The Recruiter Campus

Recruiting Firm Owners: How to Market Your Firm to Get Clients Calling You!

Today I interviewed recruiting industry legend, Bob Marshall on How to add a new industry specialty to your office and Neil Lebovits on how to use the internet to market your recruiting business and have those who hire reach out to you with their openings.

You can listen to the entire 35 minute call here,no registration, no strings attached.  It's that good!  You can also download the audio in MP3 if you like.

Here are a few tips Neil shared on Internet Marketing:

The traditional web site we all have developed is largely ineffective because most visitors don't buy or call you when and if they find your site.  To convert these visitors you want to "capture" their email addresses on your website by giving them a free special report, a free video or audio training.

Once you capture their email address you can then market to them via email to stay in touch with them and establish yourself as an industry expert in your niche.  An example of what a page like this would look like is my site . This is a strategy to get you in front of people in your niche continuously.  For more details, listen to the call.

Here are a few of the tips Bob Marshall shared on establishing a new industry specialty:

Time Manangement for Recruiters- How to Get Things Done in Your Recruiting Firm!

See the image to the left?  $50 bills blowing in the wind! That is what I see every day in many offices of recruiting firms.  Money blowing out the window in lost time.  You see to me it's visible.  That wasn't always the case.  I made the same mistakes as other recruiting firm owners and didn't really KNOW the value of my time.  Not knowing this lowered its value significantly.

Today I interviewed two industry trainers Gary Stauble and Doug Beabout on how to get greater productivity in our recruiting firms.  Here are some quick tips from Gary and Doug:

1.  Create Strategic Urgency.  Do tasks like recruit calls, marketing calls, Planning and strategic development time in 30 to 50 minute blocks using a digital timer that counts down.  When the clock goes off, move on to the next task.
2. Have 10 minute meetings with your recruiters once per week where they have answers to predetermined questions in advance of the meeting.  Questions like:

• What have I accomplished the past 7 days?
• What are my challenges now?
• What are my opportunities?
• What am I committed to the next 7 days?

Then coach them around the answers to help them implement their new ideas.

3.  Hire a researcher, even in tough times, to take the $5 to $10 per hour activities that are keeping you from what you do best which is the interaction with your recruited candidates and clients.

• This can be a part or full time person
• They will leverage your time and do things you are probably putting off!

These were just a few of the ideas I took from these two speakers.  You can get free access to this interview HERE.  Both Gary and Doug are being featured as part of the world's first Recruiting Firm Owner Virtual Telesummit March 8th thru 12th designed specifically around the needs of recruiting firm owners.

Calling all Recruiting Firm Owners! Virtual Summit in March

 
One of the largest voids I have found in the recruiting industry is the lack training or recruiting seminars dedicated specifically to us, the owners and managers of recruiting firms.

Well, I am doing my part to change that.  I have gathered some of the most influential thought leaders like Bob Marshall, Bill Radin, Gary Stauble, Bill Boorman, Margaret Graziano, Mark Berger plus several others in a one week virtual telesummit with one purpose:  to give you the tools, strategies, and tactics to emerge quickly and profitably from this recession.

What is a Virtual Telesummit?  The speakers come together every afternoon the week of March 8th for 4 hours each day and present to you in "your office".  No travel or time away, so you have no excuse not to invest the time in your business.  Can't be on some of the calls live?  No problem, you can listen whenever you want.  Recordings will be posted within 24 hours of the presentation. 

I have asked all the speakers to pull back the curtain and share some of their secrets that have made them successful.  If you are looking for innovative ideas in finding, hiring, motivating recruiters you will want to listen in as to what these people have to say.

Check out the conference and the agenda.  Register HERE for free sneak preview calls where the speakers share some of the ideas they will be presenting at the Summit.

Recruiters- Do You Have Trouble Planning?

One of the first challenges recruiting firm owners and recruiters bring to me as a coach is "Mike, I need help planning" and/or (read a 'whining' sound into this) "I don't plan well or at all!"

Well I have good news and bad news!  This won't be the 157th article you read on good planning, on how to devote a period of your day to map out strategically what you will do next week and tomorrow.  Don't get me wrong, I believe you need to do this, but just between you and me-- please keep this a secret-- I was HORRIBLE at it!  That doesn't mean I didn't plan, but putting together lists, filling in forms made me want to stick needles in my eyes!!

Here is what it took me over 10 years to learn.  Most likely poor planning is a result of the recruiter or recruiting firm owner having a very weak short and long term vision for their business.  You see, "making a lot of money" is NOT a vision and frankly it is not even compelling until you can answer "How MUCH money?" and for "What SPECIFIC purpose?"

Here's a quick question to see if this applies to you:

The Power of VISION in Your Recruiting Firm From the California Staffing Professionals Owner's Retreat

   I had the privilege of speaking at the California Staffing Professionals Owner's Retreat 9/25 and 9/26 in front of a group of recruiting professionals commited to growing their firms.  The theme of the meeting and most of the speakers was HOW to start the process of rebuilding their firms and the power of a defined specific vision to get them their.

