If there is one KPI every Talent Acquisition professional should follow, it should be the Conversion Rate.
Often we don’t understand why we are not getting enough applicants and easily believe that the salary is not high enough, the job requirements are hard to fill, or that they need more budget to promote the jobs online. Let’s start by looking into our own kitchen, and we will discover so many treasures.
I would like to give you here ideas you can very easily implement to increase your Conversion Rate.
What is Conversion Rate?
This metric is the ratio between the number of persons on your career page (or job descriptions) and the number of applications. The higher this value, the better your talent acquisition strategy!
Optimising the ratio click-to-apply:
increases the number of applications
reduces the cost per applicant
speeds-up the time to fill
Here are 5 tips on how to optimise your applicant conversion rate and motivate candidates to apply:
Simplify the application process
Mobile is becoming our #1 device and searching for a new job is not done at the office behind the computer but, on the train or on the couch at home in the evening. Candidates don’t always have their CV with them, it doesn’t mean they’re not interested.
A simple “Apply with LinkedIn" button or only asking for a phone number and an email address could be enough. You will receive more applications, you then have to evaluate the quality & relevance of those candidates.
Avoid distraction
Your career page is already full of information, with videos, pictures, benefits… On the moment candidates are ready to apply, make sure they are not distracted with information they don’t need at this stage of the process.
★ Go straight to the point with your job description, with the right & targeted information ★ Avoid unnecessary information, the simpler, the better ★ Make the apply button very visible ★ Don’t redirect to any other pages to prevent candidates from leaving the application.
Explain your application process
There is nothing more important for a candidate than to understand how long the application process takes and the different steps (s)he has to go through to get hired. A clear process is very appealing to candidates, and they will more easily apply.
Be very explicit on your application process, make sure to keep it clear and simple. Visuals really help to better picture this process. Hotjar understood that very well:
Monitor your candidates’ sources
Some of your candidates’ sources perform better than others, depending on the job profiles, company industry, candidates’ seniority…
By analysing which candidates’ sources generate the most applications (and the best quality), you will then be able to focus on the right recruitment channels and increase your Conversion rate. On top of that, it also enables you to personalise your content & job description.
Ask candidates to apply
I finish with the most obvious tip but it’s often a trick that is forgotten by Recruiters when they write the job description.
Simply asking the candidates to apply will unconsciously push him/her to click on the apply button instead of going back to the career page. Use contrasting colours to make your button obvious. No “Join us”… a good old fashion “Apply now” remains the most convincing.
To be sure which call-to-action performs the best, simply A/B different variations.
To wrap-up:
Your Conversion Rate is your #1 KPI to measure and optimise your recruitment strategy. Never stop testing new call-to-action, different content types, job descriptions’ layout, job benefits, application process, candidates’ sources… Analysing your data will help you to significantly reduce your cost per hire and increase your number of applicants.
If you’re interested in a Consultation to talk about Recruitment Marketing and strategy optimisation, get in touch with me!