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Recruiters! “Get on the phone!” That’s what was said in the early 2000s, and continues to be said in every recruitment office across the globe.
But with so many systems (Bullhorn, Adapt, LinkedIn, Job Boards – and a plethora of other systems designed to help you source, scrape, spy), where on earth should a recruiter start? How are you supposed to get on the phone when you are surrounded by tech? Here are some tips recruiters love from my Inbound Sales Training Workshop.
How to Get a Recruiter on the Phone – HIIT Them!
Recruitment Leaders want their teams on the phone more. Recruiters often want to be on the phone, but need a purpose for the call, and they’re being distracted by systems and software. They need some inbound sales to kick start the sales process.
I’ve been talking about HIIT (high intensity interval training) for a while. I am a Joe Wicks devotee, a gym fanatic with a PT who has made me sweat in places I didn’t know I had places. I’m addicted to logging my workouts – my Garmin is one of my most useful bits of tech. As a multi-tasker HIIT is a gift.
We use HIIT in our recruitment training to help recruiters get value from their time – we’ve found that this new approach to recruitment training is a massive improvement. You just don’t want to be away from your desk for 4-6 hours. The forgetting curve is a recruiter’s enemy. You need a high intensity, passionate training session to get the blood pumping and the sales coming – and to make your training stick!
I have created a 9-minute HIIT for Recruiters to help you get on the phone. It’s nine, 1-minute hacks to drive more purposeful calls. Get in for 08:30, get a strong coffee, warm up, set your watch, and get started!
3-2-1 Recruiters! Go!
1. Check your LinkedIn SSI (social selling index) – it’s free, and has tips to help you improve your approach. This takes less than a minute. Quickly check – don’t get distracted. Make a note of where you need to improve, then, move to exercise 2.
2. Now you need to spend 1 minute attracting attention from the people you want to sell to (and get the CV of). You claim you are a niche recruiter – now’s the time to prove it. Spend 1 minute sharing some content that they are likely to look at, that once they have looked are likely to look at your profile. (And you’ll see them do it and can add to your call list.)
3. Repost your top jobs in 1 minute. No-one is staring at your profile all day, so you’re unlikely to wind anyone up by sharing jobs every day. Get cracking – you need job applications and you won’t get them by posting them once and walking away for 30 days!
4. Whilst you’re posting content and jobs think about my hack for getting the damn things read and actioned! Spending 1 minute whispering will get you nowhere. Be smart and get noticed – try my LinkedIn posting hacks:
“The doctors in my medical community with love this post about the best apps for medical professionals – I especially love # 5”.
Trust me, recruiters! This will attract doctors, market your brand and get them wanting to know what # 5 is. Click bait!
“This a great job for IT Managers who want to work in a business with the best hardware and a bought-in board of Directors who really get what IT can do for a business”.
Recruiters – mention the pain points of your community and they’ll read your job adverts. (More job advert hacks here)
5. There’s plenty of things a recruiter can do one-handed ;-)! And sourcing is one of them. You do not need lengthy boolean strings to pickle your brain and test your patience. There are at least 13 places in LinkedIn where you can source with one hand (and two eyes). Try areas like your home page, the pages of your ideal candidates – look for “people like” etc… and who has liked the content of your competitors / clients. These are warm gifts, not cold calls! damn! Get on the phone and source one-handed at the same time… it’s possible!
6. Right – I know you think know how to connect, but I have a hack for you to get you super-effective. When you send your ideal connection an invite, add some content which gets your contact hooked. If it’s from your website, rock n’ roll! Ask your marketer to set up something like Leadfeeder – this tells you who has been to your website. You should have a target list of people you want to convert. Send them your content, see if they bite. Add them to your call list if they do. Rinse and repeat if they don’t!
