In case you have been living under a rock- Internet is King!

In just a short period of time, Internet usage in the United States has steadily evolved from a mere curiosity for many and an interest for only the tech savvy, to a mainstream form of communication for most Americans. Internet penetration has more than doubled in the past 10 years, reaching nearly 73% of the American population.

As the following statistics show, the characteristics of Internet users are as diverse as the U.S. population itself:

• Over half of Americans now have a high-speed Internet connection in their homes,
  compared to only 5% in 2000.
• The Internet draws an ethnically diverse crowd, with 11.4% of the Internet population
  being Hispanic and over 20 million African Americans going online.
• Once considered a male-dominated media, the Internet now attracts a comparable
  number of women.
• Use of the Internet is beginning to out-pace traditional media, as evidenced by the fact
  that Generation Y spends more time online than watching TV.

The implication for employers is clear. The Internet has emerged as a core channel for attracting and acquiring new talent. Advances in Web 2.0 allow employers to build brand awareness and engage both active and passive candidates through employer videos, blogging, social networks and viral marketing campaigns - all mediums of communication that were only imagined a few years ago.

The additional implication of importance for employers is that the growing use of the Internet
across various demographic groups makes it the medium of choice for many talent acquisition campaigns. Recent gains in use by women, Hispanics, African Americans, and Baby Boomers demonstrate the Internet’s potential for reaching across the entire spectrum of the talent community.

As you will see below, with the vast diversity of the Internet itself comes great opportunities to reach and communicate with A-level Talent across the globe.

• Social Networks- Connect with job seekers on their own turf
• Search Engine Optimization/ Search Engine Marketing- make sure that when candidates are searching, your company is the first employer that they see
• Employment Video- Show job seekers who your company really is and why they want to work for you
• You Tube- Allow your current employees to tell your company’s story
• Blogging- Tell candidates how rewarding it is working for your company in your own words
• Online Banner Ads- Get in front of passive and active candidates, while branding yourself as an employer of choice
• Online Job Boards- Let us help you come up with the best combination for targeting key talent through our Interactive Days and Online Contract Management
• Email Campaigns- Go Green. Instead of direct mail, target specific candidates for your hard-to-fill positions through email
• Electronic Job Fairs- Pocket the money that you would have spent on traveling and reach even more qualified candidates across the world
• Candidate Relationship Management- Communicate with candidates in live time through RSS feeds to personal homepages, live recruiter chat, podcasting and live video solutions

For additional insight on ways to use these trends to your maximum advantage in talent acquisition, please contact your NAS representative.

Source: Internet Usage in the United States, NAS White Paper, Jan. 2009