Smarter recruiting in 10 steps

Who do you want to reach? What do these people expect from an employer? What drives them to choose a job? In short, what can persuade them to change jobs and employers? Dare to question gut feelings and assumptions, do research and ask advice from your current employees.

What do you stand for as an employer? What drives you and your colleagues? What about the work culture in your organization? What role does your ideal new employee take on and what does this mean for your organization? Why is your vacancy interesting(er) and how does it differentiate you from other employers?

With the motivations of your ideal candidate and your offer clearly outlined, you find the sweet spot in between. This result is authentic, often distinctive, and provides relevant content to concretize your core message, job descriptions, and/or recruitment campaign.

Choose understandable and recognizable job titles that rank well in searches. Incorporate the findings of the previous exercise into both company presentation, job title, profile and offer. Make your job postings scannable for mobile readers and end with a compelling call to action. In all this, combine credibility with relevant rational arguments and capitalize on feelings.

Not unimportantly, different profiles require different emphases. The days of a one-size-fits-all approach are gone forever.

Room for a larger campaign? Translate the above learnings into a striking but recognizable recruitment story with attractive images and enticing copy.

Then diversify your story according to your target groups. Use this narrative as a common thread throughout all your recruitment communications for a solid first impression, inspiration and emotional connection.

Before communicating, it's best to take a close look at your website. Are your job postings easy to find and is additional information available?

Often the online application process is the biggest turn-off for a candidate. Therefore, see to it that the application process is barrier-free for an optimal candidate experience. In doubt? Take your smartphone and go through every step you expect your candidate to take.

Look beyond your own website. Are your jobs being picked up by Google, Indeed, Bing and Talent? What do referral sites say about your company? Do your job offers appear in the same recognizable way on the VDAB site, job boards and other media? With consistent multiplatform recognition, you strengthen your credibility, create trust and avoid confusion.

Engage your employees first. Referral initiatives create engagement and instill confidence in your colleagues. Ambassador campaigns often work quickly and are cheaper than an external campaign.

Communicate your vacancies in a targeted way and use a smart combination of channels. Think in terms of reach, informing, convincing and inciting action. Invest in search optimization, search advertising and targeted targeting on social media, and use job boards and/or niche platforms with the right credentials for your vacancies. Reinforce if possible with channels with wider reach such as news media, out-of-home, radio and TV, among others. Do you have only one or a few job openings? Then choose the most relevant channels for your target audience but keep combining thoughtfully.

Don't get happy with your own website or is your online application process too rigid? Then opt for the low-threshold application forms on your selected recruitment media. Or even better: create an attractive (temporary or otherwise) vacancy and job site. This can usually be done faster and cheaper than you think.

Use the statistics from your campaign and job or website. Adjust where necessary and feel free to do an A/B test when in doubt. It gives you valuable information that you can use in your next campaign or job posting. Compare the cost per view, click and applicant (CPA) per channel. Granted, it's not always 100% conclusive, but these statistics are usually more rational and reliable than our gut feeling.

Is your onboarding on point? Do you involve your new employee between hiring and first day of work in a formal and informal way? Do you provide an unforgettable welcome procedure? Then you have taken the first step towards an enthusiastic, committed and proud new ambassador.

Communicate according to the motivations of your desired candidate. Efficiently deploy well-thought-out channels and ensure a seamless job application experience. Then measure and evolve your initiatives at regular intervals and make adjustments as needed. Complete this optimal candidate experience with a stimulating onboarding.

Bonus tip: look around, learn from others and dare to experiment. Labor market communication has never evolved as fast as it does today. Therefore, keep following trends actively to strengthen your position in this challenging labor market.