“The candidate seemed interested a few days ago! What
changed?”
A recruiter spends hours trying to get in contact with a
candidate. He or she spends even more time negotiating with candidate and
client, selling the position, and arranging interviews. Everything is going
well, and the candidate seems to be on board. Suddenly, the candidate backs out
of the deal.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, this is a common situation for
today’s recruiters. In such a candidate-driven market, every individual has a
plethora of employment options and a range of compensation offers. Often, he or
she is approached by other organizations during the recruiting process.
Sometimes, the candidate takes the other offer.
In order to avoid losing candidates throughout the
recruitment process, recruiters must adopt a more cautious, involved attitude.
In other words, the selling of a position doesn’t end when the candidate claims
to be interested. The recruiting process continues until the candidate is
officially hired.
In order to obtain successful hires, a recruiter must employ
the following tactics:
1. KEEP THE CANDIDATE’S ATTENTION
One of the biggest mistakes a recruiter can make involves
contacting a candidate, gaining the candidate’s interest, and considering the
deal finished. This leaves the candidate open to various other offers. By
maintaining the candidate’s attention, a recruiter is more likely to keep
his/her offer at the front of the candidate’s mind while he or she is
approached by the competition.
2. CONSTANT COMMUNICATION
Many recruiters fail to keep the candidate updated on the
hiring process, causing him or her to underestimate the seriousness of the
offer. The candidate begins to look for other options or consider remaining in
their current job due to a lack of accountability on the recruiter’s part.
Rather than leaving the candidate open to other preying recruiters, maintain
communication throughout the entire hiring process.
3. SHORTEN THE PROCESS
When the recruiting process becomes too lengthy, whether
through interviews, lack of communication, or the employer’s decision-making,
it is more likely that a candidate will lose interest. He or she might see the
entire process as too much of a hassle and begin to lose faith in the process.
Shorten the process where possible to avoid candidate drop-off due to wasted
time.
4. CONTINUOUS SELLING
As with any major decision or life event, candidates are
highly likely to get cold feet during the recruiting process. The recruiter’s
job is to keep selling the position. Simply presenting the offer at the
beginning of the process is not enough for a candidate who is likely to have
doubts, questions, or anxieties. A recruiter’s job is to be there along the way
to answer questions, add reassurance, and sell, sell, sell.
By shifting recruiters’ attitudes about the candidate
experience, such professionals can avoid losing prospective hires to
competitors. In the long run, this saves time, money, and, most of all, the
frustration that comes with a failed recruitment process. In essence,
maintaining contact and providing a satisfactory candidate experience benefits
both candidate and recruiter.
