If you’re looking for ways to gain a competitive advantage, you’ve come to the right place. We’re speaking to the recruitment business owners who want to grow, scale, expand and transform their recruitment agency. We were inspired by a recent study by LinkedIn, which found that ‘innovative strategies’ was the number one topic, recruiters and agency owners wanted to learn about.
We’ve compiled a list of the most innovative recruitment methods that the top London recruitment agencies are using to attract the best talent and top clients for you.
We can’t preach this enough. If your agency isn’t already using video, you’re missing out. Video in recruitment has become so popular that top hiring managers of massive organisations are blatantly refusing to work with recruiters who don’t use video. And why wouldn’t they? It’s no longer just a trend.
The companies that use video to replace the first-stage interview and screen candidates save the hiring manager a massive amount of time. And we all know trying to book time into a manager’s schedule can feel as difficult as trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube.
With video, the hiring manager can be assured that:
- They won’t be blindsided at the interview with a candidate who is the completely wrong fit.
- The entire hiring time will be reduced by up to 70%
- Scheduling pains and location barriers won’t be an issue
- Create more diverse candidate pools
- And, they'll be spending less time having back-and-forth phone calls with you (the recruiters)
Your job adverts must be exciting! Each individual advert needs to be attention-grabbing, straight to the point, and emotive. Let's break it down.
Attention-grabbing:
Using video and images in your job adverts is the easiest and most effective way to spark an interest with potential job seekers. Not only has video been shown to increase engagement levels by 800%, but you’ll bring the role to life. Unless you're writing a job ad for a wine taster, or puppy dog 'cuddler', making it exciting is extremely difficult. Video takes care of the hard part for you.
Straight to the point:
Steer clear of buzzwords and clichés. Words like ‘Ninja’ and ‘Superstar’ are confusing. Plus, they give the impression you don’t know the actual details of the job. Outline the specific job requirements and expectations. The more information the candidate has, the easier your job is.
Be emotive:
Make sure you include information about the company’s values and cultural environment. A report by Robert Walters found that 73% of professionals have left a job because of poor cultural fit. Sadly, a lot of us spend more time with our work colleagues, than our families. So, liking the people and place that one works is usually high on the list.
On the other hand, some people just want to go to work, to work, and the social and cultural aspect is the last thing on their mind. Everyone is different. Just make sure you're honest about the culture and values of the workplace to ensure you’re encouraging the right people to apply.
Okay, you caught us. We know texting isn’t really classed as innovative, but it's a channel that too many recruiters aren't utilising. There’s a whole generation that’s basically glued to their phones, and a big chunk of these guys are the ones looking for jobs, so why wouldn’t you deliver your message straight to their line of vision.
If you're going to utilise text options, it shows you support the use of mobile. So, it’s important to stay consistent and ensure your application process is mobile-friendly. If you're still not convinced; we think the below stats speak for themselves.
1. Over 90% of job seekers confirmed they use their mobile phone to search for their ‘dream job.’
2. 45% of these seekers do so daily
3. 89% believe mobile devices play a crucial role in their job-hunting process.
And to top that off, 98% of text message sent are read, compared to only 6% for emails.
The job seekers (and statistics) have spoken!
We feel confident in saying you’ve probably heard of Artificial Intelligence (AI), but just in case you haven’t...
AI is the theory and development of computer systems that can perform tasks that would normally require human intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence is a topic that gains traction year on year. Although AI doesn’t possess cognitive abilities (yet), AI makes it possible for machines to learn from experience, adjust to new inputs, make decisions and even solve problems.
AI machines can analyse big chunks of data and rapidly deliver available solutions, or complete desired tasks. In recruitment, agencies are using AI to automate time-consuming tasks like admin, as well as manage more high-level processes, like enabling employers to see how a candidate demonstrates their skills in practice. This is popular in tech recruitment, as the machines can test candidates coding abilities through automated tasks.
Although recruitment will never work without the human aspect, AI is set to change the industry in a big way. Companies with the capacity for AI are now able to use machines too, source better candidates and save time.
Source better candidates: Recruiters can access more information on candidates and therefore evaluate them more efficiently in the early stages. They can also use algorithms to assess the skills and experience of large groups of candidates at a time.
Save Time: With the AI solution taking care of the low-level, time-consuming tasks, your recruitment team has more time for the big tasks, such as BD and selling retainers. Not only are you increasing the productivity of your team, but you’re also most likely improving employee morale. No one likes boring tasks!
We know a ton of recruitment agencies aren’t ready to look at AI just yet, so we thought we'd throw in an old-school technique that’s super effective!
Every single time you have success with a new strategy, piece of software or communication technique, log it in the spreadsheet.
Make sure you include the specific position each success was associated with.
You'll start to notice patterns and will see that techniques can work well for one position yet aren’t suitable for others. This document also comes in handy when training new consultants that are joining the team.
Next up, ROI! For everything you do, it’s important you understand the return on investment. Knowing the ROI for the specific strategies you’re using, will not only help you to establish the most effective strategies, but it will help you understand where to allocate time and money.
There has never been a more exciting time in the recruitment industry than right now. Our biggest piece of advice is to be bold, be brave and don't be afraid to try. While reviewing your tech stack and re-evaluating your recruitment processes, look out for issues you’re having and consider how job recruiting software can help.
Not everything will work for your agency, but no one gets anywhere without taking a few risks!
If you want to learn more about how you can apply the methods listed above to your agency. Book a demo today!
