The Race to Hire: How Startup Founders Can Beat the Competition to the Best Laid-Off Talent

The traditional methods of recruiting talent are no longer as effective as they once were. Job posts on job boards and career websites are becoming less and less effective in attracting qualified candidates. This is because the vast majority of job seekers are no longer using these platforms to search for jobs.?

Instead, they're turning to social media, networking events, and other more personal channels to find opportunities.?

When seeking employment, highly skilled individuals typically first turn to their networks for referrals, followed by reaching out to recruiters who have made a positive impression, with job boards being their final option.

As a result, companies are finding it increasingly difficult to stand out in the crowded job market. They are fighting for attention on social media, as countless other companies are going after the same candidates.

As a startup founder, you may be looking to take advantage of the layoffs to acquire talented individuals who have lost their jobs. However, you may face a challenge in that your startup may not be well-known, making it difficult to attract this talent without direct outreach.

With this in mind, you're left with a few options to consider as a founder:

1. You can start reaching out to potential candidates on LinkedIn, making personal connections and introducing them to your startup.
2. You can hire external recruiters to help you find and attract top talent.
3. You can also seek help from the community, leveraging the networks of other founders, mentors and industry experts to identify and attract the best candidates for your company.

Building a strong team is crucial for the success of your startup, and there are several ways to reach talented individuals. Sure, you could spend all day sourcing on LinkedIn, but let's be real: it's time consuming, you hate it and there’s a reason we call it rejection city. You could also fork out a ton of cash for a fancy recruiter.?

OR, you could do what the cool kids are doing and tap into community referrals. So, let’s dig into how that works.?

The rise of content creators?

There is a saying:?

“To stop a senior developer from scrolling past your job post, someone they know and trust needs to share it.” - Me. I said that.?

We’re all fighting for attention on social media these days.?

To attract qualified candidates, you need to get creative. One way to do that is by teaming up with content creators and micro-influencers in their industry. These people have a following of die-hard fans who trust their opinions. By working with them, companies can tap into that trust and reach a group of potential hires who are already interested and engaged.

Not only will they distribute the job description throughout their channels, they will also help you build your employer branding and make the recruitment process seem more personal.?

That’s where Recrooit with 4000+ community members jumps in.?

Recrooit is a marketplace that allows content creators to monetise their web presence through both affiliate and referral programs. This means that content creators can promote job posts, create their own job boards, and distribute links for your company.

By leveraging the reach of micro-influencers, bloggers, and content creators from our community, startups can effectively target the talent they need to grow their businesses.?

Influencers and content creators have a unique ability to engage with their followers and create a sense of community. This helps to create a sense of brand loyalty among the followers, which can also be beneficial for your company.?

Let's say a startup is building an AI tool. They could use Recrooit to hook up with bloggers and influencers who are experts in the field of machine learning. These people can then share job postings on their own channels, reaching a big audience of niche candidates.

So, will traditional job posts do the trick? They might, but you're an entrepreneur. You don't want to post a job and pray it works.

If you really want to get bring expertise from that top 1% talent to your company, you will need to get their attention and tell them the story on why they should join you.

Do referrals work? Well, it’s best to have a look at the facts & stats. Surveys and studies show that?this recruitment tactic drives the best results:

• Referred candidates are 4x more likely to receive a job offer,
• 45% of those who get hired will stay for four years or longer,
• 88% of employers say that referrals are the best way to hire new people.

Also, more than 80% of businesses that rely on employees’ recommendations to recruit new staff report that it helps them with return on investment. And these days, 71% of US employers count on their referrers to bring in the most qualified peers and strengthen their companies.?

So, aside from saving you a whole lot of time and trouble and helping you reduce recruitment costs, hiring with the help from the community impacts your business in the long run. It boosts your retention rates and motivates your team to take part in the company’s growth. So, be sure to give this strategy a try.

Start your 30-day free trial, and let the community drive awareness of your role in places you can’t and keep full control over hiring costs.