You need to sell the “sizzle”.
That sounds reasonable, but why should you have to provide all this “sizzle” in a time of high unemployment when so many people are looking for work? The answer is simple…regardless of the number of people, employed or unemployed there is not enough real talent to satisfy the needs of the market. Therefore, the question is…how do you get top talent interested in your company?
To determine how to find the candidates, you will need to read (or re-read) the following two articles:
1. “Six Do’s and Don’ts for Sourcing the ‘Right’ Candidate”. You can access that article by clicking on the link below:
http://www.talmax.com/sixdos
2. “How to Make Your Career Site a Talent Magnet”. Access this article by clicking the link below:
http://www.talmax.com/yourcareersite
Article #1 will help you create a plan to attract the type of candidates you need based on the time and the budget you have available. Article #2 will help you identify the methods you want to use to source those job candidates.
The purpose of this article is to give you ideas about the kind of information candidates will want to review to determine if your company is the right home for their talent. In addition, you will need to consider the format and the place where you are going to display this information.
To reduce your recruiting costs, we strongly suggest that you select the Career Center of your website as the place to “tell your story and sell your sizzle”. Getting candidates to your career site is not that difficult.
Regardless of the methods you have chosen to source potential talent, every ad, every job board posting, every referral e-mail you send, should direct the reader to your Career Site because that is where you get to tell your story.
Each position you have listed on your job board must give the viewer immediate access to a document we refer to as a “Posting Page”. A Posting Page is your primary sales tool to attract high caliber applicants and to interest them in applying for the job you have available.
Every Posting Page is a stand-alone web page that should be attractive, comprehensive, and easy to navigate. It must say enough to intrigue good candidates. It must provide the kind of information that lets talented people know that yours is the right company to pursue. It must explore your opportunity from the perspective of the candidate. Your Posting Page needs to accomplish all this in a format that is appealing to the reader and allows the candidate to make an informed decision about your job and your company.
What really interests the candidate?
• Highlights of the company’s history (brief, noteworthy pieces of data)
• Job requirements (the absolute, “MUST HAVE” requirements)
• Background/skill requirements (the “must have” only)
• Job/background preferences (it would be nice if the candidate also had…)
• Duties and responsibilities (how will the candidate will spend his/her time)
• Company “selling points” (why would a candidate want to work here)
• Job “selling points” (the “what’s in it for me”)
• Company benefits (extremely important to so many candidates)
• Relocation information (can be “broad-brushed” but candidates need some info)
• Travel requirements (how much, how often, where to)
• Compensation/bonus opportunity/overtime pay possibilities (if you can, this key component is very beneficial to include)
• Testimonials from co-workers (tidbits from satisfied, enthusiastic employees are very appealing to quality candidates)
• Information on the culture & working environment (what would you want to know about this category if you were a candidate)
What is the best way to present this information?
• Use headlines on your Posting Page to separate each category of information
• Make your headlines intriguing (for example, instead of “Company Selling Points”, call that section “Reasons why you might want to work here”)
• Use short sentences or bulleted points
• Keep your Posting Page attractive but concise
• Present a picture of the company and the job that candidates can visualize
• Make an effort to tell your story in a compelling manner
• As a time saver, use a format that lets you re-use sections of your Posting Page like company history, reasons to work here, environment & culture, etc. in future job listings
Instead of requesting that the candidate e-mail his/her contact data and attach their resume, allow the candidate to apply on-line, directly from the Posting Page. Doing so encourages qualified people to apply immediately using a process that gives the company a more complete picture of each candidate and gives the candidate a positive impression of the company and of the company’s sourcing process.
To implement a sourcing system like this there are a several key components you should explore.
1. Flexibility – You want an automated sourcing system that allows you to define all the fields you want included on your Posting Page. You also need to define the number of categories you want, as you will want to present certain jobs using a less comprehensive format with fewer categories while others will require a very comprehensive explanation with a lot of “sizzle”. In other words, the software must present a job the way a candidate wants to see it.
2. Ease of Use - You should be able to enter your own data without the need to involve technical support from your IT department or tech-support team. The software must be easy to understand and the navigation must be intuitive.
3. Information retention - You need to be able to re-use or change certain data in future job listings without technical support. You must be able to edit, save and archive information for future use.
Attracting the quality of candidates your company needs and converting the best of those who apply into new employees starts here:
• Create a plan and make-up a schedule
• Select the sourcing tools that will drive candidates to your career site
• Set the bait and sell the “sizzle”
