How to Keep Candidates Engaged During the Hiring Process
Competition is high for the modern candidate. The most important way to secure the best talent is to keep candidates engaged from start to end. Here, we outline exactly how to avoid drop offs and boost the effectiveness of your recruitment.
Effective recruitment isn’t just about attracting the right people for your jobs. It’s about the relationship you form with candidates throughout the hiring journey and beyond. In a competitive market, it’s simply not enough to just attract. Strong candidates within the service sector are in high demand, and with jobseekers casting their net across many jobs, it’s vital to keep them focused on your company to avoid losing talent to competitors.
Here are the most common reasons candidates drop off during the recruitment process and how you can tackle them to boost quality hires and elevate your brand above the competition.
Keep your application process clear and short
One of the biggest reasons we see candidates check out of the application process is because the application journey is too long, or unclear. We understand the need to filter out and find the best, most relevant candidates for your role, but it’s worth considering whether the application needs to be a 10-step process. Modern candidates want to apply easily and speedily to roles, and will lose interest quickly in lengthy online forms or endless interviews.
For employers using Placed, a big portion of the candidate filtering is already done through an AI matching algorithm. Therefore they can keep the actual application process as short as simply tapping ‘apply’, avoiding drop-offs and thus maximise their pool of quality applicants.
Give a true sense of your company online
Company culture is a hugely important factor for candidates. According to a survey by Glassdoor, 77 percent of adults would consider a company’s culture before applying for a job, and two-thirds of millennials place culture above salary when it comes to job satisfaction.
So, while your job post may strike interest in a candidate, they are far more likely to drop off if they can’t get a sense of your company culture. To help the right candidates feel more confident in their application, consider creating a dedicated Brand page on a platform such as Placed or revisiting your current content to ensure you are showing off the essence of your company, such as your values, benefits and culture.
Be up front from the start about salary and benefits
It’s always best to be open and honest about what you can offer as an employer. If a candidate requests pay, it is likely a huge motivating factor for them so it’s important to discuss it early on. Better yet, list it in your job description to avoid candidates dropping off halfway if the figure turns out to not match their expectations. This will not only save you a great deal of time, but will elevate your brand as an honest and open company above those who do not mention salary.
Be swift and informative in responding
Almost all candidates know the burden of not hearing back from an employer. As a result, it’s common to see candidates quickly move on if they do not receive a response in a timely manner. It’s worth noting that long waiting periods can leave candidates feeling uncertain, or even worse, give them the opportunity to accept an offer from another company.
To avoid losing out on top candidates it’s important to be as responsive as possible, whether that’s getting back after an interview, or promptly responding to any questions they may ask. If the process is going to take a little longer, it’s always best to let an applicant know what timeframe they may expect to hear back – not only does this keep the candidate engaged in anticipation, but it demonstrates your company as open and communicative.
Remember, keeping candidates engaged is about being engaged yourself, too. And importantly, the way you treat candidates during the recruitment process will ultimately influence how they will view your company in the future.
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