Without employees, a business would be nothing. A CEO can have an amazing vision and a strong business plan, but without dedicated and passionate employees, a CEO’s vision couldn’t become reality. While strong employees are critical to the success of any business, they are even more crucial for small businesses. Small businesses have less employees, which makes each individual employee have stronger influence in the business than if there were thousands of employees. One employee could have an idea that transforms your business and brings it to greater heights; but one employee could also make a mistake that could end your business. You must hire carefully. But where do you start? Here are some of the most effective ideas for attracting great candidates to small businesses:
Be genuine
The hiring process for larger companies can feel quite impersonal. When an applicant goes through the application process then the interview process, they can tell that the hiring manager has rehearsed their spiel a thousand times. Most individuals want to work for a company that is honest, engaged and communicative. Attracting ideal applicants can be as easy as being genuine. When you market for your business’ open position all the way through the interview process, be authentic. Banish all distractions and give your full attention to applicants, always.
Emphasize the importance of small business employees
Applicants know that if they work for a larger company, they may be important, but they often aren’t highly valued. When there are hundreds or thousands of other employees, a slip up from one won’t matter much, but neither will an accomplishment that may seem huge to the employee. If applicants want to work in an environment where they have a large impact and are treated as such, they should apply to work for small business. If you want to attract talented applicants to your small business, you need to emphasize how important they will be to your company. When a candidate can tell how much the company want to apply to cares, they’re more inclined to both apply and accept an offer
Use recruiting software
It can take smaller businesses much longer to sort through applications than larger businesses. If small businesses are still embarking upon the hiring process while doing everything by hand, they are bound to fall behind. Recruiting software can help small businesses to attract the best applicants simply because software cuts back on the time it takes small businesses to sort through applications. Recruiting software can upload and sort resumes quickly so you can spend more time focusing on the applicants you’d like to pursue. In order for individuals to be interested in working for your company, they need to feel as though you value them. If all of your time and energy goes into sorting applications and narrowing down your final applicant pool, by the time you have that final group of applicants, you won’t be able to give them the attention they deserve
Highlight the perks of your workspace
There are many larger businesses that are able to offer their employees perks ranging from on-site restaurants to free gym memberships. All of these luxurious perks may draw applicants in and even convert them to employees, but then what? What is the purpose behind these kind of perks? Many of these “free” perks offered by large companies end up encouraging employees to work longer hours at the office. After all, why would they need to go home at 5pm if there is an on-site restaurant and gym around the corner that they have a free membership to attend? At the end of the day, these benefits could end up costing employees. Small businesses may not have the resources to offer such extravagant perks, but that’s okay. Maybe you don’t have a free barista on-site, but your employees work 7 hours per day on average. This in itself may be a powerful benefit, especially for employees that have families and would like to be home early.
To attract the best applicants to your small business, you’ll need to put in a good deal of work. However, all of these ideas can get you one step closer to having the most driven and dedicated group of employees. Remember to be genuine, emphasize the importance of small business employees, use recruiting software and highlight the perks of your workplace. You’ll have the right candidates flocking to you in no time.
About the Author
Laura Greene is one of the content managers for TrustedEmployees – creative people who provide businesses, non-profits, and volunteer organizations with a tailored and compliant approach to background screening through personalization, innovation, and dedication.
