One of the reasons people love using instant messaging platforms like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, is the ability to send GIFs, emojis or Memes.

It’s not hard to understand why; they’re funny, enjoyable and they help us get our message (or even feelings) across. GIFS in particular are a huge part of the internet’s world now, virtually everyone uses them on a daily basis. So if you want to speak your candidate’s language, you need to speak GIF.

In high-volume hiring situations, an engaging recruitment chatbot that creatively uses GIFs can dramatically improve your process and enhance your candidate experience. They are fun, relatable, and will instantly make your candidates feel more comfortable with your brand.

That said, here are some ways in which the use of GIFs and Memes in the application process can boost your recruitment experience.

1. Use Memes to keep the recruitment process FUN

Boost up your completion rates by generating empathy and a sense of intimacy with your candidates. You have to make candidates feel ❤️ something when they receive your messages. This is much easier to do with animated gifs or memes, where you can use known and beloved characters to deliver that message. The more you make people laugh, think or feel positive about something, the more enticing it is to continue and complete the process.

In this context, our client Transcom, a global BPO organization providing customer care, sales, technical support, and collections services, has used Memes in a very compelling manner. They started sending a Pussy Cat meme to candidates who hadn’t finished their online interview, something like this:

The completion rate actually increased from 26% to 70% after introducing this Meme! Crazy, right?

2. Stay relevant and relatable by creating your own GIFs

Candidates look for relevance and personalization in their application experience, not a canned, generic job application process. A great example is how VXI PH uses GIFs in its messenger ads that boosts candidate engagement with its recruitment chatbot, Vixie. Instead of candidates manually filling in their job application, GIFs enable a rather fun experience via a ‘send message’ CTA embedded in the messenger ad(s). Candidates are then redirected to the bot (aka Vixie) and then choose their options to start a personalized chat with her.

Vixie makes the experience of engaging with VXI easy and interactive for candidates.

For example, as you can see below, Vixie asks “Comment your last used GIF this TGIFriday” to make a ‘light’ and ‘peppy’ moment for candidates to reply with a GIF that best relates to their feeling of a week’s wrap-up.

Keeping the GIFs and memes trendy and relevant lets candidates know you care. An easy way to do this is by creating content aligned with the current season. Like the example below with Ces, Transcom’s recruitment chatbot.

No matter what the celebration is, Transcom always wants CES to be relevant for their candidates. And so, every Valentine’s Day, Easter Sunday, Ces sends out gifts. Have a look below:

Keeping engagement rates high is vital to close a full application cycle. These type of content connects with candidates and invites them to keep the conversation going.

3. Deliver a feel-good factor throughout the conversation

Using relatable and emotionally responsive GIFs, you can trigger the reward system of your brain even for doing the most basic things. For example a clap for when candidates opt-in. Intuitively matching the animation/ GIF with the persona of the recruitment chatbot — say, in the C3 Philippinescase, Ana bot is very conscientious, detailed-oriented and empathetic as well, you can incite candidates emotionally to move further into the application process.

Designed with a name, avatar, and “tone of voice”, it’s natural for users to project human traits to a chatbot assistant and develop a very positive sentiment toward the bot. Pair it with GIFs and you have your own unique way of communicating your brand’s story to develop a more personal relationship with candidates.

Talkpush is the new way employers and candidates connect all over the world. We believe hiring is about starting conversations; and are on a mission to level up the recruitment experience.

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