Using Video to Improve Client Engagement
Recruitment can be like a roller-coaster in an agency environment. The recruitment agency market, in the UK alone, reached record highs in 2018 and has continued to grow since those statistics were released. 8,448 new agencies were registered in 2018, taking the total figure to almost 40,000 recruitment businesses in the UK market. The market has become so saturated that competition is fiercer than ever, and which hundreds of recruiters fighting to fill the same roles, agencies need to move past the outdated models that they’ve long used.
Advancing technology has allowed recruiters to change up their processes and remain competitive in the market, but where is it that recruitment agencies are starting to turn for their latest competitive advantage? Video. Managing your clients needs and providing them with the most suited candidates is the foundation of any positive client relationships, and video interviewing is being used to do exactly that. It allows you to deliver valuable experiences and services to your clients, meaning that you get to improve client engagement.
Client engagement has a strong relationship with aspects like client retention, so it’s something we should always have at the front of our mind. After all, highly engaged clients will refer more and purchase more. Disengaged clients, however, are often dissatisfied with your process and show no loyalty to your brand.
So, what exactly is it about video interviewing that helps to keep clients more engaged?
It speeds up the hiring process
Video interviewing allows you to speed but both the screening process and the decision-making process. When you complete an initial screening round, you can screen approximately 10 video interviews in the time it takes to complete 1 telephone interview, so there’s a mountain of time saved during this process. It also eliminates the scheduling issues that come with arranging telephone interviews, as candidates can complete their interviews in their own time if you opt for one-way interviewing.
When you submit a shortlist to your clients, how long does it take them to review CVs and make decisions about who they want to invite to a face-to-face interview? And how many times has your client met your candidates, knowing straight away that they aren’t what they’re looking for? Video interviewing allows your clients to easily select their most preferred candidates for face-to-face interviews, while knowing that they’re suited to the role. It helps to speed up the decision making process, as candidates can showcase themselves in a much clearer way, and clients become more engaged in the shortlisting process due to the accessibility of the candidate video interviews.
It helps convert contingent assignments into retained assignments
As we’ve just spoke about in the previous point, video interviewing comes with major time efficiencies. This is one of the many reasons why your contingent assignments are more likely to turn into retained projects. When you’re providing the unique service that video interviewing offers combined with aspects like time savings, you’re adding value to clients that few others can match.
If a business is presented with candidates from two different recruiters – one a CV shortlist, and the other a video interview shortlist, which do you think they’ll be more likely to respond to? As there will be a higher level of client engagement when responding to video shortlists, it’s more likely that the client is going to keep you exclusive in the business. To win retained contracts, you need to be able to show that you’re offering is above and beyond the competition – and like we said, retained clients are engaged clients!
It shows you’re investing in the best
When you’re using video interviewing software for your clients, it shows that you’re investing financially in ensuring that you’re providing the best possible service. It also shows you’re investing in finding the best possible candidates, and you’re going beyond the usual offering of a recruitment agency. That above and beyond service you’ll be offering with video interviewing means you can build relationships supported by trust. When you’re providing the best for your clients, they know you’re reliable and willing to find the right talent for their needs.
It allows you to provide a more personalised process
The branding capabilities of video interviewing platforms allows you to personalise the process and set it up to suit your needs. The sub-accounts available also allow you to provide a branded experience for your clients, meaning that when a candidate goes through the video interviewing process they will see the branding of the organisation they’re applying for, rather than your agency. Not only will candidates see the clients branding, but when they access the interviews to review and shortlist, they’ll see their own branding too. This is mostly used in retained assignments, as there is a more recurrent stream of roles to fill. But, when you’re using video interviewing, we’re sure you’ll have plenty of retained clients!
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Finding the best talent for your clients isn’t easy, but using video interviewing can help you to simplify the process, speed up your time to fill, and improve your client engagement. At this point in the market, even though many agencies are already using video interviewing, there are more who aren’t. Implementing this into your process provides you with a service offering which few others can match, and creates a unique selling point that allows you to differentiate your brand. With competition to high, is this something agencies can really continue to go without?