Candidate engagement is a critical piece of your recruiting process — particularly in a job market as competitive as we see in 2024. However, it’s important to remember that engaging with candidates isn’t just about ticking off boxes on a to-do list. It’s about building connections, fostering trust, and keeping candidates engaged throughout the recruitment process.
An effective candidate engagement process, especially one that leverages automation, not only helps candidates become more comfortable working with you, but has the added benefit of keeping your private talent pool more efficient overall.
Let’s look at some of the key factors that make up a candidate engagement experience:
Regular, meaningful communication is key for all relationships, and your relationship with candidates is no different. Whether it’s a quick email, a friendly phone call, or a personalized message on LinkedIn, staying connected keeps the relationship alive.
But it’s not just about talking; it’s about listening too. Keeping communication open with your candidates means more opportunity to learn what motivates them, what their strengths are, and what they’re looking for in a job. The more opportunities you create for candidates to connect with you, the better you can tailor your own communications with them and ultimately with the potential managers you’ll be recommending them to.
Recruitment branding isn’t just for big corporations. Even a one-recruiter agency has a story to tell. By sharing your own story with candidates, you can help them understand who you are and what it’s like to work with you. Your reputation as a highly-attentive and engaged recruiter can lead to more referrals, better reviews, and ultimately the growth of your talent and client pools for future placements.
We’ve all been there—waiting anxiously for an update, refreshing our inbox every five minutes. Don’t leave your candidates hanging. Keeping them informed every step of the way shows you respect their time and effort. It’s not just about being professional; it’s about being human.
Furthermore, your continual engagement with candidates may reduce the likelihood of them ghosting you, which a survey by Indeed shows has become increasingly common. Even a simple email on a regular basis can show candidates that you’re still there and still interested in their career, which might mean the difference between making a placement or losing them entirely.
Automation is more important than ever, even for small-scale recruiting operations. When you streamline repetitive tasks you not only save time but you ensure a more consistent candidate experience.
Using sequencing tools with automated emails and time-based task reminders helps you check in with candidates more regularly, collect the most up-to-date candidate information, and generally stay on top of your process with less work. Giving candidates continual opportunities to update their information via simple forms means your database remains fresh and more useful for surfacing existing matches for new roles.
Your automation should also allow for manual involvement where appropriate, giving you the chance to include details about specific opportunities, personal anecdotes, or links to relevant resources. Recruitment automation should always enhance, not replace, human interaction.
Growing and maintaining meaningful connections by sharing your story, keeping candidates informed, and embracing automation will help you create an experience that leaves a lasting impression. Remember that you’re not just filling a position or placing a candidate — you’re building relationships that can bear fruit years into the future. In a world where the recruiting process can feel increasingly impersonal, the frequency and quality of your candidate engagement can be the key to setting yourself apart from the competition.
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