Epic employee recruitment videos have been around for years, but it seems some employers have yet to master the balance of art and entertainment with design and function. It’s difficult to do so here's our quick take on what makes an epic employee recruitment video.

Videos are an employer branding opportunity

Your video should instill what your employer brand actually is. Employer branding doesn’t begin or end with an employee recruitment video though. Branding is a consistent and deliberate effort to convey who you are as an employer. It should also speak to the energy, experience and setting you provide for your employees.

An employee recruitment video will give potential employees a visual insider experience of company culture and the kind of people who work there. The trick is to capture the essence of what makes your company a great place to work. Your employees know why they love their jobs. Let them be your guide for the video.

There’s no shortage of advice about how to make a good video. Don’t complicate things. Stick with the basics and you’ll do just fine.

What does an epic employee recruitment video look like?

Here's a great example of an epic employee recruitment video.

[embed]https://youtu.be/-ZuxQcp84o0[/embed]

Dropbox scores a ‘10’ in the creativity category for this video because replacing people with puppets makes us all want to watch. It's one of my all-time favorites. The content is pretty much the same as most employee recruitment videos. Employees are interviewed and explain on-camera why they love their jobs and their employers. The puppets are just a different take on the same old thing. It’s creative.

But, it’s not just the puppets that make this an epic employee recruiting video. Dropbox successfully incorporates elements that make an epic video.

5 major elements of an epic employee recruitment video

1. Employee testimonials with footage that demonstrates what they say they like about the company environment
2. A demonstration of workplace diversity
3. The qualities you’re looking for in new employees
4. A list of company perks
5. The contributions that employees and the company make to our society at large

5 things LinkedIn wants you to know about employee recruitment video production

Once you figure out a creative way to include those elements, production is the logical next step. Not everyone has a generous budget to hire professionals like Dropbox, but LinkedIn has a great DIY employee recruitment video tutorial that’s as fun to watch as it is informative.

[embed]https://youtu.be/iv733-tH1gU[/embed]

These are the key takeaways:

1. It’s okay if you don’t have a huge budget for creating your video. Use what you have. An iPhone, Android or GoPro work just fine.
2. Lose the corporate speak. It’s too vague. Allow your employees to truly express what they love about their jobs and the company.
3. Take a common-sense approach to filming. For example, aiming your smartphone horizontally allows for wider and fuller shots.
4. Make sure you have good audio and video. If you can’t have both, make sure that at the very least, the audio is good. Use a second phone to record if you need to.
5. Because it’s a video, show, don’t tell. Get shots of employees doing what they love doing.

Authenticity works best for employee recruitment

Most of all, have fun with your employee recruitment videos. Be authentic and organic. If you try to create something that isn’t true to your culture, it will come across as boring and dull. It will also turn off the potential employees you’re trying to attract.

If you don’t want to DIY, you can consult with your marketing agency. Either way, good luck and have fun!