Rich Media or not Rich Media, that is the question…

Or is it? 

I am less and less involved in the placement of banners and buttons on the UK job boards now, especially as my role is much more focussed towards the delivery of our website builds here, but every now and then I get asked to join a client, or sit in on an internal meeting, with some of our friends from the world of online recruitment.

Knowing what we can now deliver via our websites, and understanding the penetration of broadband within the UK – last I heard it was over 60% of the population and still rising, I am occasionally led to question why, in this day and age, we are given such limiting restrictions on the type of file we can supply to promote our clients on the majority of the traditional online job advertising platforms.

The animated gif for example – a file format so restrictive that you can only do so much – especially with the file size limitations we work within.  So basic, yet still the benchmark and, in most cases, the standard deliverable for the majority of ads placed on UK job boards. 

Some allow Flash, but only in limited circumstances.  Some don’t allow ‘recruitment advertisers’ to use Flash in certain places, yet directly below that slot are Flash banners being run by product advertisers, and so the story goes on.

The work currently being developed by our counterparts in the product market can at times be described as fantastic – integrating video, audio, interactive functionality, linking within banners to different places, tracking this usage, measuring the success of the components of a banner, etc., etc.  You know, really USING the available technology to enhance the message being presented.

And, there don’t appear to be the same restrictions we are presented with.  These seem to be available almost across the board, with a reasonable file size limit, and at the same time, they do not seem to ‘spoil’ the user experience.

So come on ladies and gents, I’d like to better understand why we are still being presented with these draconian restrictions on the type of file we present.

And, if anyone deems to bring up ‘download times’ as an excuse, I would seriously like to understand why.  Surely, whether it’s a Flash file, or a gif, the download time of a 12K banner is almost the same.

And yes, I know people will come back with tales of ‘not everyone has Flash’ or ‘’our users don’t want to be distracted’, but I often find this difficult to believe – especially as they are already being distracted by the 4/5 frame animated gifs that pepper our job boards.

So, my request is this, can we start to stretch ourselves a little more – technically – and perhaps bring the available advertising platforms up to the standards of those our product agency peers seem to be able to utilise on most lifestyle sites. 

I’m sure not all of our clients will want to utilise these ‘new technologies’, but for those that do, I think it’s about time we offered them the option.

I’d be really keen to hear the point of views of some of our friends in the online recruitment media industry on this, and perhaps get a discussion going here about moving into the new generation of in-site promotional materials.

If, as a site, this does not apply to you – and you are embracing leading edge technologies and advertising practices, then just enjoy the opportunity to show the rest of the market what can be done – we’d still be interested to hear your opinion.

Cheers folks, and it is a Friday afternoon after all…

Oh, and sorry Matt, got impatient - 

Comments

[Peter Gold]

Ben, good questions that I often ask and get the same answers everytime.

Job boards (not all mind) tend to employ unskilled telesales people who don't really know how to sell so the sites reflect their intelligence.

I could go on but can't be bothered this late but do agree,anyone who really does utilise technology then enjoy the moment, it will last a lot longer than it should!!

[Matt]

No problem....I know I said I was going to write something similar but then I got my Facebook addiction and then starting spending the rest of my time writing comments in the post below (the one I just wrote was highly cathartic)anyway.....I really don't understand why job boards don't address this properly.Interestingly in the meantime the newspaper websites (Telegraph, Guardian, Times) are more than happy to help and are cashing in accordingly!

[Power2.0ThePeople]

Good points well made. Not very sure where to start.

One thing i want to point out is; "I actually agree with most of it"

Technologies are what's changing the online recruitment arena. So higher spec banners are obviously going to be looked at.

Sites are keen on providing better coverage for rec's, some invest in delivering a better product via feeds to users, some concentrate on reaching different 'candidates' via Outdoor / Commercial 'TV' media. Money well spent? Maybe.

I believe sites are looking at ways to drive traffic with out risk. Bringing traffic to a site is useless if users get frustrated on waiting for flash banners to close, start etc. (this could be down to many reasons, poor machines poor connections etc etc.) Would sites want to risk losing users due to an advertiser 'flashing'.

Users of job sites and users of lifestyle sites are a different breed, lifestyle sites... users really want to be there, generally, job seeking has never been fun... time to change that possibly?

I'd like to think advertisers & recruiters are concentrating on giving there job specs greater coverage on the net which would result in a wider range of candidates for advertisers - either that or make it really fun.

[Ben]

Thanks for that.

To be honest I'm not just talking about advertising platforms - i.e. banners and buttons etc - but instead would just like to see these sites embrace the platforms that are available.