Try this TURBO in your HIIT, recruiters! I have worked with a few recruiters using Calendly… a really cute (free) bit of kit that shows your prospects areas of your diary that you want them to book for a call. Send them a link with some call date options. Let them know (think) that that they are in charge. Without lifting a finger, fill your diary with your target’s interview appointments! This is one of my favourite Recruiter Hacks.
“Hi Uzma, I’m sending you this link as I have a role that I know you’ll be great at and it has such a great benefits package and training and development opportunities. Feel free to book a call with me at a time to suit you.”
7. Spend 1 minute getting under the skin of your prospects. Use Crystal Knows to study the profiles of your prospects, and use the tips it gives you for how to convert them. It’s a scarily accurate profiler!
8. We all know that video is the biggest thing to hit the web, and its going to the biggest thing to help you convert. Try Loom to record a 30 second “hi” video that you can send to your prospects.
Get an ideal client’s job advert on your screen and talk to them about the candidates you have for them.
“Hi Luke, I see that you’re looking for a Project Manager. I work in your field and understand how crucial this role must be fore you. I have currently got 5 candidates that I know would be a great asset to your business.”
Get your prospect candidate on your screen and record
“Hi, Emily. I can see that you are a ###, and that you get a kick out of ###. I’d love to talk to you about ###…”
Sending someone a video about themselves, with your face in the bottom left, and you’re talking to them – they’ll be hooked!
9. Spend 1 minute checking your LinkedIn notifications (bell, top right!) Look for birthdays, promotions, who’s viewed your profile, who’s liked your content. All of the stuff you’ve done above will be reaping rewards. Grab these leads. Add this to your call list.
Recruiters! It’s not even 09:00 and you’re ready to rock!
Get on the Phone and Sell, Recruiters
We deliver these recruiter hacks as part of our Inbound Sales Training Workshops. Contact me if you want to not only get your recruiters on the phone, but also generating some genuine and convertible leads.
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HIIT Us, Recruiters!
Our high intensity interval training - Recruitment HIIT - helps recruiters source, convert quicker, and develop healthy pipelines, and recruitment marketers attract, engage, and retain candidates, generate leads, and colleagues (3Cs).
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Recruiters! I know that recruitment has never been so competitive— even your own clients are competing with you to place candidates!We're launching a new series of recruiter productivity webinars focussed on optimising your use of Bullhorn and driving speedier sourcing, recruitment, leads, sales, and commission! Part 1 is focussed on managing candidates.Let's show you some tips to engage with candidates effortlessly. Let's build stronger relationships using Bullhorn’s nurturing features: communicate, optimise, protect, PLACE! (And repeat!)REGISTER NOWBullhorn MythsIn today’s fast-paced recruitment world, having a powerful ATS/CRM is essential. It saves time, improves efficiency, and drives a profitable desk. But often, we hear:I use Bullhorn when I get a minute.Bullhorn is just a database, not a business growth tool.We have Bullhorn, but we’re not seeing a return on investment.The data is a mess, so I need to advertise and use LinkedIn too.These statements couldn't be more wrong…Bullhorn:💓 Can be your recruitment Buddy if you let it!😱 Reduces admin workload.💪 Keeps you organised.🕒Helps you source, sell, and place quickly!…and so much more when used effectively!Register Now for Our "Candidate Engagement" Bullhorn WebinarRecruitment leaders! Don’t invest in Bullhorn only to underutilise it and then wonder why you’re not getting results.Recruiters! Don’t create unnecessary "busyness" with messy data, inefficient workflows, and poor adoption, leading to a lack of return on effort (RoE).What You’ll Learn in Our Upcoming Bullhorn Optimisation Webinars:📌 23 April 2025: Engage with candidates effortlessly. Build stronger relationships using Bullhorn’s nurturing features: communicate, optimise, protect, PLACE! (And re-place!) Register Now📌 Date TBC: Leverage Bullhorn to source and track qualified candidates faster with less effort.📌 Date TBC: Maximise lead generation and improve conversion rates with smart Bullhorn strategies.