How to Host a Great Virtual Recruiting Event

If your hiring strategy doesn’t include virtual recruitment events, it’s time for an update. Virtual hiring is efficient, scalable, and opens the doors to an even wider candidate pool.

But perhaps you’ve never hosted a virtual event. You don’t know what types of recruitment events translate well to a digital setting, and you definitely don’t know where to start with virtual event planning.

That’s where we can help. From virtual recruitment ideas to tips for organizing a great virtual event, this guide has everything you need to upgrade your recruitment strategy and find top talent. Let’s take a look.

What is a virtual recruiting event?

A virtual recruiting event is an occasion for employers and recruiters to promote job roles and meet candidates online. These events can offer industry-specific talks, networking, and interviews.

What are the benefits of holding virtual recruiting events?

Event recruiting can raise the profile of your organization, benefit your reputation as an employer, and help you reach a wider pool of candidates. But why choose virtual events over in-person ones?

Online recruitment events are beneficial because you will:

• Minimize your expenses. You won’t need to hire or decorate a venue, provide refreshments, or reimburse the travel expenses of your recruitment staff and speakers.
• Attract wider candidate pools. You’ll reach even wider audiences, which increases your chances of hiring the best talent, because virtual events don’t require candidates to travel far or commit much time.
• Attract wider speaker pools. For the same reason, you’ll also have more speakers to choose from, whether that’s internal employees or external professionals with relevant experience.
• Have greater analytics options. Most virtual event platforms have a basic level of automatic reporting including tracking registration and attendance figures. Video engagement platforms like Livestorm will also collect engagement data such as the number of messages sent, number of poll responses, and duration of attendance for each registrant.
• Benefit the environment. Meet your organization’s ‘green’ objectives by reducing waste and air pollution caused by in-person events.
• Provide fair hiring opportunities. Virtual events are more accessible, even for those with childcare responsibilities, restricted mobility, and limited time or resources.

What does a good virtual hiring event look like?

A good virtual hiring event will result in increased application numbers and actual hires. These targets are adaptable depending on the size and profile of your organization.

You can also use analytics dashboards in your virtual event platform to help you track other virtual event metrics such as:

• Total registrations
• Attendance rates
• Drop-out rate
• Audience engagement

To meet your target metrics, you’ll need to know how to host engaging events online. Consider putting together an engagement strategy to keep your target audience engaged before, during, and after your event.

What tools do I need to host a virtual recruiting event?

The most important tool for hosting a virtual recruiting event is your event platform. The best virtual event platforms aren’t just digital venues: they should also act as your personal assistant, a communications team, and your reporting tool all in one. Look out for a platform that includes:

• Customizable registration forms
• Automated email reminders and follow-ups
• Engagement features like presentation sharing, breakout rooms, and a Q&A tab
• A detailed analytics dashboard

Before you choose your tools, you’ll need to set your intentions for the event. What kind of activities do you want to plan? How many audience members and speakers will you invite?

And if you’re wondering how to host a virtual career fair on Zoom, the answer is: you don’t have to! There are other platforms with features that are well suited to virtual recruitment. For example, Hopin has a “speed dating” feature to support networking.

However, Hopin doesn’t have the best analytics tools for reporting across multiple events. If you want a strong “all-rounder” platform for virtual recruiting events, try Livestorm. Livestorm has a powerful analytics dashboard for tracking engagement, and it’s the most flexible tool for virtual hiring, You can use it for a range of digital events, such as:

• Careers fairs
• Information sessions
• Interviews
• Webinars

Livestorm comes with built-in promotional features to help you plan and share your event. With automated emails, customized registration pages, and data analytics included, Livestorm is much more than just a digital venue.

Ideas for virtual recruitment events

If you need virtual recruiting event ideas, here are our top four, complete with tips for planning your virtual event.

Career fairs

Virtual careers fairs are an opportunity for recruiters to collaborate on a large event where job seekers can “shop around” for career opportunities. Careers fairs usually involve multiple job opportunities across multiple organizations and can have several hundred attendees.

