If you’ve ever spent a day cold-calling candidates, you know it can be exhausting. Besides, all of us—including physician candidates—have put up a lot of barriers to traditional communications these days: fewer people answer their phones; fewer open their emails; and if a banner ad or an email smells of anything promotional, we run in the opposite direction.

What if you could communicate with candidates in a place where they’re already hanging out? That’s part of social recruiting, and if you’re using Doximity Talent Finder to source and nurture prospects you’re already a social recruiter.

First and foremost, social recruiting means you can help candidates find the right information, at the right time, in the right channel. If you have nothing in common but the promise of information about an opportunity when you reach out to a candidate, that’s probably not enough. Remember most candidates can find out what they need about your company through colleagues or social media. So what more can you do?

Candidates are more likely to be interested in an opportunity at an organization where they know people—and a social network like Doximity will help you uncover those connections. A candidate is also more likely to respond to a recruiter who has a clear understanding of what they do and why a role is a great fit for them. The good news is that Doximity provides that very information you need to connect with that candidate in a more personalized manner. Here are a few key social recruiting principles to follow:

1. Try getting a warm introduction from a colleague or someone a candidate might know (LinkedIn calls this the Triangle of Trust). Social recruiting uses your natural conversations to create opportunities via contacts on your social networks—and even lets you influence candidates outside of your network.

2. Make sure your recruiter profile stands out. Helping candidates get to know you through your profile saves them time—and builds their trust in you.

3. Find the right candidates to engage with. Data is key to social recruiting. Don’t just read a candidate’s profile—see if they’re sharing content, publishing papers or offering opinions that may be relevant to your opportunities. You can even look for physicians within your own organization who may have gone to the same medical school or trained at the same institution to provide an introduction. This is sourcing at its finest—asking people about other people.

4. Engage with candidates consistently. Social recruiting is a long-drip process for nurturing prospects, and because candidates engage on their own timeframe it’s critical that you share helpful information consistently.

5. Use DocMails to your full advantage. Approaching candidates with a trusted DocMail is far less intrusive than a phone call or mass email. You have a treasure trove of profile data to leverage so take the time to personalize your DocMails and craft a message that grabs the candidate’s interest—and states outright why the candidate is a great fit for your opportunity.

6. Build long-term relationships. The greatest advantage of social recruiting is you can really get to know your candidates: both their background and personality. Share your expertise over time, take the time to get to know your candidates, and become a long-term trusted advisor.

Engagement is not the primary goal of social recruiting, it’s just the beginning of the relationship-building process. Apply social recruiting principles to your recruiting mix, and your job will take on a whole new meaning and purpose. And if you're not using Doximity Talent Finder, schedule a free demo today!