Maya Angelou – “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”
Yes it’s true, the Recruitment Industry doesn’t have a great name for itself. Reason being? There are too many recruiters performing at an unacceptably low level.
So when speaking to a potential client for the first time on that cold call, not only are you interrupting their day (which can be annoying), you also have the established disadvantage of being ‘another Recruitment Consultant’ (again, annoying).
HOWEVER, I was always taught to turn this to my advantage.
Be quality driven, rather than quantity driven. I have time again been thanked by client’s where I have only sent 1 or 2 CV’s that have been exactly what they were looking for, rather than aimlessly throwing countless CV’s at them. Ignore your ‘CV’s Sent’ KPI, the bottom line and filling the vacancy is the most important thing for you and your client.
Always show mutual respect. As the infamously revolutionary American author and poet Mary Angelou put it above, people will never forget how you made them feel. Be honest. If you cannot fill the position, if a candidate has told you something which your gut tells you to pull them out of the process etc. Then tell your client. You may not get business today, but it’s your career and therefore you’re in it for the long game and future business may come your way.
Become a Business Partner. Get to know your client’s business and them personally. Aim to become an exclusive Partner in their business and genuinely help them grow!
Joe Burridge 