There’s a line from the show The Office where boss Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) says to his HR director (Amy Ryan), “You have to put up a lot with a family.” She reminds him, “It’s a business, not a family.”
Decades ago, it was black and white between your personal life and work life. But that has become more than just a grey area since 2020. Human beings are human. They cannot always separate work from a bad morning - or week - at home. We saw this with humility and humor for two years, and now some businesses are struggling to understand why they can’t keep employees or find the right fit for their company. The world really hasn’t gone back to normal even if we are seeing fewer masks when we walk into the grocery store. Because no matter what the rest of the world looks like, we’re still the same people wearing sweatpants under the computer monitor.
Why Good Social Media Matters for Hiring
Having a presence on social media matters because just as much as you are searching for your next great teammate online - they are doing the same (and are probably better at it than you are…). Most people jump online to learn about a company or brand, but it’s especially true of Gen Z because they’ve always grown up with the internet. It’s their default. And they are going to search for your company or brand beyond Google. When searching online, almost 50% of Gen Z uses social media first.
The top platforms used by Gen Z in 2026 are YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. So even if you are B2B, you need to consider where you are showing up on platforms beyond LinkedIn.
3 Tips for Posts That Appeal to Gen Z
In a previous post, we discussed the importance of living the core values of your business and showing future employees that you’re more than a logo on a polo shirt. But how does that translate to a consistent, authentic social media presence? Here are three tips.
Engage your team
Create a social culture
Inject positivity (but don’t be inauthentic)
Engage your team - especially leadership
Scroll through your LinkedIn feed and you’re going to see plenty of selfies and group photos from all industries. And as much as you might shudder at the idea of a selfie - consider what this is saying. People are happy to be back in public with people they enjoy. And if the people they enjoy are your team - that’s amazing! Set the example within your organization that posting to LinkedIn (or Facebook or Instagram if that’s where they’re more comfortable) is encouraged and that tagging the company or using a company hashtag is a normal part of the culture. Speaking of…
Create a social culture
Consider promoting a specific hashtag during an event or a hashtag that captures your mission such as #turnthenextpage or #BeTheBridge. Invite employees, guests and even people passing by your table at a trade show to follow you on social media. Have your channels and handles in multiple places and make those profiles easily accessible (hello, QR code my old friend). With 72% of adults having at least one social media profile, the chances are good that on any given day, you’re coming into contact with people who will follow you online.
Inject positivity
Unless your business is to sell ice cream, there is probably a lot of things in your industry that are not very uplifting: increasing freight costs, AI putting people out of work… yada yada. That’s why it’s so imperative for you to push more positive than negative in your social media. Anyone can tell you that the world is going to end if you don’t buy their product (and you might believe them), but the analytics of the last few years prove that people love dogs, babies and funny memes - even if none of those things are related to your business. When you can, and when it makes sense, add these into your content rotation.
Hiring Manager: “Passing out a business card seemed obsolete”
One of our recent case studies looked at our work creating a digital presence for a traditional industry (agriculture) while they searched for their next employee. At a college career fair their team found that their reputation had preceded them and that the students who came to their table already knew a lot about their business - both the fundamentals of what they did and, most importantly, who they were.
Read the full case study here: A Modern Marketing Approach to Gen Z Recruitment
Most executives know they need to start somewhere. The biggest hurdle is probably a mental one. But - I can’t believe I’m going to say this - you might want to take a lesson out of Michael Scott’s playbook as you begin your social media journey: don’t overthink it.
Original Posting: January 18, 2023
Article Updated: October 29, 2026