Bright Recruiter: Articles

The goal of any good career site should be to turn visitors into applicants and hires. You spend a lot of time and money driving traffic to your job descriptions, and it’s important to get those qualified candidates to apply. Read on for 3 tips to optimize your career site for conversions.

1. Write job descriptions that make people want to apply.

Some people will actively seek out your company to work, but the first time most will be introduced to your company is when they land on your job description from one of your job advertisements or from a referral. If you want to improve your conversion rate, it’s imperative that you jazz up your job descriptions to make people want to work for your company.

So share some information about what makes your company unique, why your current employees like working at your company, and what your candidate will get out of working at your company.  Adding pictures to illustrate these things is good, but video is better.

Then, share some information about the hiring manager and the team. Again, utilize pictures and video to show the candidate what the team is like, what the hiring manager is looking for, and what kind of impact they would have if they joined the team.

Finally, share some information about the position. Talk about they key goals and include a short list of skills and qualifications (no more than 3-5). Add in the type of person you’re looking for – an outgoing and creative individual, a heads-down thinker, a brilliant mind with a flair for corny jokes. Whatever it is you’re looking for, let it be known – but let it also be concise. This will ensure that you get the right quality and quantity of candidates.

Long story short: sell your company first, and the position second. That way, if the candidate doesn’t feel that the current role is a good fit, you can capture their interest so they apply (aka convert) in the future.

2. Add content other than jobs to your career site, which explains why the candidate should want to work for your company.

Everything discussed above should also be applied on the career site, but in greater depth. You should have different sections for benefits, culture, employee testimonials, employee bios, etc., which are linked from the job descriptions so that your job seekers don’t have to dig to find this information.

You may also want to include a blog – either a dedicated employer blog or your corporate blog where you share information about your company and your positions with candidates. Getting content is easier than you may think – just ask your employees to contribute! Topics can include employee events, new hires, veteran employees, your interview process, or even exciting company news that would interest candidates.

Including a variety of content on your career site keeps your visitors engaged, and helps them understand if your company is the right fit for them. It won’t be for everyone, but you’ll get a better quality of candidates this way. And, as mentioned previously, you’ll more easily retain potential candidates that aren’t currently ready to apply.

3. Provide several ways, other than applying, for candidates to indicate interest in your company.

Since many of your website visitors may be waiting for the right opportunity to apply, it’s smart to include some additional calls to action, other than applying, so candidates can keep in touch with your company. This may include job alerts, but try to go a little further than that. If you’re blogging, create social media channels and a monthly or quarterly newsletter in which you can share your blog posts – and ask your website visitors to connect with you or subscribe. This will help you create a talent pipeline, so you have quality candidates when you need them.

To learn more about developing a great career site, register for our webinar:

Secrets from a Marketing Geek: Building a Career Site that Attracts Candidates

I was just reading an article that I sincerely hope isn't true. It's written by a job seeker about his worst job interview. Here's how it begins:

The interviewer put his feet up and began eating lunch? Then the candidate was asked to complete a writing sample and was forgotten about?? What a horrifying candidate experience!

The worst thing about this candidate's worst job interview? He doesn't even realize that this kind of experience isn't ok. Maybe he was desperate and unprepared - but that's no excuse for the way he was treated. This brings to mind an article I read last year on HRFishbowl about candidate courtesy: "you just have to show a little respect". The premise of the article is simply to encourage basic communication. Let the candidate know where they stand.

If you know you're not interested, say so. Even if it is 10 minutes into the interview and the candidate hasn't given a writing sample. Don't waste people's time. This is common courtesy. It's ok to say, "I'm sorry, but I don't feel that you're the correct candidate for this particular role and I don't want to waste any more of your time". Don't be a wimp - tell the candidate that they're no longer in the running for the position. However, I would also encourage you to perhaps soften the blow a little with some constructive criticism. In this case, the editor could have let the candidate know that he wanted someone that wanted to work his company, not just any company. This sort of advice would have helped the job seeker learn from his failure.