 Patricia Drain opened the recruiting conference stressing the need for owners to work ON their business more instead of working primarily IN their business.  Those that work primarily IN their business don't have a business they have a J-O-B! 

She also stressed the need to work with the "end in mind" and to create multiple streams of income such as coaching programs and/or teleseminars for candidates that we can't help.  

My presentation similarly stressed one of "Deadly Sins" recruiting firm owners make is that they do not have a specific and strategic vision of where they are taking their firms in 12, 24, and 36 months from now.  Coming out of a recession is a GREAT opportunity to get it "right". 

The 4 Key Strategies I discussed were:

Recruiting Firm Owners: Are You Keeping Poor Performers Too Long?

OK, for all you Bleeding Hearts out there, I apologize in advance for what I am about to say.

In my work with recruiting firm owners I see 2 common problems as it relates to tenured recruiters who are producing poor results right now.  In my conversations with the owners they have a sense of loyalty to these people.  I agree.  But shouldn't there be a reciprocal sense of loyalty from them?

I don't mean loyalty in the "hangin' around" mode.  I mean a sense of loyalty in stepping up the activity to help you through the downturn.  Don't get me wrong, many are.  I speak only of those recruiters who have mentally "gone fishing" for the recession because the thought of making 80 or 90 calls again makes them sick to their stomach.

My gut tells me you are paying these people a draw and/or salary.  Correct?  Is this money down the drain?  If you have someone on your recruiting team you owe them leadership and you need to wake them up.

Here's some ideas:

Recruiters: Great Summer Reading That Will Challenge Your Thinking

Seth Godin's book Small is the New Big is a compilation of 183 Blog posts of his on out of the box thinking and marketing in the internet age.  OK, it's a couple of years old, but, that only makes it less expensive to invest in now! :-)  I am now reading his newest book Tribes published recently, I'll report later.

 

This is great summer reading as it is NOT loaded in theory, but I found some of my current thinking challenged when I was sitting by the lake last week.

 

If there was ever a time to have your current recruiting world view challenged I think it could be now.  Many of our businesses have been stressed and shaken to their cores.  I am an eternal optimist.  Each of the past two downturns have made me change my approach to the recruiting industry. These changes brought new systems, metrics, and strategies that allowed for fantastic growth and profitability when we emerged from those downturns.

 

Here are a couple of easy to read tips from the book:

Recruiting Firm Owners: Is the Worst Behind Us? This Economist Says YES!

This clip is from the recent ERE conference in San Diego.  This a a great 7 minute investment of your time to get some keen insight into the current economic situation.  It is customized for recruiters.  Watch Dr. Robert Genetski's predictions for an economic recovery this summer and strong staffing growth later this year.

This brings me to the question if you will be the type of recruiting firm owner/manager that waits until all the lights are green OR if you will be proactive and start building expansion into your plans.  Download a free 90 minute audio on how to find and attract great recruiters and get them up, motivated and billing quickly by visiting www.TheRecruiterU.com/Hiring.

Recruiting Firm Owners: It's April, Do You Know What Time it is in Your Recruiting Business?

It's April and the year is one-quarter over.  Time flies!

 

If you have been reading my articles for awhile you know the importance I place on tracking numbers because, when done properly, they can accurately forecast revenue and show you who on your team will make it and who will not.

 

Tracking key recruiting activity numbers allows you to course correct almost immediately.  My recommendation for you today, is to pull out your 2009 business plan and take an honest assessment of where you are at year to date vs. where you WANTED to be at now.

 

If you are not tracking job orders, first time interviews,

Recruiters: Are You Manufacturing your Own Recruiting Recession? Part I

Are you manufacturing your own recruiting office level or desk level recession?  Not sure?  Let me ask you a few quick questions.  These are along the lines of “you know if you’re a red neck if….” 

You know if you are manufacturing your own recession if:

• Your activity is dropping because “why bother calling anyone--no one is hiring!”
• You have begun more aggressively using job boards since there is “so much good talent on the street”.
• You haven’t yet done your 2009 recruiting firm business plan because “why bother!”
• You have scrapped any plans on hiring because “companies are not hiring”.
• You have stopped or are planning on halting your investment in training and attending recruiting seminars to “save” some money.

OK, you get the point; I could keep going with at least a dozen more points.  This is my third recession and I see very similar patterns from both the marketplace, from recruiting firm owners in general and from my clients.  Most tend to unconsciously do the opposite of what they SHOULD be doing to make it through the next twelve to eighteen months if history is any guide.

1) If you are not taking your key recruiting numbers, i.e. call count, marketing and recruiting presentation count, Job Orders, first time interviews, etc at least weekly start today!