Week 5 EOC: Social Networks and Job Hunting

Social networks such as Facebook are being used more and more by employers to find employees that fit into their parameters of potential employees. This trend is happening right in front of us with most of us unaware. It may also be used as a way to weed out undesired employees, however, only a small percentage for now.

“…prospective job candidates were sharply averse to being contacted through Facebook for jobs.

"The antibodies kicked in pretty quickly. They thought it was very invasive," he said. The company posts job openings on its Facebook page, but Mr. Vijungco said they have had more success finding employees through LinkedIn. Facebook hires account for less than 1% of the total hires companies are making…”

 Job Recruiters Turn to Facebook to Find Candidates - WSJ.com http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903885604576490763...

By the same token many businesses are using brand ambassadors instead of actually hiring employees to sell the virtues of their products. This seems to work very well for most because of its communications power wielded by everyday customers,  they then can become very influential to the general public.

“Marketers select their brand ambassadors very carefully, based on customers’ devotion to a brand and the size of their social circles. They sometimes search blogs and online social networks to identify individuals who are already functioning as brand advocates. Once selected, the ambassadors are trained with real brand knowledge to go along with their passion for the brand. The ambassadors then tap into friends, family, groups, and broader audiences through personal conversations, blogs, live events, and online social media.” Pg.143 Armstrong and Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10^th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing

However it is not without its critics who,       “…view the practice as underhanded or deceptive. However, to avoid charges of deception, most firms advise their ambassadors to openly reveal that they are representatives.” Pg.144 Armstrong and Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10^th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing

Given these two technological advantages, businesses are able to hopefully find a wider more faithful customer base and find a newer younger employee base.