Testimonial: Brouwerij Westmalle

sympl

The success story of the Trappisten Van Westmalle Brewery: three hits and 200+ applicants

The Trappisten Van Westmalle Brewery encountered a challenge: filling several vacant positions within a limited timeframe. Without an internal HR department,  attracting suitable candidates is a time-consuming task. However, Philippe Van Assche, the Managing Director, and Bart Wellens, the Commercial Director, were not left to face this challenge alone. Fortunately, with the help of sympl, they received over 200 applicants for three vacancies that had been posted online for a mere 30 days each.

Download this case
 recruitment campaigns

110

applicants
of vacancies filled

449.723

impressions
data points analysed per month

0.81%

CTR

About Brouwerij Der Trappisten Van Westmalle

Westmalle Trappist Brewery's story began on April 22, 1836, when the monastery became a Trappist Abbey. Initially, the monks managed the brewery for many decades. However, since 1995, laypeople have taken over the day-to-day operations, while the monks maintain close involvement and representation on the Board of Directors. The beer produced remains authentic Trappist beer, and Westmalle's reach has extended well beyond the borders of its home country. The story of Westmalle Trappist Brewery starts on April 22, 1836, when the monastery became a Trappist Abbey.

Company size: >50 employees
Industry: Food industry

The need for change and innovation

Brewery Der Trappisten Van Westmalle had previously advertised job openings both offline and online through a traditional recruitment agency but without a targeted campaign. As a result, satisfactory results (and candidates) remained out of reach. Bart sought a fresh approach and decided to go for a more targeted and digital strategy this time around. With the help of sympl, they aimed to reach the right candidates and achieve better outcomes.

Specific, flexible and efficient

sympl's technology empowers companies to effortlessly attract passive job seekers through targeted ads on social media. The sympl algorithm continuously optimizes and adjusts campaigns through automated A/B testing. Consequently, the most effective ad consistently reaches the right audience on the most appropriate channel. Bart has recognized the value of sympl's approach, noting that it works in a "targeted, flexible, and efficient way."

Three vacancies - three hits

Westmalle Trappist Brewery had three job openings: Junior Marketer, Project Engineer, and Polyvalent Production Worker. To ease the burden, Sympl gladly took over the preparatory tasks, such as writing job descriptions, designing campaigns, and creating ads. The brewery provided photos and videos showcasing their employees and work environment. Leveraging this content, sympl created fun visuals and engaging videos for the recruitment campaigns. The outcome? Tremendous success: 51 applications for the Junior Marketer role, 64 applications for the Project Engineer role, and a whopping 110 applications for the Polyvalent Production Engineer role.

bart wellens van brouwerij westmalle

Bart Wellens

Commercieel directeur

Brouwerij Westmalle

"Thanks to sympl's targeted ads, we received more than 200 candidates for three vacancies"

The successful "Polyvalent Production Employee" campaign

Now, let's dive a little deeper into the details of the Polyvalent Production Worker campaign: a total of 110 applications were received, comprising 70 applicants from Facebook, 8 from Instagram, 4 from TikTok, and 28 from traditional job boards like Belgium Vacancy Group, VDAB, and Indeed.

To optimize the campaign, sympl conducted various experiments, testing 6 different ad variants on Facebook and 2 on Instagram. These efforts proved fruitful, with an astounding click-through rate (CTR) of 0.81%, almost twice the average of all their recruitment campaigns. For instance, the job page was visited 2,474 times, and the online application form was opened 250 times. The campaign also resulted in an impressive application rate of 4.4%, more than doubling sympl's average of 2.1%.

Advertentie westmalle voor projectingenieur

Projectingenieur

Advertentie westmalle voor junior marketeer

Junior Marketeer

Advertentie westmalle voor productiemedewerker

Polyvalent Productiemedewerker

A tool that works

Bart confirms that "the high inflow, quality candidates, and user-friendly software" are the most significant advantages of working with sympl. Despite receiving so many applications, Bart quickly followed up on them using sympl's software dashboard. From there, he could communicate with applicants via automated emails or WhatsApp, ensuring a smooth and efficient application process.

sympl reflects on this successful campaign with great satisfaction.

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