Physician Recruiting in the Age of Social Media-Driven Healthcare

Today, you’re living—and recruiting—in the age of KevinMD. More than ever, the physicians you’re seeking to hire are blogging, tweeting, using Facebook, creating LinkedIn profiles, and uploading YouTube videos to share their expertise.

Major healthcare institutes are in on the action too. The Mayo Clinic has an entire website dedicated to social media education, and the Johns Hopkins Medicine site has a social media page devoted to its tweeting physicians and social media channels. It’s the age of social media in medicine, which of course means it’s the age of social media in physician recruiting!

With that in mind, here are some facts and tips to help you leverage social media in your physician sourcing strategies.

Fact: Candidates Are Researching You More Than Ever

According to a recent CareerBuilder study, people in all career paths are much more selective about where they apply, and they’re spending much more time researching you—whether you’re a healthcare employer, or a search firm.

Tip: Use Social Media as Your Company Calling Card

If you reach out to a physician, or they come upon your organization’s information online, this “first digital impression” could make or break your connection. Is your website up to speed? Do you have compelling videos posted? Are your social media profiles up to date? Is your LinkedIn profile impressive? If not, chances are your prospective candidate will head off in search of another party. The bottom line, according to CareerBuilder: “Employers must have a strong online presence to get noticed.”

Fact: More Job-Seekers Use Mobile

This is embarrassing to admit as a nation, but Americans collectively check their smartphones upwards of 8 billion times per day, says a new  study referenced by TIME. The average person looks at his or her phone 46 times every day. Aside from texting and talking, we’re checking emails, tweeting, viewing social media sites, and reading articles gleaned from our news feeds. And if we’re in the market for a new job, we’re using social media, apps, and websites to browse new opportunities.

A hefty 9 in 10 job seekers report they’re likely to use a mobile device during their job search, according to Glassdoor’s survey on the Rise of Mobile Job Search. What’s more, 45% of job seekers use their mobile device specifically to browse jobs at least once a day.

Tip: Tweet Your Jobs & Be Mobile-Friendly

When job-seeking physicians pull out their smartphones, are you and your organization front and center? If you’re tweeting your available job openings with the appropriate hashtags, that’s a good start. Another recent study cited by TIME found that more job openings are posted to Twitter than any other social media site. The reason? Because that’s one of the main places job-seekers are looking.

On a related note: is your organization’s site optimized for mobile? If you don’t have a responsive (read: “mobile-friendly”) site, you may be frustrating your users. Read more about physician recruiting and responsive websites here.

Fact: Compelling Content is King

As with anything in life, what you put into it is what you’ll get out of it. A lot of people tend to view social media as just a fad and therefore put little effort into the content they post or share. But carefully researched and well-written posts and articles go a lot farther towards developing your brand than sloppily written content that’s slapped up in a hurry.

Tip: Let Your Brand’s Personality Shine Through

Social media is your chance to showcase your organization’s strengths—and have a little fun. Research cited in Entrepreneur shows that 71 percent of brands invested more heavily in social media last year to reach new followers and build brand reputation. So, once you’ve got your social media profiles and company blog in good shape, be sure to update them regularly with engaging content. Write, post, and share content that is relevant to your field and expertise. Let prospective candidates know what makes you and your organization stand above the rest!

We could go on for much longer about social media and physician recruiting… and in fact, we’re going to do just that at 1 PM CST on February 23 during our webinar on “Top 10 Social Media Strategies for Physician Recruiters,” sponsored by PhysEmp! It’s filling up fast, so please RSVP today if you’d like to reserve your spot.

If you do join us, you’re welcome to share your feedback realtime on Twitter with hashtags #PhysEmp #SocialPhysRecruiting

Hope to see you there!

P.S. For Twitter tips specific to physician recruiters, be sure to check out our article on “Working the Room: Twitter Tips for Physician Recruiters.”