First Impressions Last…

First Impressions Last… Especially on Video

Gone are the days when eager young job candidates would “pound the pavement,” a stack of freshly printed CVs in hand, and pop into every retailer in the mall or busy commercial street in the hopes of getting face time with a hiring manager. Now, jobseekers have no need to stray far from their laptops, their CVs are rarely ever printed, and their first face-to-face encounter with a hiring manager – especially during the COVID-19 pandemic – happens further along in the recruitment process during a video interview. What is sadly lost in the status quo of digital applications and remote interviews is the chance to make a real and impactful first-impression. Trying to assess whether a candidate is the right person for the job on the basis of cold application data or impersonal CV .pdfs is difficult. Whether Jane Doe has the personality, the drive, or the confidence necessary to thrive in the role is something that you see in them rather than something you read about them. Whether John Doe is excited, eager, and motivated to fulfill the advertised post is something they demonstrate in their behavior rather than describe in their cover letter.

Video-first recruitment is a way to recapture the lost art of the first impression.

By making recruitment a video-first process, each party has the opportunity to give a more full, three-dimensional view of who they are and where their strengths lie. Job candidates, hiring managers, and brands themselves are able to show their true colors right out of the gate. Brands can vividly convey their core values to potential candidates video applications. Candidates can give life to their work experience and skills through video introductions. Each aspect of the recruitment process is not only streamlined by video-first technologies, but the end of the process – the welcoming of a new member to the team – is made more tangible and immediate through video. Ultimately, video-first recruitment ensures that the right candidate is attracted to the position and is able to shine out from the very start of the process. For all these reasons, Wirkn prides itself on being a pioneering video-first recruitment platform. We know that – before, during, and after social distancing is the norm – dates through video ads. Hiring managers can assess quickly whether a candidate has the right stuff thru video leads to more efficient, more intelligent, and more successful recruitment processes for everyone involved – from brands to hiring managers to candidates. The use of video-first recruitment updates and builds upon the tried and true practice of “pounding the pavement,” of making a strong and memorable first impression that leads to a solid and mutually beneficial relationship between employer and employee. First impressions last and Wirkn’s video-first platform is a lasting solution for easy, fast, and effective remote recruitment.