With record numbers of unemployed workers banging on your door you might think it’s ok to handle applications with an automated response telling them their application will be reviewed and they’ll be contacted if a match exists. With the ease of application realized through the internet it’s easy to view candidates as a necessary evil. But, recent surveys and signs show that hiring may soon be on the uptick-and you’ll lose the best prospects if your recruiting strategy doesn’t adapt.
In February US companies cut the fewest jobs in two years according to a private report from ADP and a positive Labor Department report. Jobless claims are falling and productivity is surging, and The Conference Board, which monitors online advertised job openings, reports a “positive sign of a turnaround in employer labor demand.” All of which point to a coming time when job seekers will have their choice of jobs-and companies–they want to work for. So it’s imperative to begin (or enhance) your dialogue with applicants in order to cultivate a relationship that lands you “A” talent.
No longer are applicants content with the bare minimum of an employment site. They demand a user experience that is interesting, informative and easy to navigate. The first order of business is to act like a candidate and take a good, hard look at what your site is delivering. Does it engage applicants in a visually appealing manner or does it just have a link to a mission statement, a list of benefits, and job openings? Consider a dynamic video that positions your company as a vibrant employer that values its workers. Deliver job-specific mini-sites or videos that take an applicant through a “day in the life” of a current employee, spotlighting a department, its achievements, staff and technology, and showing typical career progression. Consider FAQs, message boards, chats, blogs and other means of communication. Beef up your social media presence and make sure you have functioning backward and forward links. And don’t forget about that initial email: make it interesting, visually appealing and offer the opportunity for two-way communication. Also consider re-targeting those who visit your site (retargeting is the act of delivering specific advertising to those who have landed on your site and are now surfing the web somewhere else, either right away or maybe even weeks and months down the road.)
The time has come to cultivate applicants with relationship-based recruiting. You don’t have to fear the numbers–technology can help. Top talent will love it and you’ll be positioned as an innovative employer everyone will be clamoring to join.
Very interesting strategy to retarget prospective job candidates. Have you had any experience doing that? I work at http://www.adroll.com, a retargeting company, and I’d be very curious to hear about the results from those types of campaigns. We’ve had a lot of success retargeting visitors for fashion, ecommerce, education programs, etc. I think these sort of HR campaigns could work well if optimized for a smaller prospect list with a higher CPM.
Hey Josh, we’ve just started to tap into retargeting for candidates. Just like your firm retargets consumers in the marketing arena, the idea is sound in our space as well. Recruiting today is all about creating relationships and this inexpensive tool is one more way that technology can help provide multiple touchpoints with candidates with little effort on the overworked recruiters’ part. Thanks for the comment and for the linkedin invite.