About Utah Transit Authority
When Utah Transit Authority (UTA), a multimodal public transportation agency serving six counties, 80 cities, and a population of 1.8 million with a fleet of 600 busses and paratransit vehicles, 400 vanpools, 146 light rail vehicles, 63 commuter rail cars, and 18 locomotives, came to Appcast in 2021, they were struggling to fill their candidate pipeline supporting critical bus operator positions. Recruitment marketing efforts were managed in-house and included posting on standard job boards, but without needed results.
Challenges
- UTA had an immediate need for 200+ bus operator hires
- They hadn’t established the employer brand presence they needed to attract new candidate pools and meaningfully increase applicant pipeline
- Government-allocated budget was inflexible, making efficient spend choices and maximum ROI essential
Solutions
EVP & EB Research Insights: Appcast Employer Brand and Creative strategists, writers, and designers conducted job seeker shadowing, competitor analysis, and UTA employee focus group workshops to assess the UTA employee experience, and authentically define and represent UTA’s unique employer value proposition. Detailed insights were distilled into specific financial, organizational, professional, and cultural benefits most important to current and potential employees, along with how to best speak to each role being hired.
Career Site & Supporting Advertising Assets: Guided by research insights and best practices, Appcast’s creative team designed a fresh career site featuring inspiring images and aspirational copy inviting candidates to “Make an impact, one journey at a time.” The team optimized site design and functionality to ensure a positive user experience. Job postings, animated digital ads, print materials, outdoor advertising, and other creative assets targeted to bus operators, rail operators, trax operators, police officers, and IT professionals were designed to create emotional connection and represent what it’s like to be part of the UTA team.
Introduction to Programmatic: To establish a baseline, UTA leveraged Appcast’s data-driven technology to distribute job advertisements across a proprietary network of thousands of sites. Programmatic rules and impression-to-hire tracking ensured UTA’s budget was spent efficiently to yield desired outcomes.
Expanded Advertising Channels through Search & Display: Working closely with the Appcast team to build a well-rounded marketing strategy, UTA also ran Google Display and Search campaigns to increase brand awareness by reaching job seekers at the top of the funnel (i.e. early in their job search). They also leveraged Google Remarketing campaigns to target candidates that had previously engaged with their career site and display ads, and were thus more likely to apply.
Geofencing technology: UTA ran display ads targeting talent at specific competitor locations. This allowed them to drive engagement for hiring events in particular by showcasing open positions.
Hiring Event Support: Appcast provided multi-channel marketing technology to send branded text and email blasts to targeted audiences. This solution was especially impactful ahead of UTA’s hiring events, as it allowed them to invite prospective candidates quickly and easily via text, with a direct link to UTA’s online RSVP form. They also leveraged radio campaigns to reach potential candidates through an out-of-home, every day channel. Appcast Creative Services supported with branded event materials.
Results
- Over 300 bus operators hired within 18 months, representing a significant increase from hires prior to partnering with Appcast
- Campaigns targeting multiple key markets and sectors drove over 800,000 impressions, over 20,000 clicks, and averaged 2,300 applicants per month
- UTA managers were able to spend less time at community career fairs and more time processing qualified applications, leading to reduced time-to-hire and increased retention of hires
- Expansion into further creative work with Appcast’s Employer Brand & Creative team, including landing page development and a refreshed brand identity
