Today in the world of online, Mobile is the new

revolution.

Three Ages of the WebThree Ages of the Web

Looking back over the last 10 years, Web 1.0 was all

about online connectivity, and the big names

synonymous with this were Yahoo, Google and AOL.

Web 2.0 was more about social, with the big players such

as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter creating a new ‘social

layer’ to the web.

Today Web 3.0, or mobile, has arrived and much of the

world is experiencing a massive uptake in smart mobile

devices and services.

We need to understand the 5 distinct elements of

the Mobile Web 3.0 that will change the way most

businesses will engage:

Three Ages of the WebThree Ages of the Web

You’re dealing in real-time with

instant updates, messages, and

interaction.

It’s ubiquitous (always connected,

nearly always with you)

There's location-aware services,

instantly providing appropriate data

for where you are.

Information and design has to be

tailored to fit smaller screens.

Devices all come with high quality

cameras, video and audio.

With mobile about to overtake PC Internet usage, we have put

together our recommended top 10 steps to mobile recruiting.

Use Google Analytics to check what traffic you are now getting

from mobile phones. The mobile section can be found on the

left hand navigation bar of your Google Analytics homepage.

You can even break down to see which mobile devices people

are using to visit your site, this could help when looking into

what platforms are right for your business.

Number 1. How many jobseekers are already accessing your site

via a mobile?

Number 1. How many jobseekers are already accessing your site

via a mobile?

Number 2. What is the current experience for a jobseeker when viewing

your site on a mobile device?

Number 2. What is the current experience for a jobseeker when viewing

your site on a mobile device?

If you have a ‘smart phone’ try typing in your website domain

address and see what your site looks like on a smartphone. If

you don’t have a smartphone there is sure to be someone you

know with one, so just borrow theirs to check it out. Ask yourself

the question “is this a good experience for the user?”; are you

having to pinch in and scroll around the screen just to see the

tabs? In some cases graphics can disappear, words can

overlap; are you having trouble clicking on tabs and navigating

round the screen? Do you think a jobseeker would return to

your site via a mobile device?

Number 3. Mobile apps or Mobile web? Lets take a look at

Mobile web first…

Number 3. Mobile apps or Mobile web? Lets take a look at

Mobile web first…

There are benefits of doing both. First we would recommend that if you

only have the budget to do one, then get your mobile optimised site.

Why? Because this is already in the public domain, users are already

having a bad experience trying to use your normal site on a 2.5 inch

screen! Plus, optimise your site and this will help with mobile SEO, as

Google and other search engines are starting to rank those sites that are

optimised for mobile higher than those that are not.

Number 3 continued. Mobile apps; do jobseekers really use these

to search for jobs?

Number 3 continued. Mobile apps; do jobseekers really use these

to search for jobs?

Well the answer is yes; we have recently monitored the applications and job

hires of some of the clients we work with. CV-Library was tracked over a 3

month period and in this time had received just over 35,000 job applications

from their Android and iPhone apps.

Oil and Gas Job Search launched their Android and iPhone apps on the 24th

July 2012. By 6th August 2012, they had tracked 2539 downloads of their

apps and just over 1200 job applications. What about a corporate client?

Sodexo recently announced at a conference that within the first 5 weeks of

their mobile apps going live on Android, iPhone and iPad, they had received

1300 downloads and from those downloads had employed 5 new members

of staff.

With native apps you can also send “targeted job alerts”. This cool feature

allows the jobseeker to be sent a notification to their phone every time a new

job matching their search parameters becomes available in the app. This is a

great way to get instant response to your latest jobs.

Number 4. Which platforms should you be looking to

adopt?

Number 4. Which platforms should you be looking to

adopt?

There are many different platforms you can choose from, iPhone, Android, Blackberry, iPad, Windows 7

Mobile/Nokia are the main platforms. For mobile apps there are 2 clear winners; Apple and Android.

These 2 platforms make up for nearly 80% of all app downloads. Adopt these 2 platforms and also get

your mobile site optimised and you will be pretty much covered for mobile!

Number 5. What’s your competition doing with

mobile?

Number 5. What’s your competition doing with

mobile?

