TL;DR — A written referral request competes with every other message in an employee's inbox. A short video pitch, recorded by the employee themselves and shared in their own network, carries more weight because it comes with a real voice behind it rather than a forwarded job link.
- A personal video pitch outperforms a forwarded job link because it's harder to scroll past.
- Give employees a short prompt and a role summary so they don't have to write their own pitch from scratch.
- Make sharing as low-effort as possible — one link, ready to post.
- Track referrals through to hire so the programme's value is visible, not just its activity.
On this page
Why a video pitch beats a forwarded job link
Most referral programmes run on a written nudge: "we're hiring, here's the link, please share". It works, but it competes with every other link an employee's network scrolls past in a day, and it carries no personal signal about why the role is actually worth looking at. A short video of the employee themselves, saying in their own words why the role or the team is worth a look, is harder to ignore and easier to trust than a generic posting.
What to give employees so they don't start from a blank page
Asking someone to "make a video about the open role" with no other input produces the same hesitation an open-ended prompt produces anywhere else. Give contributors a short role summary and two or three starting points to choose from:
- What made you interested in this team when you joined, or what's kept you here?
- What would you tell a friend about what this role actually involves day to day?
- What kind of person tends to do well in this role, based on what you've seen?
A referral-campaign flow, start to finish
- Step 1 — Pick the open role (or roles) to feature and write a short, accurate one-paragraph summary.
- Step 2 — Identify employees close to the team or role who are willing to contribute, rather than a blanket company-wide ask.
- Step 3 — Share the role summary and prompt list with those employees, and set a short window to record (a few days, not weeks).
- Step 4 — Collect the clips in one place and pick the strongest one or two to lead with, rather than publishing every submission.
- Step 5 — Give contributors a ready-to-share link or post so sharing takes one click rather than a copy-paste job.
- Step 6 — Track referrals that come in through the campaign and follow them through to interview and hire, so the programme's actual impact is visible.
Getting consent and expectations right
Be clear with contributors about where the video will be shared — their own network, the company's own channels, or both — and for how long. As with any employee-facing external video, get explicit confirmation before posting anything outside the organisation. See Employer Brand Videos for the fuller consent considerations that apply here too.
Measuring whether the campaign is worth repeating
Track referral source through to application, interview and hire, not just how many clips were submitted. A campaign that produces a handful of strong pitches and one or two hires is usually worth repeating; one that produces lots of submissions but no traceable hires is a sign the pitches aren't reaching the right audience, or the role itself needs a different approach. See LinkedIn Talent Solutions for general guidance on measuring referral and employer-brand activity.
How to run this in Whoosh
Set up a referral campaign with the role summary and prompt list, invite employees to record, and give each one a ready-to-share link once their pitch is in. Review submissions before anything goes out, and track which referrals trace back to the campaign.
- 1.Write a short, accurate role summary and two or three prompts.
- 2.Invite a targeted group of employees close to the role, not the whole company at once.
- 3.Set a short recording window to keep momentum.
- 4.Review and select the strongest clips before wider distribution.
- 5.Track referrals from the campaign through to hire.
Frequently asked questions
Should every employee be asked to make a pitch video?
No — a smaller, targeted group close to the role or team tends to produce better, more credible pitches than a company-wide open call.
How long should a referral pitch video be?
Thirty to sixty seconds is enough to cover why the role is worth a look without feeling like an ad.
Do we need separate consent for this versus general employer brand video?
Treat it the same way — get clear confirmation of where the clip will be shared and for how long before anything goes out externally.
How do we know if the campaign actually worked?
Track referral source through to interview and hire, not just submission volume — that's the number that tells you whether to repeat the format.