Virtual Recruitment Strategies for Staffing and Recruiting Pros
Staffing and recruiting professionals have an important role: seeking, attracting, and maintaining a top-talent workforce. And with the rise of remote work, they need virtual recruitment strategies to match.
We’ve been helping HR professionals, outsourced HR solutions, and staffing and recruiting firms get better results through video for years. When it comes to staffing and recruiting, there are specific strategies you can use to build a better workforce and ensure great hires that turn into happy employees.
What you’ll learn:
- What’s the difference between staffing and recruiting?
- Communicating the benefit of using a staffing or recruiting agency
- Virtual recruitment strategies for hiring top talent
- Video virtual recruitment strategies
- Connecting when staffing a large group
- Updating your virtual recruitment strategies
What is the difference between staffing and recruiting?
Though these terms are sometimes used interchangeably, staffing and recruiting are two different functions within the same industry. We’ll provide an update on how these terms are generally used and how their virtual recruitment strategies differ.
Intro to Recruiting
Recruiting most often refers to the process of seeking out and hiring a specific, highly skilled candidate for a full-time role. Recruiting is often a short-term relationship that is carried out by an in-house HR team or professional recruiter. A company may hire a recruiter to help it vet a specialized candidate, and then the company will take over onboarding and human resources functions upon hire.
Often, recruiters fill roles that require specialized skills and experience. These jobs may be executive-level and usually pay well. Virtual recruitment strategies should be highly personalized, and recruiters should be professional, open, and helpful throughout the process.
Intro to Staffing
Staffing, at its core, is the continual process of finding, selecting, and evaluating a workforce. The role of staffing is to find the best possible talent for available positions with a vision for the long term. While recruiting focuses mainly on finding and attracting talent, staffing is a broader term and may include the subsequent maintenance, training, and promoting of a workforce.
Staffing and recruiting agencies often have different functions. While recruiters usually prioritize finding and hiring one highly skilled candidate, staffers may seek and hire a large group. For example, staffing agencies may work with a warehouse to bring in a large group of seasonal workers, fill a call center, or direct hire specialized roles like a team of accountants or paralegals.
However, it’s a common misconception that staffing agencies only fill part-time jobs. The American Staffing Association found 73% of staffing employees work full time (compared to 75% of the overall workforce).
Staffing agencies are also more likely to handle HR functions like payroll for these employees after they have been hired, rather than handling these functions in house.
Virtual recruitment strategies will differ based on the goal of the staffing agency. Typically, though, staffers will communicate with a large group. In these situations, it may be less efficient to create personalized communication for each person involved. You may instead want to create a group email list or general videos that apply to everyone you’re staffing.
Communicating the benefit of using a staffing or recruiting agency
The cost of using a staffing or recruiting agency varies. A recruiter may charge a one-time fee equal to the percentage of the candidate they’re hiring’s salary. Business News Daily found agencies may charge 25% to 100% of the hired employee’s wages, broken down hourly. There may be additional fees on top of this.
Obviously, using an outside recruiter or staffer is not free. Therefore, these organizations need to emphasize their value to prospective clients and partners and develop excellent virtual recruitment strategies.
Overall cost savings
Though companies pay a fee to use a staffing or recruiting agency, they may save money in the long run. Searching for candidates requires valuable time reviewing resumes, setting up interviews, and conducting outreach. Additionally, some staffing companies take on HR roles that prevent companies from having to hire full-time staff.
Job boards are a common virtual recruitment strategy. Using a recruiter can save on the costs employers may have used on posting to a job board or LinkedIn.
Capturing hard-to-find candidates
HR Cloud found that 73% of candidates are passive job seekers, meaning they’re open to new jobs but not actively looking. Recruiters have the time and resources to seek out the most qualified candidates—regardless of how visible they are in the job market. Plus, recruiters may have access to additional networks the hiring company cannot access.
Industry expertise
Businesses should be using staffing or recruiting firms to find the very best candidates. Often, recruiters have industry knowledge and networking connections that expand beyond the hiring platform.
Recruiters have trained to communicate with prospects and often use virtual recruitment strategies that appeal to specific candidates. If you’re hiring for an information technology position, you may not know how to “talk the talk” of IT, but a specific IT recruiter could easily vet skills and experience.
Filling vacancies faster (with the right person)
The “Great Resignation” left many employers scrambling for talent, and as of midway through 2022, there were 10 million open positions across the country, according to CNBC reporting. The available talent pool ebbs and flows. When businesses struggle to fill those positions, it can cause strain on current employees and gaps in productivity.
Recruiting professional Jennifer Cooper told CNBC, “Our focus is helping the candidate get a job placement, because if they quit and the job listing reopens, we have to fill it again.”
Not only do staffing and recruiting professionals help fill positions more quickly and keep candidates engaged throughout the process, but they also help businesses identify the right employee for the long haul.
Virtual recruitment strategies for hiring top talent
For staffing and recruiting firms looking to find that one, perfect candidate for a hard-to-fill role, personalization and great communication are crucial. There are several virtual recruitment strategies these recruiters can use to win over the best talent and keep the hiring team happy.
