Is Facebook’s New Jobs Feature Putting LinkedIn in Danger?

Facebook has become the Swiss Army knife of social media platforms. The blue giant’s latest update is the introduction of a new Jobs feature. Now companies can easily incorporate Facebook into their hiring strategy so job seekers can be found! Find out how Facebook is tapping into the job market and what this means for competing social media platforms.

Facebook’s monthly active users are constantly growing, which can only mean one thing: more opportunities. In Facebook’s newest addition, companies can create a post advertising a position with ease. It’s completely free and gives companies the ability to reach audiences that already have an invested interest in their product or service.

What’s even more interesting, is the convenience that this new feature offers users. With the click of an “Apply Now” button, job seekers can become potential candidates. Facebook makes the application process smooth, on both mobile and desktop. User’s’ applications are already auto-filled using their Facebook information and can be edited as they see fit. Once they submit their application, it is then sent to the employer through Messenger, so conversations can start instantly.

Of course this new feature should be setting off alarm bells for professional platform – Linkedin. While Facebook’s Jobs feature is completely free, LinkedIn charges a monthly fee of $54.44 for Business accounts and nearly $110.00 for recruiting accounts, with a limitation on the number of InMail messages that can be sent. Facebook on the other hand has no restrictions on the number of messages you can send, which makes connecting with prospective employees easy and affordable. This is especially attractive to smaller business that may not be able to heavily invest in recruitment.

Facebook’s audience size is another benefit that employers can’t ignore. While Facebook’s monthly active users are pushing 2 billion (and growing), LinkedIn’s audience size is smaller with around 470 million users. Facebook has a huge advantage over LinkedIn, offering employers a larger pool of prospective employees to discover. Ultimately that can mean more exposure for a company’s job advertisement, while strengthening the odds of finding the right person for the position.

Facebook is rich with data – which means companies can create highly targeted job posts. It’s not uncommon for companies to use the power of Facebook Ads to advertise their open positions to candidates that fit the profile. While these posts do require a bit of budget, it’s easy for companies to create, target, and post a customized advertisement to communicate with a specific audience. In contrast, LinkedIn relies on users to discover positions on their own in the Jobs section, or for recruiters to filter through potential candidates.

Facebook isn’t the only platform that is changing it up. LinkedIn recentlyunderwent a drastic make-overadopting a Facebook-esque style and News Feed algorithm. Interestingly both platforms seem to be emulating one another to win audiences over. Though Facebook has entered the job market, LinkedIn still comes out on top in terms of features. Recruiters can easily filter through search options to connect with candidates, and are presented with a comprehensive profile that serves as a resume. Though LinkedIn is by far more convenient, it’s likely only a matter of time before Facebook catches up.

Takeaway

The billion dollar social media company seems to be swallowing up the best pieces of other platforms. From the introduction of Stories in Messenger, to live streaming video, we can clearly see that Facebook is becoming the go-to place for everything. What makes these updates dangerous for competing platforms is the sheer size of Facebook’s audience. If users will have everything they need on a single platform (plus more companies and more friends) they will likely consolidate their social activities in one place.

In light of this event, Facebook will no longer be a space dedicated to just “friends”. Instead, your work, family and friends will all co-exist on the same platform. It’s already happening! For example, Facebook is changing the game with Workplace, an intranet service offered to companies that resembles the platform we know and love. Facebook no longer has to solely rely on ads for revenue, they can expand their workplace efforts, shifting from selling media space to services. We can only imagine that Facebook will continue to roll out more features targeted at the job market to meet companies’ demand.