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- In Recruiting, Your Candidates Are Your Customers – Sell Them! - March 1, 2013
As a recruiter, you’re responsible for selling to candidates. Just like your customers have a choice in whether they buy from you or your competitors, your candidates have a choice in where they work. So sell your company to them!
Why should they “buy” from you, rather than looking elsewhere? What will you provide for them now, and in the future? What can you offer that your competitors can’t?
Perhaps the most important thing you should focus on selling is your company culture – after all, fit is one of the most common reasons for turnover. That’s why Zappos offers new employees $4000 to quit after a their first week – they’d rather know they have a great fit right away, rather than continuing to employ an employee that just doesn’t want to be there.
Culture will be different for every company – some will have a flat structure with little mentoring, while others will have a more hands-on management approach. Some will value work-life balance, others will prefer work-life integration. Figure out what makes your company a unique place to work, and sell those things to the people that share your goals and beliefs, and that would thrive in your environment.
You don’t need to sell to everyone – just like in marketing and sales, you have to identify your target market. Where to start? With your current workforce. Do a survey to find out what your employees like and dislike about your company. Share the things they like, and work to improve the things they don’t.
This doesn’t have to be anything expensive, and every company will have a unique offering. You can offer flex schedules or work from home options, as well as allowing people to bring their pets to work – these perks don’t cost your company anything. If you have the demand, and the budget, you may also consider child care, gym memberships and/or commuting benefits.
Here are a few other ideas:
- Casual dress code
- Unlimited vacation time
- Catered meals
- Snacks
- House cleaning
- Team building events
- Social Responsibility
- Snow days
Some companies may also have a compelling mission and vision: healthcare companies develop life-saving medicines and devices, recruitment technology companies help people
find jobs, and schools educate and inform the population. Whatever it is your company does, you can find people that are passionate about the same thing by selling your candidates on it. This will not only increase your quality of applicants, but should also increase your direct souring response rate.
To do this effectively, it’s important to share all the reasons why your ideal candidate should want to work for you – everywhere. Put a section on your website, and/or career site, where you discuss what makes your company a great place to work. Include information about your culture, perks, mission and vision in your job postings. Share what makes your company unique on social media.
Include pictures and video whenever possible – people love to see what makes you different. Also encourage your employees to share why they love working for your company with their friends and family members by allowing them to participate in the videos and share their pictures on social media. Your team has a bigger reach than your brand alone, so take advantage of it! The more people that know why your company is so great, the easier it will be to sell it to the top candidates you’re looking to hire.
Remember, top candidates have a choice in where they work – so make it an easy choice for them to work for you.
