Web Report: Are You A Nervous Netty Or A Digital Man?
The emergence of another website dedicated to recruitment has brought further interest in the phenomenon of online jobsearching. Workthing.com, the new Guardian Media Group-owned employment network, which launches in the UK this summer (see Guardian To Launch Employment Portal), has commissioned a survey into the habits of users of recruitment websites as they increase in popularity and begin to encroach on traditional print-based classified advertising.
Conducted by BMRB, the Online Recruitment and Employment Survey interviewed 3000 internet users to ascertain the size and growth potential of the online job market and research the current and potential users of these services.
The study found that 31% of all internet users – or 4m people – have looked at job opportunities online in the last 6 months. Of those who applied online, 10% led to interviews and 4% – or 170,000 people – were offered jobs. Of those net users who have never visited a recruitment site, 50% say they will do so next time they apply for a job, a factor which could boost the market by an estimated extra 4 million new users.
A survey conducted by Softworld for Personnel Today magazine on the human resources and payroll market backed up this research from the employers viewpoint. It found that the use of the internet for recruitment advertising by employers throughout Britain is projected to increase from 24% in 1998 to 54% in 2001. Traditional print-based recruitment is expected to fall by 40% during the period.
All in all recruitment websites are becoming a booming business and the latest BMRB results have attempted to discover trends in their usage. Defining eight categories of internet users in terms of their potential to use recruitment websites the research could equally be used as a study into internet habits in general.
The eight categories are: Clock Watching Clickers: mid-market, light net users, motivated by money rather than career-building Digital Man: male, based in south, experienced net user, confident job changer, most likely to use the net to search for jobs, comfortable with technology Nervous Netty: female, lack of confidence around technology, dedicated employee, finds changing jobs stressful, values advice on career issues Mouse Potatoes: largest group, heavy TV viewers, frequent job changers, enjoy shopping and leisure-based activities online but use traditional media to look for jobs Net Workers: smallest group, net access at home, happy to buy online, motivated by more than money in career terms Work Steady Eddies: oldest age group, least likely to use the internet to look for jobs, concerned about security issues and reluctant to use technology, least likely to change jobs Super Surfers: youngest group, embrace the digital revolution, most likely to change jobs in next six months, Stiff Upper Clicks: upmarket, hold senior positions at work, use recruitment consultancies to look for jobs, average internet users
Such research can be used as a guide for any company moving its traditional services online and will be of particular value to publishers as the battle to corner the recruitment market hots up.
The driving force behind such sites is the transition from newspaper-based classified advertising to online advertising and it is no surprise that most of the entrants to the market are those most at risk from the transition – newspaper publishers.
The Guardian Media Group has been running its classified jobs ads simultaneously across its jobsunlimited website and its newspaper since the inception of its net-based activities (see Website Of The Week – Guardian Unlimited). The launch of Workthing.com will give the group a further hold on the market and gives a clue to understanding how importantly the newspaper group considers the online classified advertising.
It will be competing with established job sites such as jobworld.co.uk and topjobsonthenet.co.uk, which have been in the business for a number of years and which have recently formed a portal under BT’s changejobs.co.uk. Old publishers have been gradually making the transition online including revolver.com from News International and Associated Newspapers’ bigbluedog.com. Regional newspaper group combined their resources to launch a classified advertising network on the internet (see Regional Press Groups Launch Classified Ad Network) and recently even broadcasters have been entering the market (see Carlton Enters Classified Ads Market).
Currently the only sites to receive a regular audit are those which have been in the business for a number of years and the list of top sites reflects this, with established players on top. As the market begins to expand, however, the arena looks set for further change.
Feature: Clare Goff