Creating a digital shopfront

According to Richard, the recruitment industry was very different in the past, as spelling mistakes, incorrect phone numbers and archaic platforms were the norm. 
Randstad MENA consultants always cross-check candidates that apply for jobs on LinkedIn, essentially using it as a safety net to verify candidates. "LinkedIn is a living, breathing database self-managed by individuals themselves. It's perfect in its accuracy. This in turn saves us a lot of time, which saves us money," says Richard. 
"The digital world has revolutionized recruitment, making the industry more competitive, forcing companies to invest more in marketing and branding and to think outside the box in attracting clients. It's opened up the market to a global audience of both candidates and clients," continues Kerri Murphy, Marketing Associate at Randstad MENA.

The main advantage of creating a digital shopfront for Randstad MENA was that they could take their service to the masses, achieving both candidate attraction and forging new client relationships. "For a company that has a presence of one business unit in such a large geographical patch, this is easily the best tool to convey our brand message, engage with our digital audience and bring our product to market," says Richard.

To get the best possible results from LinkedIn, Randstad MENA worked closely with their LinkedIn consultant to market the brand, using advanced tools such as sponsored campaigns, building a career page and ultimately creating a digital shopfront where candidates and clients can interact.
“If I had to describe LinkedIn in one word, it would be 'consultative'. Someone in our agency speaks to our LinkedIn consultant at least twice a week, requesting information, data on our clients or a sector we're targeting, knowing that we will always receive a swift response,” says Richard.

Engaging both passive and active candidates with relevant content

Getting the right content to the right candidates is a key way in which Randstad MENA has expanded their follower base. "We aim to engage with content that is of value to both new and existing followers such as informative and interesting industry articles, useful statistics and links to jobs", says Kerri.
"Rather than bombarding a huge group with mass content, we provide tailored information that our followers actually want to see," continues Richard. For example, the company is catering to its audience in Saudi Arabia (KSA) in a very localized manner by providing them with information on working in KSA, what it's like and jobs in the area. "With our largest amount of followers from KSA or considering moving there, the benefits of targeting them with personalized content are obvious," says Richard. 
By providing interesting and relevant content, even passive candidates currently in a job and not looking for work will follow and engage with the company – becoming prospective candidates. Sponsorship campaigns through LinkedIn also allow the company to reach people who are 100% relevant.

Tracking user engagement

Tracking user engagement also allows Randstad to see what's working and drive their content creation strategy accordingly. By following the advice LinkedIn has given – such as using templates for job postings, sharing infographics and video and other rich media that resonate with their audience, and targeting key industries such as FMCG and Construction – they are able to provide increasingly relevant content. 
"Some of our strongest organic and sponsored engagement came from recommendations from our LinkedIn consultant, such as thought leadership pieces where our consultants are writing and publishing their own original articles," says Richard. With the industry standard being a minimum of 1%, user engagement with Randstad MENA spans 3-5%, proving that the company's strategy is working.

Increase followers 5x in 16 months

By having clear goals and a well-defined customer success plan, Randstad MENA was able to increase their followers from around 20,000 followers to over 100,000.
"Our priority is to create individual communities for our core sectors such as Construction, Oil & Gas and FMCG using LinkedIn, so the first thing we do with live ads or a new job role is broadcast it on LinkedIn. Everyone who applies for a job becomes one of our followers. It's a great way to attract people and create a digital community," says Richard.

Become the no.2 agency among all Randstad Holdings agencies

By establishing a strong brand presence both regionally and globally, Randstad MENA has been ranked Randstad Holdings' second most followed agency after Spain. This, despite having only 30 staff, compared to other Randstad offices with employees in the thousands. 
"LinkedIn gives the power back into the job seeker. So it's important as a company to differentiate yourself and have an attractive employer brand. It's no longer just your website; you have to shine on all platforms. To attract the best candidate, you need to have a strong brand presence," Kerri reiterates. 

Place 73% of senior hires through LinkedIn

Using LinkedIn to hire 73% of senior roles, Randstad MENA has been able to incur great time and cost savings.
"The majority of our follower demographics come from people holding senior positions. When we recruit for senior roles, we can tap into our quality database and in turn, many of these applicants become clients for Randstad MENA.
Using LinkedIn job slots has also been a great asset in helping us attract senior members of staff as we can target our adverts and ensure they are reaching the desired caliber of candidates. For every deal and every transaction and every candidate we've placed, somewhere LinkedIn has been involved," says Richard.