It’s too easy to forget the principles of recruitment 101 in a candidate’s market, writes the team at Become Recruitment.

The market’s showing promise for jobseekers out there, which is making it difficult as an employer to attract the talent you need when you need it. Candidates at the moment are often toying with more than one job offer and the interview process is moving at the speed of light! With this in mind, how do you stand out from the crowd and become an employer of choice, so that the top talent is knocking at your door?

What’s your USP (unique selling point)?

Have a think about how you market your company to potential candidates and the key points that separate you from your competitors. These points will help you attract the best employees on the market, so don’t forget to highlight these when running your recruitment campaign.

Posting generic recruitment ads does nothing for your brand and also means you’ll be sifting through hundreds of irrelevant CVs, often of people who have no understanding of your company or why they want to work for you! Identify your target audience and write an ad that will appeal to your dream candidate.

The interview process is your opportunity to showcase why someone would want to work for you. Just as candidates should have an elevator pitch, so should you for your company. It’s important you have an interview process that moves quickly to keep the candidate engaged and interested, so they don’t go elsewhere. Leaving it a week to get feedback to the candidate or to arrange the next interview can lose you the perfect person, especially in the current climate.

Quality versus quantity

Get candidates to do their homework and answer some key questions during the initial application – you’ll find the applicants far more likely to hit the mark. Ask them to consider what value they will bring and why they feel your company in particular is right for them (so you know they’ve done their research). You can also throw a couple of curveballs to get a better idea of personality: what books, films or music would they recommend? What’s the most inspirational talk they’ve heard? Which modern innovation has changed their life?

Recruiting versus retaining

We understand only too well that recruitment can be an expensive exercise. This is why it’s crucial to design a process that ensures that you are finding the right people for your business quickly and efficiently. More important is the need to retain your staff when you have them. When we ask a candidate their reason for leaving a role, the answer is often that there is no room for them to progress. It’s a good idea to have a clear career path, regular appraisals and goals set, so that your team will know what they need to do to reach the next level.

Get social

Are you active on social media, sharing company successes and insightful industry information? The best candidates are using LinkedIn, and will look to your social channels to get an idea of your company culture, values and your USP. Use these platforms to show your advantage and to start the right conversations – your brand will also thank you!