My top five pro tips for attracting passive candidates.

We're in a 4% unemployment market, attracting passive candidates should be more than a strategy — it should be a lifestyle.

The passive candidate has always been the White Rhino, that elusive creature that every good Recruiter wants to bag. Some recruiters may not know exactly how to go after that elusive White Rhino the correct way. So here are my top five ways to target the passive-active candidate.

Ok! Number One!

1. Reconnaissance and Information Gathering

In order to find out what it would take for a top candidate to leave the comfort of their current position and join your company, you’ll have to take the time to get to know them and understand what their needs and motivations are.

Taking a personal approach or method is vital, as the top candidates are very likely to have many other companies competing for their attention. As such, taking time to understand and learn more about the candidates, to understand their work history, their experiences and stimuluses will be extremely important in projecting your professionalism, your attention to detail, and position in the industry. This will all help in developing the candidate’s interest in your company

2. Develop Meaning Relationships with passive job seekers

Another thing I’ve realized in order to keep passive job seekers interested, it’s vital to establish and consistently build an ongoing relationship with them. Recruiting should never be transactional, you have to take a relationship building approach. It not only paints you and your organization in a good light but it also helps to establish your creditability as a recruiter.

Keep in mind that passive job seekers are often satisfied with their current position and will not jump into another job without first giving it significant thought. When trying to engage passive job seekers, relationship development is essential.

This is a long-term relationship that must be nurtured. Don't put undue pressure on job seekers who aren't actively looking for work. Engage them in genuine communication to begin growing the friendship (whether that is through phone calls, social media, blogging, e-mails, etc.). Inquire about their short- and long-term professional objectives. To keep them engaged and increase their receptivity to future contact, send them targeted white papers or other content-rich information in their areas of expertise. Keep in touch with them and keep them interested with personalized contacts until a suitable job opportunity arises. Work to build genuine connections with passive job seekers, and keep in mind that this is a long-term commitment.

One other way to build on that relationship is to recognize what passive active candidates want to know. They want to know about the company culture, the employee experience, the perks, the benefit of working for your organization and the job itself meaning, what kind of fun things could they work on or build. Remember: Job Satisfaction is PARAMOUNT!

This is where having a great employment brand comes into play—passive job seekers will most likely check to Glassdoor and similar sites to see what current and past employees have to say about your company. Consider hosting live events, such as open houses or happy hours, to which you can invite sourced passive job seekers to learn more about your company.

3. Take a look at previous candidates.

Have you ever thought that your perfect candidate could be waiting in your internal ATS’ database? Maybe it was a candidate that didn’t quite have enough experience then to secure a role in your team but maybe now, a few months or years later, he or she may now be a perfect fit.

And an added bonus is, they’ll already be familiar with your company and its hiring process. Obviously they were once interested and attracted to a position within your organization, making it even easier to recruit or reengage to possibly fill that position even quicker.

4. Start or build upon an already existing employee referral program.

I’ve come to realize in my 20+ years of recruiting that there is so much more to a candidate accepting a job offer other than receiving a huge salary. The other extenuating circumstances that play a huge role in attracting passive active candidates is job satisfaction, company culture, work-life balance, work flexibility, and health benefits. And who do you think would do a better job at providing all that information? YES! That’s right a current employee. Now keep in mind that “Employee Referral Programs” do come with a potential flaw if Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are important to you. Because of that “Birds of a Feather” adage you could wind up with all geese of one color.

But a recent survey that was published by Jobvite.com found that 82% of all recruiters received the majority of their hires through employee referrals.

So, developing or building upon an employee referral program could be quite lucrative and only help further along and speed up your hiring process.

5. Employer Branding is EVERYTING!

As modernization continues to sweep the globe, it's becoming increasingly vital to build an employer brand because if you don’t build an exciting employer brand, you’ll run the risk of casting doubt on your company's credibility in the minds of potential candidates.

Starting a company blog, improving your website, or building a social media strategy are all examples of ways to improve your online visibility. You may create a following, gain awareness, exhibit business culture, and eventually attract passive candidates who would not otherwise be exposed to your organization by sharing industry insights, company news, and promoting relevant events and campaigns online.

Organizations with employment brands that connect with passive candidates own goals and beliefs are often attractive to candidate who aren’t actually looking.

Employers who are known for their support of community involvement and giving back through employee volunteering and company activities are examples of great employment brands.

Work to strengthen your brand, regardless of what it is because once it’s been recognized and created, the word will go out amongst passive active candidates that your company is a wonderful place to work.

Determine where your brand isn't regarded as strongly as you'd like or isn't as easily available, and attempt to strengthen those areas.

Consider questions like: What is the community's opinion of the organization?

Are you active on social media? Is it regarded as a preferred employer?

On sites like Glassdoor, LinkedIn and Reddit, what are current and former employees saying about working here? Your Employment Brand differs from you Marketing Plan. Your Marketing plan says, “Hello, I’m available to date” but your “Employer Brand” says, “Hey this is why you should date me and marry me”

Regardless of what method you use to engage passive active candidates, just make sure it’s genuine at heart and gives a compelling reason why someone would want to come and work for you. Happy Hunting!