In today’s employment market, landing top talent can be challenging. Job seekers have their pick of great employers, and top-tier workers are at an even greater advantage.
The truth is, if someone really is that great of a candidate, chances are you’re not the only company trying to woo them. As such, you have to do more than just conduct an interview and extend an offer. You’ll need to do some selling as well.
Here are three things you can do to help convert your best candidate into a loyal employee.
Know your audience, inside and out.
What’s the secret to landing a sale? It’s convincing the customer that your product or service will solve their problems. It seems basic, but it’s a powerful principle that can also be applied to the hiring process.
If you really want to win over that exceptional candidate, you have to first take the time to get to know them. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment. What matters most to them? What struggles do they face? What are their hopes, dreams and aspirations?
Once you’ve identified who your ideal candidate is and familiarized yourself with their mindset, you can then begin to position your company as the ideal solution to their needs. So, if a major concern is work-life balance, sell your flexibility. If career growth is a common goal, sell your company’s fast-track to career advancement program. You get the idea. Find a need and fill it.
Paint a full picture of your company culture.
Did you know that 71% of today’s workers say they’d be willing to take a lower salary in exchange for a job that they truly love? What’s more, 47% of those actively looking to change jobs say corporate culture is the main reason.
Without question, the culture of your business can be a huge selling point. To leverage this successfully, however, you’ll need to dig deeper – beyond the perks, like free lunches and work-from-home Fridays. The top candidates you are trying to sell to are looking for more than that. They want things like open communication, strong leadership, work-life balance, etc.
Figure out the real, meaningful things that make your company so unique – those distinctive, authentic characteristics – and then use those things to appeal to your applicants. As a result, you will be better able to narrow down your selection to only those candidates who most closely align with your vision. And when you find a good cultural fit, everybody wins.
Know your competition.
As mentioned, if the candidates you’re pursuing are truly great at what they do, chances are there are plenty of other companies that are also vying for their attention. Just as in any key business decision, knowing what your competition is up to is an important component of hiring top talent.
Start by researching what your recruiting competition is doing in terms of job ads. What are some of their strengths and weaknesses? What are they offering that could be perceived as more attractive to candidates than what you have to offer? Sizing up your competition like this can help you identify areas where you might be able to get a leg up.
Keep in mind that your recruiting competition isn’t necessarily going to be the same as your business competitors. This is an important point because if you are focusing your efforts only on those within your niche, you could easily be losing quality candidates to others who are not on your radar. Expand your competitive analysis to include companies who hire for similarly qualified individuals as you do.
Need help selling your company and closing your candidates? Get in touch.