How To Find Those Illusive Candidates Like A Liam Neeson From ‘Taken’ Pro

Picture Source: LinkedIn.com

Hands up who’s seen ‘Taken? If you haven’t, you’ve almost definitely seen the meme.

Liam’s character tells his daughter’s kidnapper “I don’t know who you are…I possess a set of very unique skills…I will find you!”

Although most of us aren’t trained contract killers or assassins (presumably), most recruiters should also possess a set of skills, that is the ability to find that needle in the haystack, that golden balls candidate that NONE of your competitors have got on their database, that ticket to landing a 5 figure fee! (DISCLAIMER – yes candidates are people with feelings etc…).

The reality is however, many don’t. As good and effective as an agencies training might be, and the vast majority are excellent by the way – being able to find those candidates can be incredibly difficult.

These individuals are hidden, tucked away behind stable careers, good salaries, brilliant work culture, management that gives a shit and so on.

They’re not in that 12% or 13% represented in the above picture.

They’re not the ones reaching out BEGGING for a new opportunity.

Without being rude you can see that 25% anywhere. Just visit any usual job board CV database and BOOM, hello!

The issue, is that everyone’s got access, it’s like a goddamn “hook-a-duck”, the real skill lies in reaching that coveted 45%, and even dare I say those 15%.

Let’s be honest, even those “completely satisfied” candidates would possibly at least keep an open mind IF presented with the right opportunity.

“But Dan!” I hear you cry. “How do I do that?!”

You absolutely have to have a well thought out, laser-targeted and “Agent 47” style executed Social Media Marketing campaign.

“But Dan, I’m all over my Social media marketing”…Really? Then why aren’t you in front of these people?

It’s so much more than posting to LinkedIn or forums etc.

Here’s what you need to do.

Get your SEO right! SEO and SMM are like bread and butter! For optimum results there needs to be strong cohesion between both!
Really think about your target candidate. Where do they hang out? What are their typical interests? What are their B2C buying personas. What are their typical motivators. Pushes. Pulls. What did they eat for breakfast! (Too far?!)
Once you’ve really drilled down in to that you have to create content that they are more likely than not to engage with.
You’ve got to sell sell sell the opportunity as succinctly as possible with the space/time you have. Think video specs as a way to enthuse and engage.
Sign up to the advertising facility on each of the platforms your targets are likely to be.
Set a realistic budget!Don’t scrape here, if your client is looking for a golden balls candidate, and you’ve settled on a 20-30% fee you need to do the maths.Is it feasible to spend £1k on advertising if your fee (for some reason – this is only an example) is £2k?
You’re going to lose money on that deal so probably not. If you can get a £10/£15K+ fee, then you’re happier to spend £3-£5K.
Run your ads/sponsored posts.
..Don’t stop there. Tweak adjust. Tweak adjust. Tweak adjust again. Study the analytics. Study the conversions. Can you increase then? Are you getting enough traction? Is your content as relevant today as it was last week?
Keep going. Once you’ve cracked it, replicate.

This method is exactly how I helped several clients create in excess of £50k extra revenue last year. If you know someone who needs to see this, give it a share. Email them the link. Shout it from your window.

If you’d like to know more on how I can help you do the same – come and say hello!