Consider alternatives to in-person hiring events
For a long time, job fairs and recruitment events were crucial for seeking out talent. Now, most connections start virtually. (Plus, up to 36.2 Americans will work remotely by 2025, so remote connections are here to stay!) Top talent lives everywhere, and while in-person events can be helpful, you cast a much wider net by having virtual recruitment strategies.
Use video as a more personal touchpoint in-between or in place of in-person meetings. Expand your talent pool by reaching out to candidates who may live or work far away.
Audit your staffing and recruiting tools
When communicating with candidates, what tools do you use? When considering virtual recruitment strategies, recruiters or hiring managers will often turn to phone calls, emails, and social media (LinkedIn). They may use a video conferencing software like Zoom or Teams to chat. Additionally, recruiters may use organizational or productivity tools to manage their workload. Creating a mobile application while keeping mobile app security standards in mind is also a great option for recruiters to streamline their recruitment process and enhance candidate experience, as this way candidates can easily apply, track their application status, and receive timely updates on job openings.
If you’re looking for an amazing differentiator, consider personalized video like we offer at Covideo. You can incorporate these videos into all the tools you’re already using, like your CMS or email. Recording a personalized video is as easy as leaving a voicemail. It’s a virtual recruitment strategy guaranteed to grab attention.
Keep the attention of top recruits
Staffing and recruiting professionals need to keep candidates engaged throughout the hiring process. For individuals vying for high-paying or executive-level roles, the hiring process may be long and include several screenings, interviews, and meetings.
Support your candidates throughout the process by:
- Quickly responding to questions and inquires
- Using virtual recruitment strategies like personalized videos to check in frequently
- Coaching them on what to expect in interviews and screenings
- Keeping your database of available jobs updated and following up with candidates when new opportunities arise
- Checking in with recruits after they’ve accepted a job to ensure everything ran smoothly, then adjusting your strategy from feedback
Video virtual recruitment strategies
Here are some more ideas for using video when recruiting single, highly skilled candidates for companies—whether as a staffing and recruiting agency or in-house HR professional.
Add video to job boards, LinkedIn, and other postings
Prevent your job post from getting lost in a sea of options by recording a short video explaining the qualifications, skills, and interests you’re looking for. You can post a Covideo just about anywhere as an animated gif or link. When your prospect clicks it, they’ll instantly see your video, and you’ll receive a notification explaining when you’ve gotten a new video view.
Give insights into the job and work environment
First day nerves are extremely common. Use video as a virtual recruitment strategy, and allow candidates to learn a little bit more about their workplace. You can introduce them to potential peers, show them their desk, or walk them through what to know for their first day (like where to park, how to get to the workplace, or security protocols they need to follow).
Pre-screen or interview asynchronously
Phone and Zoom interviews are great, but they require both parties to be available at the same time. Staffing and recruiting professionals can be managing a large client load—and your recruit is busy, too. Personalized video allows you to trade interview answers or questions back and forth on your own schedule with video replies.
Strengthen relationships with hiring companies
After a staffing or recruiting professional fills a role for a company, set your sights on winning future business. There’s a high chance a business is going to need to fill additional positions. Send a personalized video to the hiring manager thanking them for their business and reviewing the success of the process.
Also, set yourself a reminder to check in on the candidate you placed with a personalized video after they have been in the role for about to month to see how they are doing. You may be able to work with them in the future as well. Don’t close any doors.
Connecting when staffing a large group
While personalized video is an excellent solution for recruiting a single, qualified candidate, how can you create virtual recruitment strategies that appeal to staffing prospects? Staffing agencies sometimes help businesses with seasonal staffing or bringing on direct hires to fill a department. Often, staffing agencies will handle HR needs like payroll for the hiring business.
The responsibilities of staffing or recruiting professionals vary across organizations, so we want to focus specifically on virtual recruitment strategies for group staffing.
Be organized
If you’re hired to help a business with their staffing and recruiting needs, be prepared with an optimized process and communicate it clearly. Your client should be able to understand how you conduct the hiring process, who is responsible for which phases, and how quickly you can fill the position. In this case, you can create personalized videos to send to businesses you support and walk them through your procedures.
Automation over personalization
As we’ve previously mentioned, staffing and recruiting agencies have limited time. If you’re hiring 100 seasonal workers for an industrial job, for example, you aren’t going to want to make a personalized message for each person. Use your company’s logo design and other branding elements to make the email visually appealing and instantly recognizable. You can still create helpful video guides but automate what you can to save time.
Use your data
What virtual recruitment strategies and tools have brought you the most success and filled positions faster? What is your most effective software for communicating? Audit your tools and use data to determine
For our Covideo clients, you can use analytics to see who has watched your videos and which sections they have replayed. What can you learn from this? You can see if video is a useful tool, know who hasn’t received information, and get insight into which topics in your audience is rewatching to get more clarity.
Updating your virtual recruitment strategies
The staffing and recruiting industry changes with workplace trends, and those trends are pointing to even more remote work and virtual connections. If you haven’t already taken the time to review your sales and communications tools, it’s time to get started! Video is not just nice to have—it’s a necessity for staffing and recruiting professionals.
If personalized video is missing from your virtual recruitment strategy toolbox, you can get started with Covideo today. Start a free trial to start engaging top talent, increasing hiring company satisfaction, and improving the efficiency of your communication.