Especially in this case, the job seeker had never had a full time position before and was simply unprepared from lack of experience. Recruiters should understand that younger candidates don't have interview experience, and don't know the rules. Even more seasoned candidates might have recently rejoined the interview circuit, and are slowly relearning how to interview correctly. Not everyone is a great interviewer, but most get better with practice.

Think about your first interview: were you nervous? Did anyone tell you to write a thank you note? Did you print out several copies of your resume and references? Did you know that, when asked for your weaknesses, that you should spin it in a positive way? Try to remember what it's like to be a candidate.

If this candidate had more interviewing experience, he may have gotten the role at this company. He got the next one he interviewed for. A bad interviewer doesn't necessarily make a bad employee, so don't let simple inexperience get in the way of hiring someone that could actually be a great addition to your team. And for goodness sake, treat your candidates like human beings.

Your employer brand is a major factor in your ability to recruit and hire top talent. According to the RolePoint infographic below, 7 in 10 job seekers say the job and the company are equally important in deciding whether to accept a position.

According to CareerBuilder's Candidate Behavior Report, job seekers use nearly 15 resources per job search - including employer review sites such as Glassdoor, your social media pages, and, perhaps, your current and past employees. Your employees, their online contributions, and their verbal recommendations can really make or break your ability to attract the best talent on the market. So use them to your advantage and create an army of recruiters from your current workforce.

How?

First of all, make sure your current employees would recommend your company to their friends and family (6/10 would). Try doing an internal survey to get the general sentiment, and ask for specific suggestions that would make the employee happier (and therefore more likely to refer a candidate). On the same note, perhaps ask outgoing employees during an exit survey if they would recommend your company.

Next, encourage your employees to share their experiences with your company online. That includes getting them involved in social media - ask them to share pictures they've taken at company events, to comment on Quora questions about the company, or share company news on Linkedin. Also encourage them to review your company on Glassdoor and CareerBliss.

You may also want to get your employees more involved in the actual recruitment process. Ask them to make an appearance on your recruitment video, explaining why they like working for your company. Invite them to company happy hours where they can do a meet and greet with potential hires. The options are endless, so get creative.

Finally, recognize your employees for their efforts. If you know a hire was the direct result of your employees, let them know. According to the infographic, "Employees ranked public recognition as the #1 incentive that would motivate them to refer someone".

Read More about Employer Branding:

Increase your Quality of Hire with Employer Branding

To Learn More about Employer Branding, check out our webinar:

Increase your Quality of Hire with Employer Branding

It's time to hire. So you write a killer job description, post it on the job boards, source additional candidates online, and maybe even work with a staffing agency to get great people in for interviews. It's a long process - about 60 days for most companies - and it keeps you constantly scrambling to find top talent.

Well, I'm going to let you in on the best known secret to hiring great candidates, faster: build a talent pipeline.

I think it's important to note here that this is NOT the same thing as having candidates in your ATS. Let's be honest, your ATS is where resumes go to die. Or at least to never see the light of day again. A talent pipeline, once built, needs to be engaged and nurtured.

How to Build a Talent Pipeline

The easiest way to start is by adding candidates you've recently interviewed, but that have not been selected to fill your position. For this reason, it's important that your candidates have a positive experience with your company throughout all of their interactions. This requires communication, at every step in the process. Without this, your candidates aren't likely to want to hear from you again.

Also include past employees in your talent pipeline. During your exit interview, ask them why they're leaving - this could provide useful data in the event that you ever want to hire them back, so long as their reason for leaving isn't a barrier to coming back on.

You may also receive unsolicited resumes from time to time, either from referral candidates, your company's customers (brand advocates can become great employees), or people that are fans of your employment brand. When you receive an unsolicited resume, make sure you reply to the candidate to let them know you don't currently have an opening, but that you will keep them in mind for future opportunities. You may also want to take the time to have a preliminary conversation about their background and goals.

