City of Bristol College: Transforming recruitment with Gaia’s strategic employer branding 

“The strategic use of geo-targeting and AI-driven campaigns by Gaia has revolutionised our recruitment efforts, allowing us to effectively reach and attract high-calibre candidates. Traditional job boards only target active job seekers, but our work with Gaia allows us to engage passive candidates as well.”
Hayley Shaw
Director of HR at City of Bristol College

Our Impact

The results were nothing short of spectacular, proving the power of GaiaPages:
1,890,000
Total impressions
23,593
Total clicks
1.25%
CTR

City of Bristol College, one of the largest further education institutions in the UK, set a goal to reduce its 23% staff turnover rate to 10% within 24 months. At the same time, the college sought to enhance its employer brand, highlighting the benefits of working there and expanding its reach beyond Bristol to South Wales and the Southwest of England.

The challenge

City of Bristol College struggled to communicate its employer brand beyond its local network, limiting its reach to regions like South Wales and the Southwest of England. Additionally, traditional recruitment methods were no longer effective in attracting high-quality candidates, highlighting the need for a modern, candidate-centric approach in a competitive job market.

Our innovative strategy

Gaia partnered with City of Bristol College to transform its recruitment and employer branding efforts. Utilising advanced tools, industry expertise, and extensive market access, Gaia helped the college attract top-tier talent, enhance brand visibility, and modernise its recruitment strategy.

The tailored approach included the following key components:

•   Market access: By leveraging extensive market reach, Gaia ensured the college’s vacancies were visible to a broad and diverse pool of candidates, significantly increasing their exposure.

•   Employer branding campaigns: Targeted employer branding campaigns were developed and executed to effectively communicate the benefits of working at the college, improving its reputation and appeal within local communities and beyond.

•   Expert guidance: Gaia provided expert advice on content creation, application processes, and overall recruitment strategy, ensuring the college remained competitive and attracted the best candidates in the market.

•   AI-driven targeting: Using an AI-powered platform with seven years of machine learning and over 4 million data points, Gaia refined targeting to ensure job adverts reached the most relevant candidates across Bristol, South Wales, and the Southwest of England.

•   Social media promotion: Vacancies were promoted across major social media platforms, maximising visibility and engagement with potential candidates, and driving quality applications to the college.

The impact

Across 119 campaigns, City of Bristol College achieved a total of 1.89 million impressions and 23,593 clicks, with an average CTR of 1.25%. CTR (click-through rate) measures how many people click on an advert after seeing it and is a key indicator of engagement. These figures demonstrate Gaia’s success in increasing the college’s visibility and engagement with potential candidates. By promoting vacancies across major social media platforms, Gaia ensured City of Bristol College reached the right audience and stayed ahead of its competition.

Future focus

While City of Bristol College is proud of its current recruitment successes, there are opportunities to build on this progress and further enhance performance in key areas:

Increasing frequency of employer branding campaigns:

More frequent campaigns, aligned with the college’s new branding, could further improve visibility and engagement among potential candidates.

• Enhancing content quality:

Continuously improving the quality of recruitment content, in line with the college’s new branding, will drive higher engagement and conversion rates. This ensures that messaging resonates with both active and passive job seekers.

• Optimising the application process:

Streamlining the application process will create a more seamless candidate experience, increasing application completion rates and reducing barriers to entry.

Gaia’s AI-driven recruitment solutions, including geo-targeting and targeted campaigns, have transformed the college’s approach to talent acquisition.

Conclusion

City of Bristol College has made remarkable progress in reducing staff turnover and enhancing recruitment efforts through its partnership with Gaia. By leveraging Gaia’s innovative, data-driven strategies, the college successfully broadened its reach and attracted high-quality candidates, both active and passive. These efforts have not only improved recruitment outcomes but have also strengthened the college’s reputation as a leading employer in the region. Looking forward, City of Bristol College is well-positioned to achieve its ambitious recruitment goals. With continued collaboration with Gaia, the college is set to attract and retain top talent while ensuring long-term success and maintaining excellence in both education and staff satisfaction.

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