Who's the hero of your story?

Stories are remembered up to 22 times more than facts alone.

Storytelling is rooted deep in human psychology — and community. Many researchers and scientists have published this statement, including Stanford University behavioural scientist Dr Jennifer Aaker.

Every organisation has a story to tell. Storytelling is a powerful marketing tool.

In the modern talent landscape and today's crowded online world; recruitment is a marketing challenge.

To attract attention and engage people with a job opportunity, hiring teams must craft and tell stories.

An effective recruitment campaign needs a compelling story.

Your recruitment story should:

• be fact, not fiction

• be authentic and honest, yet also aspirational

• communicate value

• demonstrate impact

• create connection

• evoke emotion and move people to act.

Mostly importantly, you need to tell the RIGHT story.

Who's the hero of your recruitment storytelling?

Is the story you tell in your recruitment campaign the same story you tell on your website, in your annual report or customer newsletter?

It's not. In fact, it's quite different.

When you're recruiting, you need to tell a story that resonates with the talent audience.

Storytelling is a powerful tool in recruitment, but here's where most organisations go wrong:

When you're hiring, the hero of the story is NOT your organisation.

The hero of the story is the employee. The one you're trying to attract (and perhaps the ones you have in your team). Smart marketing puts the consumer at the centre, always.

The job advertisement? Not about you.

The LinkedIn post to share the job ad? Not about you.

The candidate information pack or briefing? Not about you.

Recruitment is a marketing challenge. When you're hiring, your job is to convince the consumer. To attract them. Engage them. To make them choose you.

46% of people don't trust an organisation to be honest with them in the hiring process (Gartner, 2024).

The antidote to this lack of trust is transparent storytelling, with people at the heart.

If attracting great people is your agenda, you need to invest in compelling, authentic storytelling.

Flexible talent support for NFP leaders

I am deeply committed to making recruitment easier for nonprofit leaders.

I support leaders and organisations to attract the right people through:

• traditional recruitment solutions

• flexible unbundled recruitment support

• helping you review and improve your recruitment approach

• helping you understand and articulate your real EVP through employee research

• leveraging this research to develop authentic recruitment content

• building campaigns that reflect culture and the employee experience

• consulting and advisory work to develop talent attraction strategy and capacity.

If you’re curious to know more, send me a message or get in touch for a chat.

As a communications professional and writer turned recruiter, I know modern recruitment is marketing, and I'm on a mission to share this approach with the sector.

Each Friday, I share talent attraction advice and insights. The Nonprofit Talent Edge will help you become more intentional, creative and proactive with your recruitment.

Have a great week.

Cynthia