5 Ways to Recruit Better Small Business Employees
It’s not enough for a small business to simply expand by hiring. Every additional employee you add represents a considerable percentage of your revenues, so you need to make each one count. That means figuring out how to recruit better employees than your competitors.
That’s a tall task, considering that many times, you’re competing against companies with much deeper pockets than you.
But that’s OK. Many small businesses eventually become big businesses in part because they still can offer plenty to lure in high-grade workers. The following are a few things you can do to tilt the scales in your favor and attract better small business employees.
How You Can Recruit Better Small Business Employees
The Right Job Post: A rookie move by small businesses is floating out a vague job description in hopes of attracting a wide selection of applicants, which you can then weed down into top prospects. But saving 30 minutes with a quick job description will costs you hours of filtering out people who aren’t right for the role. Instead, take the time to craft an interesting, but accurate and concise description of the job, starting with a specific title, any pertinent skills the applicant should have, and everything that the position would be expected to do – as well as tasks that the worker might grow into later. Indeed.com says you should target 700 to 2,000 words.
Recruit Outside Your Neighborhood: Telecommuting has given small businesses a helping hand. Before, when it was necessary to have someone in the office every day of the week, small businesses would have a difficult time recruiting outside their immediate areas thanks to concerns about relocation costs. However, if your business allows for off-site workers, that’s no longer a concern – and you should use that to your advantage. If your area has a tight market for the kind of labor you need, and telecommuting is an option, you can seek out employees from areas where that kind of work isn’t in as much demand.
Use Social Media: Social media can be useful on two fronts: recruiting and checking in on prospective candidates. While you should post jobs on sites such as LinkedIn, Glassdoor and Indeed.com, taking a few seconds to post openings on other social media channels can give you a boost. That is, even if people who see your posts aren’t right for the job, they might know someone who wasn’t necessarily looking but is indeed a smart fit – and convince them to apply. You also can view social media histories to ferret out any red flags your candidates might be waving.
Visit Industry Conferences and Other Events: Even if you’re not hiring right this minute, it pays to attend a few industry-related events every year. The obvious benefit is learning more about your field of expertise while seeing what your competitors are up to. But you can also network, making contacts not just for potential help with growing your business, but also future candidates. After all, attendees will naturally have a connection to the industry, so you know they’d be entering your company with an established knowledge base.
Be Considerate: Unfortunately, a few employers don’t understand the value of a high-quality, motivated employee, and treat existing and potential employees as fortunate to merely have the opportunity to work with the company. But it’s a cynical way to operate a business – one that scares away top-flight prospects while demoralizing the workers they’re able to get on staff. Instead, do your best to make sure that the top talent wants to work for you. Whether it’s in emails, phone calls or during in-person interviews, be courteous, be respectful and treat candidates’ time as if it’s valuable – because it is. (This kind of mindset goes a long way in retaining employees, too.)
If you’re starting to hire workers, don’t settle for the middle of the pack. Talk to McManamon & Co.’s business consultants so you can start putting together the picture you want to show to prospective hires, including your benefits, your internal policies and other pertinent information.
You can hire better small business employees without draining your bank account trying to outbid deeper-pocketed competitors. Let us show you how. Call us at 440.892.9088 or contact us online.
Tags: McManamon, small business, small business employees, small business hiring | Posted in McManamon & Co., small business