Facebook recently released a new app for iOS called Rooms. Like forums, message boards, and chat rooms, the app allows users to connect with each other based on shared interests.

Each "Room" is a feed where users can share photos, commentary, video, and links specific to that Room’s theme. Similar to your Facebook News Feed, but tailored to your particular interests.

Facebook Rooms may or may not catch on, but either way the app is indicative of two growing trends in social media: A renewed focus on connecting over common interests, rather than common friends, and diversified feeds.

Here's how these trends can help you rethink your social recruiting:

Your candidates’ common interests matter

One of the most attractive things about rooms is that it aims to bring people together based on their common interests, because really, when it comes to being social online, what you want to talk about is often more important than who you’re talking to.

Each of the app’s Rooms is dedicated to a specific topic such as photography, technology, or even, social recruiting!

Taking this emphasis on interest-based communities into account, when planning your social recruiting strategy, can really help you step up your game.

Joining online communities related to your field or that of the candidates’ you wish to recruit is a great way to discover and connect with potential hires.

You can also start a community yourself and use it as a means to both engage the general public (potential customers), and scout top talent.

e.g. A company that builds data visualization tools could start a Beautiful Data Room, Facebook Group, Twitter chat, etc...

Diversified social media strategies are more effective

Different Social networks have entirely different purposes. Sharing pics of your daily espresso to your Facebook Time Line = clutter, those same pics + a filter shared to Instagram = gold!

With the acquisition of apps like What’s App and Insta, Facebook has shown that they understand that different social networks demand different types of content and vice versa. Rooms, with its content specific feeds, is a perfect example.

The social recruiting takeaway here is that when it comes to social recruiting you must tailor your efforts to each different platform that you use.

If you have a visually appealing brand, like Lululemon or Starbucks, then you’ll definitely want to make Instagram a part of your employer branding and recruitment strategy!

The same cannot be said when it comes to sourcing.

It’s very unlikely that a candidate will broadcast their skills on Instagram (unless they happen to be a photographer or model), that’s just not what the network is about. But, it is much more likely for potential hires to share information about their skills and work experience with Facebook’s graph due to the type of prompts Facebook gives its users.

So, when it comes to sourcing, you’ll want to spend more time mining Facebook’s graph for talent than searching Instagram.

Choosing the right networks for the job at hand is essential for effective social recruiting.

Here are some examples of the different ways that recruiters tailor their efforts to the big three social networks:

If you’re interested in trying Rooms for yourself you can get it in the (American) App Store for free.

Then, join our Social Recruiting Room with this invite:

Have you tried Facebook’s latest app? Do you even want to? Let us know in the comments!