How to Successfully Use Persuasion in Recruitment

All of us have been there –– after spending weeks, sometimes even months, interviewing, assessing, and negotiating an offer with the desired candidate, they turn around and tell you that they have decided to go a different direction.

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A situation like this is not only frustrating for those involved in the hiring process, but it also extends the use of valuable time and resources that would otherwise be used to achieve critical objectives. While we can never completely plan for such situations, we can improve our hiring process and skills to prevent them from happening as often.

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One of the most effective ways to enhance your hiring efforts is to center your strategy around persuasion. By developing your skills to influence candidates ethically, you will be able to achieve more favorable outcomes naturally. Specifically, in the current candidate-driven market, successfully applying the art of persuasion in recruitment will be fundamental to improving hiring conversion rates.

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In this post, we will take a look at the factors that influence persuasion and how to incorporate them into your hiring process.

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The Science Behind Persuasion

As humans in the modern age, we are often faced with an overwhelming amount of stimuli daily. When it comes time to make decisions, we tend to subconsciously use a set of guiding principles to narrow down choices and determine which is in our best interest.

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Based on scientific research, there are six guiding principles that influence human behavior when making a decision: reciprocity, scarcity, authority, consistency, liking, and consensus. In situations where you are trying to convince someone to take a certain action, using these principles can increase the likelihood that they will agree with your proposition.

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Persuasion in recruitment is no different. As the hiring manager, you should aim to fulfill many of these principles to maximize the chances that the candidate you want will say yes to joining your mission.

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Five Strategies for Persuasion in Recruitment

To help your team improve its ability to attract, hire, and retain critical talent, here are five strategies to assist in sealing the deal and adding valuable leaders to your organization.

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1. Put Their Experience First

Throughout the hiring process, you should always be thinking about your candidate’s experience and how you can provide them with a positive and enjoyable process. By doing so, you increase your likeability, an important factor when it comes time for them to decide whether or not they would be a good fit for the organization’s culture and dynamics.

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One of the easiest ways to improve their overall experience while using the power of persuasion is to offer them a way to connect with your team. This could be attending a speaking event by one of your top leaders or going to lunch with their potential team members. Naturally, through the principle of reciprocity, they will feel compelled to give back to your team in whatever way they can.

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2. Build Trust With Your Candidates

As you take steps to put the candidate’s experience first, you are also strengthening the relationship and building trust. A key component of trust in a relationship is consistency –– a value that a candidate will turn to when deciding to commit to a new position. When building trust, regular communication is essential. Specifically, it should provide value or feedback and show respect for the candidate's time.

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One great way to achieve this is to provide clarity of the interview process and timing up-front so candidates will understand the commitment required. It is also critical to provide detailed feedback to the candidate after each round of interviews.  It is also helpful to share testimonials from current employees or even encourage them to view your Glassdoor profile to learn more about your business. Not only does it show your willingness to connect with them, but it also provides them with a different perspective of your organization.

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Learn More: How To Build Trust With Your Top Candidates

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3. Focus On Opportunity Costs

Once you have started to form a trusting relationship, you can then begin to dive deeper into the potential this position has to offer. When looking to incorporate the science of persuasion in recruitment, creating a sense of scarcity can be an effective strategy. To do so, share what is unique about your proposition, emphasizing what they will learn, have exposure to, how they will be invested in personally and professionally and walking through a potential career path.  Helping them understand the value of this opportunity and the immediate and long term benefits will enable your opportunity and company stand-out and  make them more likely to consider your proposal and ultimately accept it.

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4. Showcase Your Organization’s Success

While focusing on what a candidate might miss out on, take the time to showcase your team’s achievements, too. By highlighting your organization’s accomplishments, you show authority — one of the six principles necessary for persuasion in recruitment. The top candidates will value this level of expertise and want to join a team that possesses these abilities.

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One simple way to incorporate this in your hiring process is to use introductions that specify an individual's success. For example, highlight their years of experience in a particular field or a specific award they have received that is relevant to the industry. By doing so upfront, you can start to establish a sense of credibility, which will prove useful once it comes time to present your offer.

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5. Never Be Overly Insistent

While showcasing your achievements is vital, it's equally important not to show all of your cards. There is a fine line between being persuasive and simply being pushy. If you are overly insistent, it can make your team seem desperate. This is something you never want, as it makes the candidate feel empowered to ask for more. If you do everything in your power to persuade the candidate to join your team, yet they decide to go elsewhere, respect their decision without trying to change their mind. But, be sure to let them know that you are open to working with them again in the future if the position were to arise.

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Motivate Your Candidates with Kinsley Sarn

Ultimately, motivating your candidates to take the next step and join your team requires a combination of multifaceted strategies. In many cases, filling leadership positions is most effective when working with an executive search partner, such as Kinsley Sarn.

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Our expertise and process transform the way you source and assess candidates, bridging the gap between your hiring team and the potential candidates. From the very beginning, we begin to use persuasion in recruitment by creating a compelling candidate profile that is designed to attract those who share similar interests and goals to your organization. Once we begin to see interest in the open positions, we use our comprehensive assessments and interviewing skills to select those leaders capable of excelling in the role.

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After the offer is made and accepted, we continue to develop the relationship with the new hire, offering transition services. Through meetings and workshops, we provide support as they begin to familiarize themselves with your organization and their responsibilities. The combination of these services allows us to confidently guarantee each placement for 12 months.

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If you would like to partner with us to win over top candidates to join your leadership teams, contact us by clicking the button below. We would love to connect with you to transform your hiring initiatives and fill your open positions with the most qualified candidates on the market.