You’ve just applied for a job online, which is being handled through an agency. The job looks good, but you are a little unsure of yourself… do you ring up and find out more? Is that too pushy? The recruiter might be fielding hundreds of prospective candidate calls – all asking the same questions… You think to yourself, “You know what – I’ll wait & see what happens. If they really like me, they’ll call me. Sorted.”
If everyone who applied for a role online followed up with a phone call, and had a conversation with the recruiter, it would cost loads of time, which the role vacancy usually does not have. But in my experience, it’s astonishingly only about 20% of applicants who follow up via a phone call; and of those 20%, there’s about an 80% chance that one of them will get the role. It’s the old 80/20 rule in effect! Recruitment consultants should answer more phone calls, and job applicants should make more phone calls. There is a ‘But’ though…
The phone call needs to have the right ingredients. The recruiter has to be open, and the candidate needs to adopt a warm, inquisitive & respectful disposition. Two minutes of intelligent, upbeat bonding between applicant and recruiter can result in an interview being booked, even if the candidate does not tick every single box.
If candidate just calls without an ‘A Game’ & nonchalantly asks “What’s the parking like?” or “Is the job still open & do I just send my resume in?”.. well they are the wrong ingredients.
Agencies (…and I’m looking particularly at the big agencies here) don’t have the greatest record of getting back to applicants, and I think this won’t change until applicants are regarded as customers, which is a whole new topic in itself & best saved for a future post. Until then, don’t succumb to call reluctance – get your ‘A Game’ on and make it happen!