📌 Date TBC: Optimise recruitment workflows for maximum efficiency and profitability.Whether you're new to Bullhorn or looking to refine your ATS/CRM strategy, this webinar series will provide you with actionable tips and real-world insights to immediately benefit your recruitment team.By the end of our 4 Bullhorn Optimisation sessions, you’ll have the tools and knowledge to:⏳ Save time (and sanity) and be more productive.🤝 Engage more candidates effectively.💸 Place candidates faster and increase your sales and commission.Don’t miss out! Register now to secure your spot in this free, must-attend event.We look forward to showing you how Bullhorn ATS/CRM can elevate your recruitment ROI (return on investment) and ROE (return on effort) and drive business growth!REGISTER NOWRecruitment and Bullhorn TrainingWe deliver the best live Bullhorn ROI webinar training, and you'll find other tips and tricks in Recruitment HIIT, our online recruitment training platform.Plus, through our Bullhorn Vision service we help generate serious ROI from your Bullhorn, data, and people.TRY HIIT FREE HERECONTACT US ABOUT BULLHORN ROI
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Protect Your Pipeline with this Antidote to Backdoor Placements
Backdoor placements are often an "invisible" pipeline killer. Yet they are also a great opportunity to recover lost revenue. Silver linings! Are you missing out on smashing target by not actively managing backdoor placements? 20 Years Ago, in a Land Far Away...In Lisa and my younger days (20 years ago), we created a report to track theoretical backdoors, and had a team calling candidates at the employer they'd recently had an interview with. If they answered, they were put through to the recruiter to begin recouping the lost fee.Surely time has moved on and there are more effective and tech-driven ways of doing this? Plus, surely recruiters are better at sales admin and relationship management now, so back doors are less common? I'm not so sure... 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Tracking and addressing backdoor placements encourages better use of internal resources while ensuring you recapture fees rightfully owed to your business.Building Trust and Strengthening Your Recruitment ProcessClients: Actively managing backdoor placements helps you optimise your client relationships. Clients who circumvent your terms of business do not value your partnership. Using Bullhorn to flag these incidents creates transparency and helps you spend time on clients who value you.Candidates: Additionally, having a proactive backdoor placement management process complements your silver medalist strategy. Silver medalists are candidates who reached advanced stages of the recruitment process but were not placed. By regularly engaging these high-potential candidates through your tracking systems, you keep them warm for future opportunities while minimising your reliance on external sourcing.Best Practices for Managing Backdoor PlacementsTrack Every Interaction: Ensure your CRM system captures interview stages and outcomes, even for candidates rejected at early stages. Use detailed note types like “Rejected at Interview” or “Rejected at CV Send” to maintain a clear record.Standardise Your Terms: Attach your terms and conditions to every client communication. This ensures clients can’t dispute fees later and provides you with a reliable audit trail.Monitor Data Ownership: Many lost placements are tied to inactive users or former consultants. Assign ownership of these candidates to managers to maintain visibility and accountability.Automate to Remove Human Error: Implement automation to consistently track candidate progress and flag potential backdoor placements. 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If they answer... bingo!Process and Tech Is KeyUse tech to prevent them.Use tech to spot them.The bottom line is that backdoor placements aren’t just about recovering lost revenue; they’re an opportunity to refine your recruitment strategy, strengthen client and candidate relationships, and ensure your systems are robust enough to thrive in a competitive market. Take control, and turn these challenges into wins for your recruitment / staffing agency.And if you need help on your processes, your data, and your Bullhorn adoption / ROI - call us - we can help.Automation and Bullhorn1stWe are Automation Buddies and Bullhorn Experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses who want to increase speed and sales.Automation: We coach to inspire, and build your automations so you can recruit and sell!Bullhorn: We optimise, train, and improve RoI from your key recruitment system.READ ABOUT OUR AUTOMATION BUDDY SERVICERead about our Bullhorn 1st Service
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