When it comes to your job application process, the key to an optimal candidate experience is: short and sweet. Make it as efficient and user-friendly as possible as you compete to get to top talent first.
- When the Haley Recruitment Marketing team reviewed Google Analytics of more than 500 staffing companies, findings showed abandonment rates on online job applications as high as 90 percent. And, a presentation at a recent tech conference revealed that if a company’s application process takes longer than five minutes to complete, they may lose up to 75 percent of job seekers who tried to use it. Ouch.
Simplify, simplify, simplify.
Follow these steps to simplify and improve your apply process:
- Shorten your initial application to name, email address and resume. And since today’s top candidates are far more technically advanced than in previous years, offer video and other options for them to submit their resume.
- Implement a one-click apply. Integrate your job application with tools like Sign In with Indeed Apply and social signups through Facebook and LinkedIn. Anything to reduce friction will help!
- Add chat. Adding live chat or a Chatbot helps you to capture valuable responses from candidates who may not be quite ready to apply.
- Stay in touch with candidates. Notify them promptly that their application was received. If they’re not a fit, make sure you send a follow-up message to notify them that they weren’t selected to move forward. And if you find a winner, be doubly sure to follow up immediately. The longer you wait, the higher your risk of losing them.
Mobile, mobile, mobile.
Streamline mobile recruitment is a huge boost, as it enables people to apply literally wherever and whenever best suits them. A well-functioning and easy-to-use mobile experience covers the entire application process including document uploads.
- Nearly 60 percent of its users look for jobs on their phones, with those aged 35 to 44 being the most likely to do so. Promoting a job opening as mobile friendly can increase the number of applicants by 11.6 percent, at the expense of jobs from non-mobile-friendly employers.
- Millennials grew up during the rise of the mobile phone and Internet, and Generation Z was born with this technology woven into the fabric of their lives. Statistics show that millennials check their phones nearly 160 times a day, which is five times higher than the average adult. These generations use their phones for everything else in their lives, so they expect noting less from potential employers.
- Mobile recruitment and social media go hand in hand. Job seekers routinely use social media, so when you integrate it with mobile recruiting, be sure to explore all the possibilities. In addition to the traditional LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, consider newer hybrid platforms such as Bumble, a female-first connection site. Bumble Bizz, coined “the millennial LinkedIn,” promises “a fresh take on networking that brings the swiping and women-first experience to professional connectivity.”
Since 1996, Haley Marketing has grown into the largest marketing firm in the world dedicated to serving the staffing and recruitment industries. We look forward to helping you stand out, stay top of mind, and win the ongoing talent war. Contact us today to learn more.
