Time to read: 5 minutes
Recruiting Trends and the Talent Experience Summary
Within this article we dive into where recruitment marketing is taking recruitment and the trends to implement for a successful candidate search:
- Quick apply and mobile application.
- Clear and concise instructions.
- Content and copywriting.
- Text recruiting.
Recruiting trends continue to lean towards a candidate-first approach. The industry saw surges in employer branding and social recruitment to attract talent, which both are encompassed into recruitment marketing. Recruitment marketing continues to be at the forefront of recruiting trends. It is up to companies and staffing agencies to do all they can to attract the right talent for open positions, gathering all the pieces to promote recruitment as a reliable job search source.
As you ramp up your recruitment marketing, take this time to re-evaluate your talent experience, and check out the recruiting trends below to apply to your hiring process.
Recruiting trends to consider and increase candidate conversions
Be thoughtful and strategic in your talent experience. Think about your talent experience from your brand to the technology you use and the content you produce.
Quick apply and Mobile application
Both go hand in hand. If you have a quick apply or “Easy Apply” option, chances are your application process is optimized for mobile. This is super important. 58% of smartphone users look for jobs on their phones with 20% of candidates dropping out of application forms that take longer than 10 minutes (even that’s a little long if you ask us). Furthermore, the median time to complete an application on mobile is 10.5 minutes compared to 5.9 minutes for desktop users. All this to say, if your application process is not up to par on mobile, then you can kiss your candidate search goodbye.
Text Recruiting
Texting has made its way as one of the top recruiting trends in recent years. With over 90% of Americans using smartphones for day-to-day interactions, messaging, news, and basic communication, it makes sense to meet candidates where they are. Candidates are more open to having recruiter conversations via text. Profiles Account Manager, Elizabeth Archibald, shares text recruiting has been a godsend to the production staff’s arsenal. “It makes contacting candidates a quick, easy and seamless process. From initial contact to candidate management, text recruiting is my go-to method of contact,” Elizabeth continues. “Candidates return my texts faster and appreciate the text especially when they are at work.”
“Some calls are better off as texts, and it helps with getting a faster response rate when we need an answer ASAP.”
Offer the option to receive SMS alerts as well as have conversations with recruiters via text. Text recruiting goes a long way with 86% of millennials prefer to receive texts regarding recruiting and 90% of messages being read within three minutes. Profiles Account Manager, April Walton, also weighs in, “Let’s face it, texting is better than phone calls, we get it! Some calls are better off as texts, and it helps with getting a faster response rate when we need an answer ASAP.”
With text recruiting, response rates sit as high as 47% (Source: Profiles).
Clear and concise instructions
Job searching is stressful enough. Add a lengthy form and complex instructions on top of that? No, thank you. Set expectations at the beginning of what the process entails. This will bode well with your audience, thus increasing qualified candidate conversions.
Content and copywriting
Be mindful of how you phrase your job descriptions as well as application and web copy. Certain ways of conveying information or the way you phrase information could potentially deter parts of the candidate pool. Avoid exclusivity to keep your talent pool as large as possible.
Other hiring process enhancements to consider
User Experience
Even though your career page or website is already standing up, it is not uncommon to open the hood and re-evaluate your user experience. This can be as simple as heading over to your website or career page and testing the experience yourself. Step in your candidate’s shoes and complete the process. What features do you find helpful throughout? Which features do you find irrelevant to the process? Is the process missing elements that would contribute to a better talent experience?
AI and machine learning
AI in recruitment has taken off and the industry is taking notice. There are many platforms out there to aid in the candidate screening process. While this might sound like a super helpful tool for recruiters, it immensely benefits the talent on the front-end, as well. Recruiters are having trouble accurately screening all candidates that come through the ATS, but recruitment technologies are beginning to use AI and machine learning to automate the screening process. With that, candidates receive a more high-touch experience and a more precise job search.
Elevate Your Hiring Process with a Trusted Partner
Profiles places top candidates in the marketing and creative technology sector. When working with Profiles, you reap the benefits of the above enhancements and trends – and more. Contact Profiles to learn more about our robust recruitment marketing engine and how it can aid in your marketing and creative tech candidate search.
