I’ve been meaning to write about text-engagement for ages and then yesterday I saw the most bonkers stat which said 78% of recruiters use SMS to schedule candidate interviews. Really? In the survey referenced in that article “90% of global recruiters … claim that SMS has helped their business grow by enhancing the speed of communication”. Pretty high numbers. I’m struggling to believe that. My plan had been to track the source of the figure and see what they were actually talking about. However, I soon became lost in a sea of links and decided that the figure wasn’t really relevant. Regardless of the numbers, using texts to engage with candidates should be on every recruiters radar. Heck, going back a full 10 years, when I was still recruiting, I’d use texts for those difficult to speak with headhunt candidates. Even the senior ones.
This infographic and article state that “43% of job seekers considered a recruiting agency to be more professional when they used SMS” – did the other 57% say they found it unprofessional…? (actually I later found out that 32% felt it was unprofessional). It’s a confusing area as the article that is quoted in that blog actually only says 60% of recruiters are using text – it also shares that “In six common scenarios, job seekers prefer to be contacted by recruiters by email (49 percent) or phone (38 percent) over text message (12 percent).” So only 12% want to be contacted by text?
Also you have to bear in mind that (according to this): “almost 50% of respondents who preferred SMS over email and phone calls were aged between 18-24 years with that number declining as age increased which makes SMS marketing perfect for targeting school leavers, and college and university graduates who are looking to get on their career path as soon as possible.”
This graph shows us how professional different ages of recruiters feel texting is:
Whereas this one basically tell us that regardless of the age jobseekers don’t want to be texted!!
So why do I disagree? I think that used appropriately it’s a great tool for recruiters. For example if you’re recruiting nurses (who are hardly likely to be sitting at a desk for hours) or truckers then it’s got to be a good option. For temps already on your database it’s just perfect (TempBuddy and R-Track both offer this – and more). I do also believe you can make first contact with tricky to talk to senior passive candidates; something I have first hand experience of.
Additionally with those already engaged candidates, including temps and contractors, why not use texts in some of these ways:
a) Ask them to sign up for job alerts (like the job boards do)
b) Scheduling interviews after a phone call or email to ascertain interest
c) Confirming interviewers
d) Arranging a time for post-interview debrief
The key is to take the lead from your candidate in terms of how appropriate it is, always be as professional by text as you would be by phone and to ensure you integrate your SMS activity into your CRM or ATS. Now, there’s the challenge if you ask me!!
