Creating a Snapchat Strategy for Your Company or Brand

Creating a Snapchat Strategy for Your Company or BrandCreating a Snapchat Strategy for Your Company or BrandThinking about including Snapchat in your absatzwirtschaft efforts? Before you start snapping selfies with the popular app, you need to find out if Snapchat fits in your companys social media strategy.Snapchat has gained a huge following within a few short years. When it launched in September 2011, the simple messaging app allowed users to send each other disappearing photos. There werent many or any companies on Snapchat, either. But it wasnt long before Snapchat started adding new features that made it the popular social media channel it is today. Now you can send photos with geofilters, facial filters and text messages. You can post images and videos that stay visible for 24 hours, get your daily dose of news and current events, and much more.So its no wonder that many companies want to create a Snapchat account to add to their social media repertoire, especially since vid eo content is becoming increasingly important in marketing. But now that Instagram and Facebook offer similar features, you may be wondering if its worth the time and effort to join and grow a new audience if your company is already active on the aforementioned platforms. Depending what social channels your target customers use, establishing a Snapchat presence could be a good investment. And now that the company has more resources since going public earlier this year, it will be interesting to see if the app rolls out new functionalities to differentiate itself from the competition.Regardless, Snapchat has changed the way we consume content and interact on social media, which makes it worth exploring and considering. I started using the app in its less-sophisticated days (i.e. before they added Stories and the infamous facial filters) and helped develop a Snapchat presence for Robert Half (TCGs parent company). It can be an effective tool for showcasing your companys fun side, but here are a few things to consider when you create a Snapchat account for your organization.Do some homeworkThe first thing Id recommend? Create a Snapchat account for yourself to get the hang of it (its free). While the app may not be intuitive at first, take some time to explore the many different features and youll figure it out fairly quickly. (You may also want to use an online guide to teach you the ins and outs.)Search for other companies on Snapchat and see what theyre posting. What catches your eye - and what do you pass right over? Theres a lot of highly creative content on Snapchat, so keep tabs on accounts that you like and take inspiration from the way they present their brand.SEARCH OUR SOCIAL MEDIA JOBSConsider your approachWhat will your message be on Snapchat? Consider how your voice will differ from your other social media channels and other companies on Snapchat. Remember that Snapchat is currently popular with younger generations. Of its 100 million daily active users, 71 percent are under 34 years old, and 45 percent are between the ages of 18 and 24. And they are creating a huge amount of content. Each day, one million snaps are created and 10 tausend milliarden snaps are viewed. Is your target audience using the app? If so, how will your snaps stand out among the competition?Regardless of your industry or business, one primary goal of using Snapchat is building a relationship with your followers. Are you trying to show the world how fun it is to work at your company? Or are you offering a behind-the-scenes look at a really cool event? Maybe youre attempting to give a sneak peek of a new product or establish your voice as a thought leader on a particular topic. Whatever direction you take, if you post fun and engaging content, youll have viewers coming back for more.Make a plan to capitalize on your creativityWhile content from users and companies on Snapchat may seem casual and unstructured, it takes more planning and time than you might think to get the right shot, even if the content is meant to be candid. Snapchat isnt like Twitter or Facebook where you can draft content and post it using a scheduling tool. You have to do everything in real-time and cant edit posts once published.Therefore, make sure you map out the content and message of each story (a collection of photos and videos that is visible for 24 hours), leaving room for spontaneity. Think brief and entertaining. Many Snapchat enthusiasts have short attention spans, and very few will watch a story that includes 20 photos and videos, especially if they dont connect with it. Dont be afraid to use emojis, stickers and fun facial filters. Save your more professional and refined posts for other social media channels Snapchat is where you can show off your companys approachable and silly side.Think about awareness and analyticsMost companies on Snapchat use the app primarily as an awareness tool because there are few analytics you can measure. Among the thin gs you cant currently track within the app the amount of followers you have, leads back to your website (since you cant include links in posts), and impressions. Its also difficult to know how your followers respond to content because they cant publicly comment or like posts.That said, you can glean some helpful data from the app to help inform your Snapchat and overall marketing strategy. Snapchat tells you how many people view each post on your story and if they send you a private comment, photo or video in response. So, if 500 people watched your story from start to finish, thats 500 people who actively clicked through and engaged with your content. To calculate a storys retention rate, divide the number of views at the end of the story by the number of views at the beginning. To automate this process, you can invest in tools like Snaplytics and Delmondo, which also help you estimate how many followers you have, how many views your posts receive, open rates and more.Now that you know a little more about the social media app, hopefully youll have some added insight when deciding whether to create a Snapchat strategy for your company. And if you choose to engage with your audience by sharing candid videos and silly selfies, remember to stay on top of new features to incorporate into your Snapchat efforts.Ana Pecoraro is a public relations and communications professional at Robert Half, where she researches and writes about employment trends.

