that people who love their work and feel empowered by it are more likely to share details about it online. “Whether you realize it or not, you probably have a treasure trove of influencers.”
It’s important to make sure the content shared is relevant, timely and even a little playful, she added. It’s also important to remember that social media casts a much wider net for potential applicants than traditional targeted job fairs and recruitment events.
“If it’s more engaging and fun, like a meme or a funny video, those get a lot of comments, a lot of interaction, a lot of engagement from drivers, but they don’t necessarily bring in leads. But they start a conversation. , which is still great because you’re working at the top of the lead funnel,ā Peters said.
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She said the “lead funnel” begins even before drivers start looking for their next job. Engaging videos can help build brand preference, ensuring your company is top of mind when drivers are ready to start looking for their next position.
Ashley St. John, director of recruiting for Ryder, added that social media has the potential to introduce truck driving careers to people who may not have previously considered truck driving as an employment path. Ta.
āGiving[potential applicants]the opportunity to not only read about the position, but also see and hear about it from someone similar to them, piques their interest, makes them more comfortable, and gives them the opportunity to say, “What should I do?” It helps you get over the hurdle of “I’m qualified” to “Hey, I can do the job. I saw it, I felt it. I can do it,” she said.
In addition to determining the timing, platform, and frequency of posts, Jazrawy also ensures consistency, ensures there is team commitment and buy-in to launching and maintaining the account, and then engages current and potential employees. stated that it is important to maintain engagement with employees. The campaign matures.
St. John said tracking the success of social media campaigns is different from traditional recruiting metrics.
āNot everyone will like a post, but if it gets a lot of views and a lot of watch time, you can tell by watching the video that they’re engaged. And you can track likes, shares, and tags. ā she said. She said she hopes all of this adds up to an increase in job candidates.
For Ryder, filming a video with Walker on his first day at the company had a big impact. He immediately shared the video with his family and friends and received permission to use images from the video on his LinkedIn account. He also got decals for his truck. When he is out and about, people recognize him from his online presence and start conversations about his life and career.
Over the past two years, he said, four people have accepted his position after speaking with riders.
“I’ve had people come to me asking how they’re going to get a Class A license because they’re trying to get their son a job,” he says.