What are virtual career fairs good for?

Career fairs are a great format for virtual college recruitment because college students are often seeking career inspiration from multiple industries and employers.

How to organize a good online career fair?

1. Reach out to a range of employers to offer spots at your career fair.
2. Carry out market research to plan a promotion strategy that properly targets your audience. For example, you may wish to use TikTok as well as a traditional jobs board if you want to target recent college graduates.
3. Set up a digital application form using a tool like Typeform or Google Forms to allow applicants to upload their resumés. With Livestorm, you can integrate Typeform with Zapier to make sure every form submission includes registration for your event.
4. Create a knowledge base to share resources within your event platform or on an external server like Google Drive. This will help candidates find out more about their potential employers.

What features do you need in a virtual career fair platform?

• Breakout rooms or booths for different employers to set up “stands”
• Custom branding for all your assets including room design, registration pages, and emails
• A Handouts plugin for sharing resources during your event
• Automatic email reminders to help manage large numbers of attendees before and after your event

Information sessions

A virtual info session is an opportunity for candidates to find out about an employer and get to know the ethos and culture at their organization. Info sessions are usually hosted by a single organization and may have up to 50 audience members.

What are virtual info sessions good for?

Virtual info sessions are good for hiring in competitive industries because they give an insight into the reality of the careers involved and allow employers to meet face-to-face with a select pool of candidates.

How to organize a good virtual info session?

1. Set up a pre-event selection form to vet potential candidates before you send out the invitation.
2. Plan icebreaker activities to facilitate networking. For example, you could assign smaller groups of attendees to breakout rooms for 5 minutes to introduce themselves and share a fact.
3. Take note of standout candidates using built-in analytics to see who are the most engaged with polls, Q&As, and other activities.

What features do you need in a virtual info session platform?

• Presentation and media sharing for keynote speakers
• Breakout rooms for ad hoc networking or interviewing
• A Q&A tab with question upvotes to encourage audience engagement and address important questions
• A call to action button linked to your Typeform to allow audience members to submit resumés during the event
• An emailing tool that allows you to import contacts and send automatic events
• An analytics dashboard to measure candidate engagement and gain demographic insights.

Virtual interviews

A virtual interview allows employers to meet face-to-face with candidates to assess their suitability for a role. Employers can choose to host individual or group interviews using video conferencing software. Online interviews usually follow a structured question format and involve a single interviewer or a panel.

What are video conferencing interviews good for?

Video conferencing interviews are good for vetting candidates in various geographical locations, particularly for remote or hybrid job roles. By offering remote interviews, you’ll support candidates (and your interview panel) to attend despite any time constraints or caring commitments, because there’ll be no travel requirement.

How to organize a good virtual interview?

1. Choose online meeting software that integrates with your calendar or scheduling tool to maximize efficiency when planning interview slots.
2. Plan your virtual interview questions in advance and share them with the interview panel.
3. For group interviews, try using Sli.do or Mentimeter to facilitate quizzing, polls, and other interactive activities to keep candidates on their toes.
4. Schedule a follow-up email to thank each interviewee for their time and advise on the next steps.

What features do you need in a virtual interview platform?

• Automatic email reminders to prevent no-shows and follow-up emails to save time when providing candidates with information about next steps
• A browser-based platform to allow interviewees to connect instantly, without extra downloads or sign-up steps
• HD camera streaming to ensure effortless communication
• Automatic recordings to allow colleagues to review the strengths and weaknesses of the interview (with permission from the interviewee)

Webinars

A webinar is a live virtual event where a speaker or panel of speakers share expert knowledge on a specific topic. Live webinars can attract hundreds of audience members, who typically keep their camera and mic switched off throughout the event but can interact via chat boxes, virtual Q&As, and polls.

What are webinars good for in recruitment?

Webinars allow organizations to showcase their subject matter expertise and demonstrate their values. For example, a bank might attract employees by running a webinar on improving sustainability practices in the finance sector.

How to organize a webinar for recruitment?

