There are hundreds, if not thousands, of recruiting firms around the country. They all create a lot of noise for talented candidates, some of which get several emails and phone calls from competing recruiters every week. This is especially true for high-demand roles like developers. So, how can your recruiting firm cut through the clamor and build a solid reputation that also builds relationships with candidates?
Specialize and Brand Your Expertise
A staffing agency doesn’t need to be all things to all people to be successful. They should pursue the art of specialization to carve out a strong niche that sets their brand apart. In the world of staffing, you don’t want a generalist; there is just no way they know enough about the widely differing fields they work for to be successful.
A specialty niche recruiting firm may focus on IT, or healthcare, or accounting. They may have spent years building relationships with companies and candidates in this field. All of this adds up to an extremely skilled team that knows a lot about the area. This makes the recruiters much more likely to find candidates. Contract this to a generalist that occasionally takes on an IT contract—we guarantee they don’t know Java from JavaScript, Agile from Waterfall—or just about anything else beyond the job description. The best staffing firms carve out their niche and become an expert in it.
Use Your Creativity
Many contingency recruiting firms are pretty standardized. They get a client, and a req, post jobs, search their database, troll LinkedIn, interview, and recommend. Yawn. Now repeat that about a hundred times a week.
But finding candidates is much much harder than it used to be. It takes an exceptional talent firm to find talent these days. This requires something different and unique to be successful.
For a staffing firm to stand out, they should empower their recruiters to do the things the competition isn’t.
The best staffing agencies think outside the cubicle to find candidates. They go to events and user groups. They network. They meet candidates for coffee. They write funny, smart ads. They publish a lot of helpful content for candidates. They also seek referrals in the most unlikely of places.
Fill the seats in your staffing agency with extremely bright, creative teams, and then support them in their efforts to find talent in all kinds of ways.
Be Proactive
Staffing firms can carve out a place in this extremely competitive field by proactively building networks even when a req isn’t pending. Being proactive should steep into every area of the firm. Recruiters should always be networking for new contacts. Salespeople should be out golfing with former and potential clients. Teams should work collaboratively to teach, lead, publish, and get the word out about the excellent work their firm does. All of this proactivity always pays off in the long run.
Have the Right Technology
Staying cutting edge in the recruiting world today takes the right technology to carve out a point of differentiation in the market. Exelare has recruiting software designed to streamline mundane tasks and speed up the process of sourcing and hiring candidates.
Exelare Is Here to Assist You!
As next-generation software, Exelare goes beyond traditional application tracking tools to use automation to help recruiters work smarter and faster. If your staffing firm wants a shot at being the best in class resource for your clients, you owe it to yourself to take a short demo to see what’s new in recruiting software and how it can make you stand out from the crowd.