Virtual career fairs are becoming a viral trend among many job seekers. With the global pandemic emphasizing social distancing, a virtual job fair allows job seekers to connect with top employers and build a strong career.
A virtual job fair platform allows organizations to create an easy-to-navigate program and offer an engaging environment for online applicants. It helps to fill the physical gap between employers and potential talent.
The following article will help you understand the basic steps to set up a virtual job fair.
Step 1: Make a List of your Business Goals
Before you plan to host a virtual job fair, it is essential to analyze your goals and expectations from the event. There are two types of job fairs. One aims to create brand awareness, and the other focuses on finding the right candidate for specific positions.
It would be best to plan a virtual job fair based on your needs. You can customize your virtual job fair platform and leverage user engagement depending on the end-users.
Step 2: Calculate the Budget Based on your Needs
Once you have noted your key performance indicators, the next step is to calculate your expenses. An online career fair consists of :
- Customized registration and landing page.
- 3D virtual booths to attract the audience.
- Video and audio conferencing tools.
- Gamification tools.
- Live chatting and networking tools.
- Post-event data analytics and reporting software.
You must calculate the cost of this software and features and decide on the budget for your career fair. You can search for free resume and applicant tracking software to save expenses.
Step 3: Select an Online Platform for the Event
You can select a virtual job fair platform based on the features and the cost of the software. You must choose one with mobile optimization and an easy user interface.
Using software that offers interactive tools and optimum security is essential to keep candidate information safe. It should allow applicants to browse through job profiles, upload their resumes, and ask questions to employers.
Step 4: Hire Recruitment Companies and Support Staff.
Once you have bought the right software to host your digital job fair, the next step is to contact top recruitment agencies and multinational companies.
It would help if you got the top hosts or speakers on board. These experts can keep your candidates engaged and deliver the right content to meet your objectives.
It is equally essential to hire the right technical support staff. These customer service representatives play a vital role in helping online job seekers apply for jobs, understand more about a company, and answer other technical queries during the hiring process.
Step 5: Promote the Event to Attract Registrants.
Pre-event promotion is necessary to attract a larger crowd to your online job fair. Email marketing is a powerful tool that can help you reach a more remarkable audience.
You can offer free registration or signup bonuses and gifts to attract job seekers. You can send out brochures with newspapers and magazines to spread awareness about your event.
According to reports, around 45 percent of job applicants are attracted to a company that offers a pleasant work atmosphere. Social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube are the cheapest yet compelling way of attracting potential candidates to job fairs.
Step 6: Customize your Virtual Booth
Like a traditional job fair booth, you can customize virtual booths with colorful, attractive pages. You can offer candidates a virtual tour of companies, provide webinars, and allow them to join forums related to a job profile.
Job applicants should chat or video call with their employers to get a personalized feeling and comfort.
Step 7: Review Applicant Feedback and Reports
The final but crucial step in setting up a virtual job fair is data analytics and candidate tracking software. It helps to analyze the behavior of job seekers and contact them for future shows.
You can send out post-event survey forms to get their feedback. With their suggestion, you can improvise on some regions of event planning. Keeping track of audience performance helps you calculate your return on investment.