1. Book engaging keynote speakers who have influence or relevant experience within the industry.
2. Set up a custom registration page to reflect your organization’s branding and capture details about your audience.
3. Leverage your speaker’s networks to promote the event online.
4. Create a follow-up survey to gather feedback about the success of your event and understand what motivates your audience to apply (or not apply) for roles.

What features do you need in a live webinar platform?

• Polls to gauge understanding and gather audience feedback
• Video clip integration to play pre-recorded videos
• Chat box to allow audience members to contribute
• Virtual backgrounds for a professional video setup
• Data analytics dashboard to track audience engagement and demographics

Are virtual events good for recruitment?

If you want to upgrade your virtual recruitment strategy and reach a wider pool of applicants, virtual events are the way to go. By removing attendance barriers, you’ll attract wider candidate pools. You’ll also have more comprehensive data analytics options to help you truly understand your audience and provide value to potential candidates.

All you need to do is choose a strong virtual event platform and start planning. If you’re a virtual event beginner, try well-rounded virtual event software like Livestorm that integrates seamlessly with your existing tools like Slack, Zapier, and Hubspot. You can also use Livestorm features like automatic email reminders and calendar syncing to help automate your workflows.

Finally, to get the most out of virtual recruiting, you need to focus on engagement. Compelling events inspire action and leave a lasting impression. When your candidate pool is engaged, you’ll raise your organization’s profile and have the pick of top talent.

Frequently asked questions about virtual recruiting events

What is a virtual recruiting event?

A virtual recruiting event is an occasion for employers and recruiters to promote job roles and meet candidates online. Virtual recruiting events may include a variety of segments like a presentation, fireside chats, a Q&A, and networking sessions.

What are some examples of virtual hiring events?

• Amazon Virtual Career Day 2021. In September 2021, Amazon recruiters offered 30,000 free online coaching sessions over 24 hours. Job seekers attended the virtual career day from over 170 countries. They had the chance to hear from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy among other notable speakers.
• PayPal Campus Challenge 2021. PayPal opened its doors in September 2021 to find recruits for job roles across its frontend, backend, mobile, data, and analytics teams. The recruitment process involved a remote online assessment followed by a series of virtual interviews.
• Google VetNet Career Week 2021. Google’s network for veterans (VetNet) hosted a 3-day virtual event in June 2021 for military spouses, service members, and vets looking to advance their careers. The event included fireside chats, industry-specific panels, and 1:1 resume coaching sessions.
• Walt Disney World Job Fairs 2021. In July 2021, Disney hosted a series of virtual job fairs in the hunt for cast members at the Disney World resort. The vacancies included roles in culinary, food and beverage, housekeeping, and custodial teams,
• Accenture Hackathon 2021. Candidates at the Accenture Virtual Hackathon in April 2021 worked in teams to solve a problem. They had 12 hours to analyze the data, pull together a presentation, and deliver their solution to a panel.

What types of virtual recruiting events are there?

• Online career fair. At an online careers fair, candidates can visit virtual “stalls” to hear employers give talks about their organization and job opportunities. Typically, virtual careers fairs accommodate networking and candidates can submit their resumes to organizations they’re interested in.
• Virtual info session. Info sessions are an opportunity for candidates to learn about employers and hear current employees share their experiences. Some info sessions also involve virtual interviews.
• ‘Ask me anything’ (AMA) session. An AMA session is usually carried out on social media by someone prominent within an organization that’s hiring. They’re a chance for potential candidates to ask questions and “meet” an organization via a public online platform.
• Virtual interview. A virtual interview typically uses a video conferencing platform to connect a candidate with recruiters from a hiring organization.

What should I name my virtual recruiting event?

When naming your virtual recruiting event, you should think about the target audience and the type of event. For example, if you’re hiring for one specific organization, you should name it in the title of your event (e.g. Livestorm Info Session).

But, if you’re hiring specific people for a range of employers, then put the emphasis on the candidate type (e.g. Graduate Software Engineer Careers Fair).