In today’s competitive jobs marketplace, finding the right people to fill your vacancies is becoming increasingly challenging. With so many of your peers and competitors from other sectors targeting the same talent pool, it is becoming more and more difficult to fill vacancies against business demands and deadlines. It’s crucial, therefore, that you stay ahead of the game. Follow these steps to avoid missing those best-in-market applicants and attract the right candidates with the right skills to enable your organisation to be successful.

1. Immediate Response

You’ve just posted a job. You then await for the flood of applications, great CVs and cover letters to  fill up your inbox. Be proactive and respond quickly to applicants. Building up a strong rapport means that applicants will be less likely to be in contact with other recruiters.

Communication is extremely important as this will show how keen you are to interact with the candidate. Allocate time to sort out through your emails and view the applications. Star the ones who make a great impression on you that way you know you’ll come back to them. Continually update the applicant at every stage of the process, from initial application to post-placement. If you don’t, you are leaving yourself open to competitors snapping up the best-in-the-market, at your own company’s expense.

2. Engaging on LinkedIn

In a digital world, LinkedIn should be one of the main resources used for your recruitment strategy. Don’t bombard with job postings. Share articles and blogs which reflect your company and its values and share testimonials which clients have given to you.

Connect on LinkedIn with people who have the relevant skills and abilities you’re looking for.  Target passive candidates and candidates with transferrable skills from other sectors. Making that initial connection and starting a conversation could be the beginnings of your working relationship.

3. Candidate Referral Scheme

It’s a never ending circle,  but it can be one that produces great results. Someone who knows someone who will know someone who’s right for the job. Promoting a talent pool using social media platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn can be a successful way of finding the candidate you’re looking for. A referral scheme will inspire current recruits to share vacancies to their network which could result in additional online exposure.