Keep track of your candidates, their contact information (bonus tip: include social media handles!), and your communications with them in a way that makes sense to you, and makes it easy to reach out and engage.

How to Engage your Talent Pipeline

Once you build a talent pipeline, keep your company top of mind by keeping in touch with your candidates. This can be done on a mass scale, by sending a monthly newsletter or writing a blog, or it can be done on more of a one-on-one basis, through email or phone.

Every candidate will have a preferred method of engagement, so try to offer as many options as you're comfortable managing. You can also ask your employees to contribute - for example, writing blog posts or making phone calls to top talent to touch base.

Here are some ideas to help keep your company top of mind for your talent pipeline:

• Employment blog: Put a blog on your career site to share information about your company, what to expect in an interview, why your employees like working for the company, what the management team is like, etc. A weekly blog post should suffice, although more frequency would allow you to share more information. If you're ever in need of more content, invite a colleague to write a post!
• Email newsletter: You can repurpose your blog content into a monthly newsletter that you send to candidates to update them on anything that's happening that relates to hiring. You may also want to include any open houses or career fairs you're hosting or attending.
• Pinterest: Create one or more boards, showing candidates why they should want to work for your company. Some things to include: employee spotlights, fun perks, office pictures and employee events.
• Twitter: Create a Twitter handle just for your recruiting needs. You can use this to post jobs, interact with candidates, source candidates, share your employer blog articles, etc. One of the best ways to engage with candidates on Twitter is to create a list of candidates (I would break it down by job function, but that's up to you), and check it regularly to chat with your candidates, or at least retweet and favorite their content.
• LinkedIn: A common practice is to connect to your candidates on Linkedin, but be sure to log in to your account to interact with your connections on a regular basis. If you see that they've just celebrated a work anniversary, congratulate them. If you see they've updated their profile with a new skill, comment on why that skill is important. Also make sure you (or your marketing team) are regularly updating your Linkedin company page with relevant information, including articles from your employment blog.

Encourage your talent pipeline to follow you anywhere you share your employment brand, and include links on your career page and in your email signatures to get a better reach, and to have people to engage with.

How to Reach out to Talent from your Pipeline, When the Time Comes

When you do finally need to reach out to people in your talent pipeline, do so with the intent of a friend - don't immediately assume they are interested in your opportunity.

Say hi, remind them how you are connected (either a past interview, a referral, etc), ask where they're at, what they're doing, and what they think of the company. Only once they respond (and if you genuinely think there would be a mutual interest), ask if they would be interested in your position. If it doesn't seem like the opportunity will be a good fit for them, tell them you're hiring, mention you wanted to see if they'd be interested but understand if they're not, and ask if they can refer someone to you.

When reaching out to past candidates, remind them of their past interview, why you liked them, and why you think they'd be a good fit for this new role. Do the same with past employees, but also address the reason they left so they know what's changed. Be sure to include some information on why they should consider your opportunity - really sell them on your company!

If this communication does not turn into an interview, ask the candidate if you can follow up with future opportunities, and make note of the conversation in whichever tool you're using to manage your talent pipeline (ATS, Excel, etc).

Why it's Important to do This Right

While building and maintaining a talent pipeline seems like a lot of extra work, you will see that all your hard work sourcing candidates will go a lot further. Not only will you have a talent pool ready when you need to fill a position, you will have the upper hand in recruiting top talent. As the war for talent continues, your employment branding and candidate engagement efforts can give you an advantage over your competitors, who may be going after the same talent. If two companies are competing in the same talent pool, the one that has built and maintained candidate relationships will have the upper hand.

Of course, there are also some less well known secrets to finding talent faster, like using Bright Recruiter - simply upload your job description and we'll instantly surface candidates whose resumes match your opening. No more waiting for applications, or sourcing through passive talent databases that don't have a decent response rate. Try it for free!