The Project Management Life Cycle Explained

The Project Management Life Cycle ExplainedThe Project Management Life Cycle ExplainedWhether you are building a house, implementing an international software rollout or organizing your sons birthday party, any project will go through common stages- no matter how long or short the timescale to complete the task. These common stages are seen in all projects and are the components which make up the project life cycle. There are four stages, which are Starting the projectPlanning the projectDoing the workClosing down the project While all projects go through these stages in their life cycle, the length of time each takes will vary depending on the individual needs of the project. Lets look at each of those stages in a bit more detail. The Four Stages of a Project Life Cycle Starting the projectThis should be a relatively short stage where the strategic goals are outlined and the resources available for the project are defined. You set the vision in this stage. PlanningThis is the st age where the work is planned. The order work needs to take place in is outlined and resources (such as staff members and equipment) are allocated to tasks. Doing the workThe tasks required to complete the project are carried out in this stage. This can take place in one phase or in a number of phases, depending on the needs and complexity of the project. This stage ends when the planned deliverables have all been achieved. Closing downThe completion of the project happens in this stage which can include a review of the project and the handover of the product or service. 3 Types of Project Life Cycles Adaptive These projects are designed from the start to be open to change. This is to ensure all stakeholders remain on board throughout the projects life. Changes at all stages are anticipated and budget planning should include contingency funds to allow changes to happen without risking going over budget. Best for Projects where you dont know exactly how you want the end result to look yet. Predictive All aspects of how the project should happen are defined in the first and second stages. This is a relatively rigid structure which does not allow for the project to move beyond the original scope. Change can happen but it is likely to involve unplanned cost. Many projects follow a predictive life cycle as a well-planned project which does not expect to accommodate far-reaching changes from stakeholders should be able to follow its plan with little deviation. Best for Projects that are structured, with clear objectives and are being led by an experienced team. Projects with a defined plan or that have been done before and are likely to follow the same route with no deviation. Incremental Phases of the project are planned to be repeated allowing the project team to improve the wertmiger zuwachs of the product or service over time. The activity of the next incremental stage may not be planned until feedback from the current stage has been gathered. Best for Proje cts that are going to run for some time, where there is the appetite for continual improvement.

