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- Clare Patterson
The candidate-driven marketplace where we find ourselves today means it’s the candidate in the driving seat… they’re the ones who call the shots. When it comes to them working with a recruitment agency, they have multiple choices on who could represent them. They have the power to be even more selective deciding who to work with.
With this in mind, how do you stand out from the crowd? There will be many ways that you can differentiate yourself, but a very simple starter is by ensuring that you care for your candidates.
Building loyal, long-standing candidate relationships will take time and effort. Delivering a good service consistently to candidates will be vital in developing a strong brand for you and your agency, and will be the foundations to shape those long-term connections.
So how does your agency stack up when it comes to candidate care? Here are six very easy ways you can improve the service you provide to candidates right now, for long term success.
1. Always respond
A top reason candidates feel let down by recruiters is because they don’t even hear back once they’ve applied for a position. Why not think about setting up a dedicated email for candidates so you can answer their questions promptly? Rules can be set-up to allow CVs to be filtered correctly, and email responses can be automatically sent. All candidates that apply for a position should receive acknowledgement that their application has been received and not fallen into a black hole.
2. Set expectations
A bad candidate experience can be avoided if you set expectations and clearly communicate what happens next and during the process. Even better if you can give a potential timeline of each stage of the hiring process. The best communications will set proper expectations for candidates that join your network. An agreement on the frequency of contact going forward should be made with any new top talent that joins your network. Also find out what their expectations are and what’s important to them by working together. For others, agree to add them to your database, job mailing list and any newsletters you send that might be of interest.
3. Return their calls
It’s a very simple one, but if someone has taken the time to call you and leave a message then call them back! It’s not nice to be ignored. A simple call back (even if there is no news) can go a very long way and help build a stronger relationship.
4. Keep them updated
Things can go quiet, and that’s understandable during the recruitment process. However, let’s think about those candidates that have been shortlisted and whose CVs are sitting with your client.
Why not, drop them a short email telling them you’re awaiting feedback and that you will be in touch as soon as you hear. In the meantime, perhaps you could point them in the direction of some useful resources such as ‘Common interview questions and how to answer them’ or ‘10 tips for job interview success’. Its small gestures just like these that can make a big difference to the experience they are receiving from you.
5. Give feedback
Failing to give candidate feedback is one of the most common mistakes made in recruitment. A little common courtesy can go a long way. Giving feedback will help the candidate to understand where their strengths and weaknesses lie. Maybe you have some useful resources that you could share with them in any areas where a weakness has been identified.
For example, perhaps a particular training course or qualification could provide them with a skill that will help with future roles that they apply for. For candidates that have been unsuccessful, this is a good time to set expectations and agree how you will work together and communicate in the future.
6. Get feedback
Don’t just get this from those that you place, ask for it from every candidate that deals with you. Asking for feedback will help you refine candidate care. By simply asking candidates to rate their recruitment experience provides a great indicator for candidate care whilst offering insight into areas which may also need improving.
Clare Patterson is marketing executive at Mercury xRM Recruitment Software.
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