Take a look at your competition, what are they doing? Are you

missing out on top talent due to your competitor having apps

when you don’t? Are you losing users because your competitor

has a mobile-optimised site and your users are switching to their

site as it is easier to use? If your competitors have mobile sites

and apps, what features do they have, what do you like about

their mobile site or mobile apps? Try and view as many apps and

mobile sites as you can to get a view of all the different options.

Number 6. Make sure you choose the right company to build your

mobile solution

Number 6. Make sure you choose the right company to build your

mobile solution

Choosing the right company to build your mobile site and

mobile apps is very important. In most cases those

companies that have used external web developers to build

your normal website will offer you a mobile optimised site

solution. Before you go ahead with them, make sure you get

some other quotes, as we have seen a lot of these suppliers

charging top whack and also don’t offer a complete portfolio

of native app solutions.

Ask to see the mobile sites and any apps that the suppliers

have already produced.

Make sure that the supplier can offer you a full analytics

system so you know how well your apps are performing for

you.

Number 7. Fully managed solution or buy the source

code outright?

Number 7. Fully managed solution or buy the source

code outright?

These are generally the 2 ways you will be able to buy your apps and

mobile sites.

If you decide to run with the option where by you get a supplier to build

your apps and mobile site and your company gets to keep the code, be

prepared to pay more for this option as an upfront payment. Also consider

who is going to do the updates when Apple, Android and the other

platforms release new software updates and who is going to add the new

features to keep your apps and mobile sites at the forefront of technology.

Try to get quotes from the developers for what these changes would cost.

Last year Apple alone had 4 new OS updates!

The second option is a “fully managed” solution. This should include

design, build, maintenance, hosting, OS updates and feature updates.

What it will not include is bespoke feature requests and changes. Your

initial layout should be less than the previous option, however you will have

to pay a yearly subscription to keep your apps and mobile sites running.

This option should give you peace of mind that your apps are hassle free

and will always be up to date with the latest features.

Number 8. Design; keep it simple.Number 8. Design; keep it simple.

Keep your mobile sites and apps simple to use, don’t try and cram

screens full of features. If you’re a recruitment agency or job board,

remember that a user in most cases purely wants to search for a

vacancy, so make sure that the search is easy to use. What works

on your website may not work as well on your mobile device, so be

prepared to take advice from the supplier as to what will work best

for your company; after all these are the guys that have the

knowhow. Corporates should note that mobile is a way to introduce a

jobseeker to your business, this is a great way to educate the

jobseeker on your employer brand. Having “Learn” or “About Us”

sections in your apps is a great way to achieve this. If you have

social media, also incorporate this as part of the app content. News

about your business is always a bonus! if you have vacancies near

to where they are prepared to work.

Number 9. Options to apply off the mobile phoneNumber 9. Options to apply off the mobile phone

Currently, there are 3 common options to allow a jobseeker to apply from a

mobile device.

Remember that in most cases a jobseeker does not have a CV stored on their

phone.

1. The most commonly used method to allow a jobseeker to apply from a

mobile is to simply allow the jobseeker to email a link to the job back to their

home PC, where they can then apply in the normal way. This option is

usually the one that most corporate clients will opt for.

2. For those companies that allow jobseekers to be registered, an API can be

used to log the jobseeker in from the application, allowing them to apply

directly from the app using the pre-existing details stored on the company’s

database. This method is one that we see most of the job boards use.

3. The third way is to present a basic form, asking the jobseeker questions

about themselves e.g. name, email address, contact phone number and

even an option to add in their LinkedIn URL ,which is a great alternative to a

CV. These details are then sent to the recruiter for review.

Number 10. Promoting your apps.Number 10. Promoting your apps.

The app stores are a great new marketing tool with 100s

of millions of users registered to them. However don’t just

rely on these stores alone to generate app downloads.

Advertise the fact that you have apps on your website,

email campaigns, job postings, shop windows and print

advertising as just a few extra examples. QR codes can

be a great way to redirect the user straight to the App

Stores to download your apps.

The more you promote your apps, the more downloads

you get and the higher up the app store your app will

hopefully appear.

For further advice or a free consultation on

Mobile recruiting…

For further advice or a free consultation on

Mobile recruiting…

...Call: 0844 800 1616

Email: mobile@allthetopbananas.com