Guide to Approaching Passive Candidates

Guide to Approaching Passive Candidates
By: Phillip Tan

Let’s say you found a bunch of great potential passive candidates, now what do you do? Using passive candidate leads can be the most difficult and time-consuming aspect of recruiting today with the current situation of talent crunch in most sectors it is by far a difficult time, but it is becoming increasingly necessary as fewer people utilize traditional means to connect with potential employers. With specialized passive candidate search skills, recruiters now can quickly access a few contacts and be back on the phone within minutes. This accelerates a recruiter’s ability to reach passive candidates, but it requires a different type of phone skill.

While much advice exists on addressing candidates that have taken some initiative in their job search, not many experts talk about what happens once a passive candidate picks up the phone and says “Hello?” in response to your cold call. Making that initial call to a truly passive lead can be a scary moment, so in this article we will review a handful of tips to help break the ice and overcome that awkwardness. Let us first look at the five main stages to a successful cold call, and then we can review a few useful tips:

What you need to do
What they're thinking
Establish Curiosity
Get their attention

Why should I take your call?
Break the tension
Obtain their interests
What is in it for me?

Show your credentials
Gain credibility
How do I know you are for real?
Personalize the call

Build rapport
Do you really know your stuff
Call to Action
Get them to commit
Where do we go from here?

Tip #1: Don’t Sell!

The best way to start talking with passive candidates is to engage them in conversation, not to sell them on an opportunity.
Most recruiters get an earful of “pitch the job” and “sell the opportunity:’ but passive candidates are not in the market to buy anything so selling them something is absolutely the wrong approach.
Instead of selling, try establishing your credentials and reputation. Mention connections you may have inside your organization, sector or industry, and offer these connections as a resource to them when needed.

Make a connection and listen to them. Before you call someone, learn as much as you can about them. The Internet offers you plenty of information about their company, their industry and very often even detailed information about their interest. If you found them on a passive candidate sourcing site, such as Monster.com, look at their web references and you will likely find a number of websites where they are mentioned. Identifying something you have in common with them will help you develop a genuine connection. For example, have you been to their city or town? Have you attended similar universities or conferences?



Beyond that personal connection it also helps if you know about what’s going on with their organization and even better if you utilize familiar language and jargon. For example, use “insider” lingo or nicknames for products, facilities and locations, projects, departments, and technologies. Monster.com and additional deep web research can help you gather the information that helps you understand the candidate’s milieu.

Tip #2: Email First

When possible, start your conversation with an email. It may seem counter-intuitive to begin a “conversation” with an email, particularly in the context of this article, but great recruiters will use every tool at their disposal to connect with appropriate talent and e-mail is as powerful a communication tool as the phone. Email is the quickest, most unobtrusive and most commonly accepted way to establish rapport today. Using both the phone and email strongly increases the likelihood you will make a connection.

The best method is a three-step approach where the first step is an unobtrusive, non-solicitous networking request email. Remember that you are reaching out to someone who is most likely not actively looking for new opportunities so they will not respond well to bait-and-switch messages or overt recruitment approaches. When reaching out to passive leads using e-mail do not directly solicit them for employment in any way. Your initial contact email should include:

1. Asking them if they would be receptive to networking with you
2. Mention that you are initiating contact electronically out of respect for their time and privacy
3. A clear way to get in touch with you privately (i.e. your phone number)
4. Enough detail so they can decide if you are worthy of a reply

The second step is a quick and simple voicemail the following day indicating your desire to speak with them for networking purposes. Keep it brief, inform them of your intent to network, and clearly state the best way to get in touch with you.
After your first voicemail attempt an e-mail follow-through greatly increases the chance of a return call because it bridges the gap between the “electronic” world where spammers exists, and the “live” world of phone calls and face-to-face meetings. The subject line on your follow-up email should reference the voicemail you just left by having a “date stamp” like this: “Follow-through on my voicemail from today mm/dd/yy.”


This begins to build recognition with your prospect and increases the chances of success when you attempt this three-step strategy in one week.
The third step is a follow up email sent immediately after you leave a voicemail, verifying they received your voicemail and re-stating your contact details. The best candidates are going to be aware of their value so they may not take much initiative in calling you back. Try the above steps three times and then use the “Last Ditch” approach. In your fourth call and email, state something to the effect of”I thought I’d give it one last shot” and explain how it is important that you connect with them but that you have reached out previously to no avail. In the message clearly state that this will be your last attempt to connect and you will be amazed at how many people respond to this last message.

Tip #3: No Isn’t Always No

The best passive candidates are successful and busy people so if you just accepted this initial “no” all the time then you will not likely speak to many good people. Once someone answers you may get some initial resistance to the conversation or even a very outspoken “no”, but you can often overcome this initial reaction. Once you do, a great relationship may blossom with your new contact and you will find that the effort will be worthwhile.

An initial “no” could mean many other things besides “I’m not interested in what you have to say” so it is important that you investigate a bit before giving up. For example, it could mean “I’m very busy right now:’ in which case you should simply offer to call at a more convenient time and schedule a follow up. It could also mean they are having a bad day, or are very tired, and this is just not something they want to do right now. If their tone is abrupt, brusque or negative, let this initial negativity roll off your back without reacting to it and do not take it personally. Tell them you appreciate they may be very busy right now, but what you have to say is important and you would like to call them at another more convenient time. As before, make an appointment and follow up. This initial “no” could also mean “I can’t talk right now because my boss is looking over my shoulder” or they are in the middle of a meeting or other call. Drop a few hints and if that is the case then see if there may be a better time when you can reach out.

It is important to keep in mind that recruiters are not sales people. We do not sell a “product” —we help companies find the right talent at the right time, and we help people move forward with their career goals. There are many reasons why someone may not yet be ready to move forward and thus they may not be interested in taking our call. Only by establishing a connection will we be in a position to help them once they are ready, or to obtain referrals to those who are. In our next white paper, we will discuss a number of strategies for successfully eliciting referrals.

Conclusion

In a tight labor market, a successful passive candidate recruiting program can be an essential for companies’ success. Working with passive candidates requires a major change in methodology for companies that are accustomed to working with active candidates, and recruiters who master these changes are at great competitive advantage. By breaking the passive recruiting process into steps — source the appropriate potential candidates, engage them in conversation, use a combination of communication methods, and give the prospect every opportunity to respond positively — committed recruiters can readily adapt to the new recruiting landscape.

Happy Searching!