The business of recruiting is not just about sourcing your candidate and interviewing them. As economic concerns creep, unemployment rises, and competition in the field of recruiting increases, recruiting is more about selling then recruiting. It's more than selling the candidate the position and selling the candidate to your hiring manager. It's about building relationships and loyalty.
As the market continues to tighten, those who sell and understand what both the candidate and the hiring manager want are going to be the clear winners on the staffing battlefield. Understanding your customers (both the candidate and hiring manager) buying motives is an important first step. You wouldn't buy a car without viewing consumer reports, right? So why wouldn't you google your candidate, research the industry and market, and survey recent hires on what motivates them to buy.
What differentiates good salespeople from great salespeople is not the product they're peddling, is the way you relate and engage the candidate. By doing so, you'll be able to make a job offer that is truely customized to the candidate.
As recruiters, it's our job to build those relationships and treat every candidate like a celebrity. I'm not saying roll out the red carpet and ask for an autograph. Small gestures are what differentiates a great sales person from the rest. I am a firm believer in returning each and every candidate's phone calls regardless of if they were selected or not. I send a handwritten note to each and every network contact I meet at a seminar or event. It's the little things that make a lasting impression.
No matter how you look at it sales is an important part of what makes a recruiter successful. Sales techniques can be used in most every part of your everyday life outside of work. Adding these sales tools to your recruiting tool box can only make you a more respected, successful, and confident recruiter.
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