Hiring For Skills Instead of Credentials

Hiring For Skills Instead of Credentials Hiring For Skills Instead of Credentials Its upsetting because thats the most perfect headline for any speciesicle about HireArt, and Im jealous that TechCrunch beat me to the punch. That headline is perfect because it succinctly captures HireArts unique essence - solutions-based thinking driven by a healthy irreverence for flawed traditions.The flawed tradition that sparked HireArt? Contemporary recruiting practices, which privilege irrelevant credentials over demonstrable skills, according to Julia Averbuck, HireArts head of operations.What does it mean that someone has a 3.9 GPA at Harvard? Averbuck asks. Yes, it means that theyre hardworking, but that doesnt necessarily mean that they can do this job.The solution? An souped-up take on the job board, one that elend only syndicates an organizations job posts, but that also screens candidates for you.HireArt wants to be a ordnungsprinzip that could test someones ability to do the job, and it wants to improve the efficiency of recruiting, when it came to actual skills and not just credentials, Averbuck says.Origin StoryHireArt co-founders Elli Sharef and Nick Sedlet both worked for companies with well-respected recruiting processes. Sharef was with McKinsey Company, whose one-time managing director Marvin Bower was among the first to recruit talent straight out of business schools Sedlet was with Goldman Sachs, yet another powerful recruiter of fresh MBAs.But when Sharef moved to her next job, she learned that not every company is as adept at recruiting as McKinsey or Goldman Sachs. A lot of organizations rely on the wildly inefficient post-and-pray method, or other similarly unfocused methods of sourcing.Sharef saw how different it was, and how frustrating recruiting could be, Averbuck says. So what she wanted to do was she wanted to create a process that could replicate the McKinsey process, in that it could pick out the raw talent. It could really figure out who t he best candidates are for the job.And as Sharef thought about the idea more, she realized that even the McKinsey process could be improved upon. Powerhouse companies like McKinsey and Goldman Sachs often focus their recruiting strategies on graduates from top-50 schools, artificially limiting their reaches. So, even though they have this great einstellungsgesprch process, theyre actually not addressing every potential talent out there, Averbuck says. Sharef and Sedlet wanted to create a process that helps anyone - with any kind of background - shine beyond their resum.HireArts Take on RecruitingFor employers, HireArt is sort of a combination job board/ATS, but with much better inspektion capabilities. You head to HireArt, post a job, and it syndicates your posting. HireArt assigns you an account manager, whose job is to figure out what, exactly, you want from your new employee. We spend a lot of time upfront understanding what companies want, says Averbuck. Were not just going of f of the job requirements were not going to go off of some great idea we have. We do a call with the hiring manager to say, Tell us what youre looking for.Once HireArt has this information, it can start curating a candidate list - that is, a list of the top few candidates whom the platform determines are the best matches for you, out of all other applicants. In this way, HireArt is sort of like an ATS, separating the wheat from the chaff.Of course, the problem with ATSs is that so many of them filter candidates according to keywords on their resums. Hence the myriad articles on beating the system. And, at that point, a resum is pretty much worthless. It no longer shows off who a candidate is, but what a candidate knows a company wants to hear. Good luck trying to hire the best of the best in those conditions.HireArt, however, takes a different, more hands-on approach to candidate curation, using video interviews and work samples (more on those in a bit) to test relevant skills.Ther es actually two parts to the screening process, explains Averbuck. The candidate first sends in their resum, and then theyre invited back for a video interview. Whether they complete the video interview or not, in my personal opinion, is already an assessment of them.As Averbuck points out, applying to a job online is an absolute breeze, for the most part just send in your resume and see what happens. By asking applicants to complete a brief four-question assessment - two video questions, two written questions - HireArt hopes to test whether candidates really want the job or are just blindly sending off resums.The idea is that, if someone doesnt come back and do this extra 10-15 minute assessment, then theyre probably not that interested in the role, says Averbuck. Thats something that employers waste a lot of time on these days.Imagine, for example, posting an advertisement to Craigslist. How many applicants are you going to receive in total? (Conducting an experiment, writer Eri c Auld received 653 responses to a job ad in 24 hours. Afterwards, he took the ad down. How many more would he have received had he kept it up?) And how many of those are going to be quality candidates? (According to ERE, on average, more than 50 percent of applicants fail to meet the basic qualifications).An employers going to get 100-1000 resums on Craigslist, Averbuck says. You go through all of those resums, you pick out the best ones, and the first ten people you call just arent interested. They just kind of sent the resum because, Why not?Averbuck describes the video interview invite as the first line of assessment because, rather than assessing skills, it assess candidate interest. If a candidate cant be bothered to complete the assessment, they most likely cant be bothered to care much about the stelle if they land it.After this first layer of screening, we come to the actual assessment. The questions that HireArt asks candidates are specific to the level and the category of the role which needs filling. For example, for a customer service role, we have them answer a customer service email, or we have them do a sample customer service call, says Averbuck. These are the work samples mentioned above little activities which provide snapshots of an applicants relevant skills.While HireArt generally deals with entry-level and non-technical jobs - the necessary skills for which are easier to assess online - the platform does have a process for evaluating higher-level candidates. For a more senior marketing job, for example, its a little harder to do work samples, but we ask for examples of prior work, or we ask them to talk about certain aspects of digital marketing that are going to be important for their jobs, says Averbuck.Its About FairnessFrom a candidate perspective - it feels weird to say this - but when Sharef and Sedlet started HireArt, they started it with a goal of fairness, of giving everyone a shot, says Averbuck.One can see why Averbuck fee ls weird saying that when youre used to screening candidates via the far-from-perfect systems of ATSs, screening candidates doesnt seem like an especially fair process. And the process is especially broken if youre screening for credentials instead of capabilities.But the hiring process should be fair, shouldnt it? Every applicant should have the chance to show an organization who they are. If who they are isnt right for that role, fair enough - but cutting candidates out before they get a chance to prove their worth seems not only cruel to candidates, but also counterintuitive to the companys mission. If youre looking to hire top talent, should you really be trusting resums and keyword filters? Can you afford to limit yourself to certain schools?Sharef and Sedlet started HireArt in part because they saw companies using the wrong criteria to hire people - e.g., looking for degrees instead of skills. They felt like a lot of companies were just screening for top-50 schools, Averbuck says. Honestly, if youre a startup looking to hire a customer service person, for example, you probably dont even need to hire someone from a top-50 school.We started the company with the goal of showing that people were picking for the wrong categories, Averbuck explains.While HireArt acts as a third-party curator of candidates, Averbuck believes that this does not result in any sort of frustrating separation between applicants and companies. If anything, Averbuck sees HireArt as a way to bring prospective hires closer to employers If they do make it through to the top candidates, then theyre usually one of 5 or one of 10, Averbuck says. They get a lot of employer attention. They really do get the visibility.Going ForwardWeve figured out what we do well, Averbuck says of HireArt. Were at a point where we want to scale that.While HireArt is currently in the middle of raising capital to scale-up its operations, the company is also looking to improve some aspects of the platform. For example, Averbuck says HireArt is looking to collect more data on how applicants are performing, so that it might leverage that information for the benefit of job applicants. Right now, we grade applications extensively, and we collect all of this data, but were working on how we can come around and figure out how to give this back to candidates, Averbuck says.HireArt also collects data on every candidate that gets hired, to see how well theyre doing and how long they stay.On a more general note, HireArt seems to see the value in constant improvement. As Averbuck notes before our conversation ends, We recognize that were definitely not there, in terms of Do we perfectly assess the abilities to do the job? But we assess it better than just a resum, so we want to keep improving how we assess it.Master the art of closing deals and making placements. Take our Recruiter Certification Program today. Were SHRM certified. Learn at your own pace during this 12-week program. Access over 20 c ourses. Great for those who want to break into recruiting, or recruiters who want to further their career.