A study conducted by PageUp shows that on average 4% of all applicants will have been hired by 2020.

This means that if all the applications received by all recruiters were reduced to a base of 100, only four people would ultimately be hired and 96 would be turned down (although they may of course find happiness with another application).

Or, when it comes to employer branding, how you treat the 96 people who haven't been is just as important as how you treat the people you hire. 

A bad recruiting experience can hurt your employer brand, as well as your consumer brand

Here are four tips to help you attract high caliber candidates while  maintaining a strong employer brand.

1 - Treat your candidates with the same respect as your customers

We hear a lot of nice statements about this theme, but in reality, it's not really followed through.

Or, a bad candidate experience has impacts beyond what recruiters perceive directly.

In effect, a candidate who has suffered a bad recruiting experience will be led to refuse a job offer and/or not want to consider future opportunities at the company that disappointed them.

The damage doesn't stop there: people who have a negative experience tell others.

27% of candidates would "actively discourage" other candidates from  applying for a job at that company, according to a LinkedIn survey.

Inversely, a pleasant recruitment experience and personalized leaves a lasting and positive impression of your company.

This not only increases the likelihood of successful recruitment, but also encourages loyalty and advocacy for your brand, even among candidates whose recruiting journey does not result in a job offer.

Research by IBM shows that candidates who were not successful in their applications - but who had a positive recruitment experience - are twice as likely to recommend the organization that recruited them to others.

Another benefit of taking the candidate experience seriously: they can be customers too!

For many organizations (especially B2C), candidates are also existing or potential customers. This is especially true for the professional services, financial and retail sectors.

Or as unfair as it may seem, a disappointed candidate will tend to turn away from commercial offers as Virgin Mobile will have studied. The result? The poor candidate experience generated by their recruitment process was costing them no less than£5 million a year!

2 - Create an augmented technology experience

The new decade has brought radical changes in the way we recruit.

COVID-19 came along and, most organizations started recruiting online.

HR teams learned to master remote recruiting and even the less IT savvy had to adopt technology solutions. 

Candidate expectations for experience have increased significantly

The so-called "millenials", accustomed to highly personalized technology experiences, now account for half of all applicants, and they expect a seamless and personalized journey throughout their recruiting experience. 

Let's understand this major issue: candidates will continue to have a high standard for digital application tracking because as younger generations enter the workforce, they will only know this!

Candidates then decide what they would like to do to work for your organization based on the recruiting technology experience.

There are a multitude of technologies to improve the recruitment process:

• Inbound Recruiting allows companies to entice rare profits 
• Career sites optimized for mobile
• Automated application completion features
• Online tests and assessments
• Machine learning algorithms that tailor content to candidates' interests
• Tailored automated communications are becoming more common.
• Video interviews offer candidates the ability to record or conduct interviews at a time and place that is convenient for them.

Tools such as XOR go a step further by providing candidates with a 24/7 digital recruiting assistant to guide them through the process.

In addition to removing critical barriers, recruiting chatbots are also a preferred channel for candidates when it comes to asking sensitive questions such as salary expectations.

Remember, technology complements human interaction, not replaces it

There are times when candidates want and expect human contact.

But in a world where digital is king, personal contact with candidates can make your organization stand out.

3 - Build an authentic employer brand 

Candidates want to work for organizations where they are willing and able to give their best every day while being aligned with their cultures, their missions and their values.  

59% of candidates visit a company's career site to learn more about it before applying for a job.

Yet, application abandonment rates are highest on corporate career sites (28%), 2.8 times higher than what we see on job boards (10%).

Do you know what happens when candidates arrive at your career site?

Social media shapes the employer brand in a very public way and any disconnect between the company's narrative and the actual employee experience is quickly exposed on sites like Glassdoor.

Are you leveraging your employer brand to attract the right candidates?

A good starting point is proactive communication.

Think about the message you use to attract candidates: What are your organization's strengths, characteristics, culture and values? Highlight what differentiates you from your competitors.

It is essential to create, communicate and  clearly present the Employee Value Proposition (EVP)on social media, on your job board and throughout the recruiting process to attract top talent who want to work for you.

Candidates want the opportunity to understand or "view" a day in the life of your organization.

Employer branding has always been part of the attraction story

Be proactive by sharing employee experiences on your career site  and encourage employees to do the same.

The narrative is a great way to communicate, so tell your stories - train and develop employee advocates to share stories that reflect your employer brand! 

The best and brightest of candidates are attracted to organizations whose mission, social values and culture match their personal beliefs and values.

A well-designed VET creates a win-win situation where candidates and companies find the right fit.

4 - Don't forget that candidates are people too

The candidates are individuals and want to be treated as such.

It's not nice to receive a generic "Dear Candidate" email, and it won't convince anyone to work for you.

Recruiters should create personalized, relevant and targeted content for each candidate.

This not only allows candidates to feel valued, but also to maintain a lasting relationship.

It's important to treat candidates with respect and dignity, even if you've never met in person

It's little things like giving feedback to unsuccessful candidates that make a company stand out.

A positive experience reinforces and Consolidates your organization's employer brand with candidates and customers.