It goes without saying (at least, I hope it does) that you should know the behaviors and perceptions of your target audience before embarking on any sort of recruitment marketing campaign – that is, any sort of successful recruitment marketing campaign.

…Which is why you might find the recent findings from online advertising network Chitika interesting. Chitika recently studied users on MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and Digg, to find that each social site has a distinct makeup of users with unique tastes.

For instance, Twitterers mostly consume news, MySpace users want games and entertainment, Facebookers are into both news and community, and Digg’s audience has a mixed bag of interests.

Among the most interesting findings from the study:

• Nearly half the traffic (47%) that Twitter generates falls into the news category
• Facebook users top interests appear to be news (which accounts for 28% of traffic), community (17%) and how-to/DIY (13%).
• MySpace users are most concerned with video games (28%) and celebrity and entertainment content (23%).
• Digg users have nearly equal parts interest in news (18%), celebrity/entertainment (18 %), and video game content (17%), but the majority of their interests (26%) fall into “other.”

What do these findings mean to you as a recruiter?
For one thing, as this Mashable article points out, it should serve as a reminder of how integral social media has become as a communications tool. “It’s important information for marketers, advertisers and brands hoping to appropriately leverage each site,” writes Mashable’s Jennifer Van Grove.

Ditto for recruiting: This glimpse into social networkers’ behavior should give you an idea of not only which social networks your ideal talent is using and how they are using these networks, but also how you should shape your message based on which site you choose to spread that message.

(For instance, MySpace might not be the ideal place to recruit for many employers, but it could be a great avenue for employers who are looking for younger workers with enthusiasm for entertainment or video games to reach this audience. Want to get the attention of news-hungry Twitter users? Don’t just tweet out jobs. Link to interesting articles about something fun /exciting/positive/etc. your company is doing right now.)

Secondly, and more to Van Grove’s point, these findings represent exactly the type of research employers and recruiters should be conducting in order to build and enhance their recruitment strategy.  As any marketing expert would tell you, you need to truly analyze and understand the behaviors of your target audience – in your case, current and potential employees – to ensure that your recruitment marketing dollars are being spent in the best possible way.