Regardless of what part of the country you live in or what type of business you run, if you ask a business owner today what the most difficult thing about running a company is, they will tell you, “Finding Good Employees”.
Finding people to work isn’t always the problem but finding “Good People” can be.
15 plus years ago, this wasn’t the case. If you needed to add or replace an employee, you simply ran an ad in the classifieds of your local paper and boom, you had more than enough qualified candidates. That quickly changed, and today there are very few job postings in the local paper. The current “go-to” source for employment are online job posting websites like, Indeed, ZipRecruiter, Monster, CareerBuilder, Glassdoor and many others.
Do they work? They certainly work better than the classifieds, but still, the reviews are hit and miss at best and they only work if the message or the description of the position is written well enough to stimulate, intrigue and inspire the person that is looking.
Gallup Poll, the internationally recognized polling company, states that 70% of the population would consider a different opportunity if one was presented to them. That doesn’t mean they are actively looking, that simply means they would consider it. What it does mean is they are not 100% happy in their current situation, but not unhappy enough that they are actively seeking a new position.
The problem with job boards is that they are only reaching the people that are actively looking. Gallup estimates this to be 51% of the population. They are the “job hoppers” and one would assume not as desirable of a candidate.
So, how do you find good candidates? The key is first to understand what people want in a job or a career and second, is to tell them what it is that you offer.
Most ad recruitment campaigns that fail to attract quality candidates do so because they didn’t make the job sound desirable. They made it sound, well, like a job. They probably listed the basics, the who, what, when, where, how much and how to, and what qualifications. But they didn’t list the most important things like the “Why” and the “What Else”! Why, is your company a great place to work! Why, is it a great opportunity! Why, is there room for advancement! Why, will you be happier here! What’s in it for me and what are the extras that make this the right place for me? People want to work for successful companies. Tell them about your past accomplishments and future dreams and goals. Make them feel like this is a company they want to represent and one they will be proud to work for.
So, how do you reach these desirable applicants?
Rule #1: Convince them your company is a great place to work.
Rule #2: Don’t recruit where the “less-desirables” congregate.