For example, in addition to more rich, enhanced media advertising opportunities, I'd like to be able to use the video files we've created for our clients, where appropriate, to help with perception shift - within corporate profile pages, for example.

Or, give more within a profile - a more interactive, exciting and engaging experience.

This is not for everyone - and that's absolutely fine - but I think we're being a bit narrow-minded deciding that 'users don't want it' because they are seeking jobs.

I understand that they may get annoyed with overlays, expanding banners etc., but this just needs to be well-managed - not peppering the site with irritating advertising, but instead just providing certain areas for more engaging advertisements formats.

If I was job searching, and looking at potential employers within a job board, I'd love to be able to get involved - get a video tour, or an indication of what it's really like - rather than just read about it.

After all, we should be at least providing both advertisers and candidates with the choice...

[Alex]

Think you're not quite understanding the technology and what executions Ben's referring to Mr/Mrs People sir/madam (or can I just call you Power?).

Sites are of course focussing on driving the traffic (no traffic, no applications, revenue, no point), but we're not talking about pop ups or interstitials or superstitials or some other horrendous taking over your screen and p*ssing you off type advert execution. Rich media adveetising has come on leaps and bounds and only enhances rather than compromises user experience.

We're talking simple (from the users perspective) user activated engagement.

I also happen to believe that users also want to be on job boards, and would probably be even more receptive to engaging creative execution because, if done correctly, it's relevancy to them is high (unlike when I'm on a lifestyle site and being marketed another credit card or a new car).

I agree with Ben that the job boards have taken their eye completely off the 'accommodating for a richer user experience ball', and whilst I do understand why in such a competitive market focusing on establishing your site and a solid standard offer is absolutely key - the point is that now is surely the time to get with the programme and let us get funky. Users / candidates are very used to it and in a crowded world of noise, offering the opportunity to stand out is highly valuable for recruiters. As I'm sure it will be for the job boards bottom line too.

[Andrew Douglas]

Video's an intersting area and the guys at Jobster and MyWorkster are proving it can work for job seekers. Could it happen in the UK though? Not sure I'd want an employer making a decision on my ability due my performance in front of the camera, but that's another story.

Ben, we can do this kind of thing on naturejobs.com but usually we're told that clients wouldn't be interested as it's a little out of their comfort zone. If you've got any Pharmaceutical or Biotech companies on your list give me a call.

One of our competitors in the academic market has starting doing this on jobs.ac.uk (I hate to plug competitors but this is worth a mention) and they have some clients signed up for it but I think it'll be slow going before a larger amount of clients engage in this.

Do you think organisations are worried they'll get it wrong and endure ongoing criticism on youtube??

[Ben]

Hi - just to clarify, I'm not necessarily talking about posting video CVs here - I think the jury is still out on this, as the examples I've seen definitely don't enhance the impression of the candidate, and if anything, would put me off.

I'm referring more to simply allowing us to put video alongside a profile page, or within an ad, to give more of an insight into the organisation, the working environment, some of the more social aspects of working for a company. If it's outside a client's comfort zone, then they won't use it, but there are a lot out there that would be more than happy to add this format to their presence, and at the moment can't.

It just seems such a shame that as the industry progresses, and online captures more and more of our clients recruitment budgets, we're held back by only being able to use the absolute minimum of up to date technology.

We should be leading the way, not sitting safely in the background never taking risks (measured, calculated risks, obviously - :-)).

I'm no fan of pop-ups, overlay's, expanable banners etc., but sometimes you know, they can work really well without being too intrusive - it is just down to how they are applied, served, and the sensibility of the person setting the rules.

Either way, we can't really get any further than a 4 frame animated gif in most places at the moment, so it's not really a concern!

And as for your final point, absolutely - it's already happening. But surely, where they're working with an agency, that's the role of the agency to 'advise' them, and ensure that what they create/want to use, is appropriate and presents the correct impression of the business/addresses the business need!

There are already some shocking recruitment videos that I've seen on YouTube that demonstrate almost everything wrong within an industry - but the problem is, they were created by the people in that industry - people who don't see it as we do!

Either way, we're really talking about being given the opportunity to use new technologies within the job board environment here, rather than how we do it - that's a whole other discussion. :-)

[Power2.0ThePeople]

Ok ok ok!

I got you....

i do believe that Job Boards should be more open to advertisers using new techs as long as they do not compromise the usability on offer.

I'm actually quite surprised that this does not happen more. I'm guessing the question has been asked?

I know for sure the guys that I know and speak to that run sites would be more than happy to allow recruiters to offer links for down loads etc, I certainly know I wouldn't have any qualms to the concept and I sell the space!

Any how perhaps to much info there... I am your imagination.

P2.0TP.