Social Media the Key to Attracting Top Talent in the Gaming World
Gaming is big business these days, with the global industry garnering a revenue of $108.9 billion US in 2017. Much of its success has to do with social media; research shows that around 50% of social network users play games on social media sites and around 15% of the time they spend on Facebook, involves gaming. However, the past decade has seen a decided shift in the role played by social media - rather than being merely a vehicle to expand brand awareness and attract leads, it is also one of the main ways that top companies - think EA, Tencent, Sony, Activision Blizzard or Ubisoft - are attracting the world’s most talented game designers.
Social Recruiting and Gaming
Research by Pew indicates that 79% of adults are on Facebook, 32% are on Instagram, and 31% are on Pinterest. Evidently, a big pool of talent spends their free time online, and in this day and age, 73% of recruiters as a whole are using social recruiting for hiring purposes.
EA, a company seeking to “inspire the world to play,” uses two main avenues for hiring candidates. One is the ‘Find the Career’ button on their page, which informs of job openings in the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe, and another is social media - EA mainly posts jobs on Twitter, linking to their website with details of latest vacancies. Sony Games uses Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr, while Activision Blizzard continuously posts internship opportunities on its Twitter page.
Social Media and Identity
Gaming companies use social media because apps like Twitter do more than simply inform candidates of the latest vacancies; they allow a firm to express its style and culture. Social media is also the perfect way to express core values, such as diversity; Activision Blizzard, for instance, is keen on attracting females, an underrepresented group in the gaming industry, to its team. This is evident in a recent Twitter post, which linked to a page calling for “all female-identifying (cis, trans and non-binary) students with permanent EU residency pursuing a degree and considering a future in the games industry.” The post also makes patent that college is required to succeed in gaming.
Indeed, although some of the most famous designers in the world - including Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’s Hideo Kojima, never studied game design, things have changed dramatically since in the new millennium. Companies have become increasingly competitive and are currently seeking specialization in a number of subjects - including coding, programming, 3D Modelling, Maths, Computer Science, and Storyboarding - from prospective candidates. Gaming companies generally have a funky, creative social media style, yet always make patent that they are looking for highly skilled talent with a previous investment in specialized education.
Advanced Searches
In addition to using social media to post vacancies, gaming companies are also using LinkedIn to connect with candidates via search filters, notifications and Boolean logic for more advanced searches. This platform can also be employed to stay in touch with past candidates who may be suitable for new vacancies.
To stay at the head of their game, gaming companies are riding high on the social media wave, regularly posting on Facebook and Twitter, and linking posts to their career pages. These ads relay important message through imagery and text, attempting to create an emotional connection with candidates. LinkedIn, meanwhile, is an efficient tool to search for candidates and keep up-to-date with past and present potential candidates.
