If you work in the staffing or HR industry, you’ve probably attended your share of job fairs. You have probably also wondered, is it worth it? Do businesses benefit from participating in job fairs? While every job fair isn’t necessarily going to be a success, overall there are four significant benefits to employers that attend.  

Recruiting

The main reason for a business to attend a job fair is to recruit quality candidates to apply for your positions. To ensure that the job fair is a successful recruiting event for you, there are several different things you can do. First, make sure you choose an appropriate job fair for your business. For instance, if you’re primarily looking for candidates to work in the medical field, make sure you attend job fairs within that industry, such as career fairs at colleges with medical degree programs. Another thing you can do to improve recruiting is to focus on why you’re attending the event, and set goals to meet, such as setting interview appointments with a certain number of candidates. Know the openings you are currently hiring for, and be ready to take resumes, or even do interviews onsite at the job fair.  

Networking

Even if your business isn’t actively hiring, job fairs still let you meet with hundreds of people in the community. These could be future candidates for employment, or even other professionals who could provide services or assistance to your business. You can use job fairs as an opportunity to collect names and emails for your company newsletter. Have visitors stop by your booth and enter their business cards to win a gift basket or other prize drawing.  

Marketing

Regardless of if you find candidates at all the career fairs you attend, every event is an opportunity for you to publicize your business. Having a well-put together booth with your company name and logo displayed will increase overall recognition of your company. People are more likely to work with a business that they are familiar with and recognized. If you have a particularly memorable job fair booth, with fun games or decorations, you can create positive word-of-mouth about your business. This is also a great time to pass out branded promotional items that will remind others about your business even once the event is over. 

Brainstorming 

While it might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a job fair, they are actually a great place for employees to get new ideas about business. Working a booth at a job fair gets you out of your typical routine and gets you out of the office. This change in a schedule often stimulates creativity. You can see how the public is viewing your questions, and learn what questions they have. Getting a fresh perspective in a new setting can give you new ideas for your company.   

Penmac loves attending career fairs, expos, and trade shows, and with over thirty offices, we participate in events throughout the year. To learn more about events in your area, call your local office today.