Stripped of its embellishments, recruitment is an exercise in persuasion. Its purpose is to sell an employer to an extraordinary candidate. Not any candidate, not an average candidate, but a person who is among the best in their profession, craft or trade. Why? Because these “A” level performers are much more productive than their mediocre peers. According to the McKinsey & Company report called The War for Talent, they provide a 50-100% performance premium to their employers, adding significantly to sales booked, customer satisfaction, quality of output and internal morale. In other words, selling “A” level performers on the value proposition of your organization as an employer is the key to winning … not only the War for Talent, but the War for a Big Bottom Line in today’s hyper-competitive markets.

Which begs the question: how do we sell to “A” level performers? In my view, it takes an understanding of two key factors:

• First, we have to recognize that the best and brightest have choices. They are highly valued by their current employer and sought out by other employers all of the time. To be successful, therefore, we have to “out-sell” both. We have to develop and communicate a value proposition that is so persuasive it compels top talent to buy into our employer, even in the face of all of that other competition.

   

• Second, we have to recognize that consumers, but especially fickle consumers (and that’s precisely what top talent is), want a lot of detailed information about the product they are being asked to buy. And increasingly, they are turning to the Internet to find it. According to David Leonhardt of The New York Times, as people get closer to a buying decision, they switch from looking at ads on television and in magazines to conducting research online. Said another way, they move from general, emotional appeals to specific, objective information about a product’s features and benefits.

So, here’s the point: if we want to increase our yield of high caliber talent, we have to “out-sell” the competition with facts presented online. Where and how should we do that? I recommend the C strategy. That’s right. Use “C’s” to get “A’s.” Here’s what it involves:

Compelling job postings. “A” level candidates are not going to be persuaded by the electronic equivalent of a three-line classified ad or by the bureaucratic language of a position description. To sell the best talent, our job postings have to act like “electronic sales brochures” and include enough information to (a) answer candidate questions before they ask them and (b) convince them to do what they don’t want to do: change (from their employer to yours). Luckily, the average commercial recruitment site will permit you to use up to 1,400 words for a job posting; that’s the equivalent of two typed pages of text. Use every word.

Comprehensive career sites. “A” level candidates don’t visit a career site to look at jobs, they visit it to look at the employer—its culture, values, mission and career advancement opportunity. In short, they want to know whether they’ll fit in and move up in their profession, craft or trade. They’ll look at the job postings, but only if they first find the employer’s value proposition appealing. To optimize the impact of that message, (a) tailor it to the specific cohorts of the workforce that you are trying to recruit and (b) use their vocabulary, not internal corporate jargon or the language of formal business communications. Remember, your career site isn’t a memo to the boss, it’s a sales pitch to some pretty tough customers.

Conversation. “A” level candidates hate soliloquies. They much prefer dialogues. To recruit them, therefore, we must supplement the “talking at them” we do in our job postings and on our career sites with some listening and “talking with them.” For example, you might (a) launch a recruiter’s blog on your corporate career site where you can offer a personal perspective on the culture and potential of your employer and respond to candidate comments and questions and/or (b) e-network with prospects by participating in online discussion boards and listservs that cater to your target demographic (e.g., sites run by appropriate associations, alumni organizations, and affinity groups).

Continuity. “A” level candidates want to be wooed. They want an employer to invest in developing a relationship with them, to care enough about recruiting them to spend the time and effort they need to build familiarity, trust and confidence in your organization. To do that, you can (a) invite those who read your job postings to opt-in to a periodic e-mail communication that both provides additional information about your employer and offers tips and insights to help them advance their career and (b) promote your organization’s employment brand—its special attributes for “A” level performers—where the candidates you want to hire hang out online.

Corrected commentary. American consumers (to include “A” level candidates) do not judge a product (whether it’s a new car or a new employer) based solely on their own observations of its merits. Instead, they are strongly influenced by the opinions of others around them. As a case in point, consider the U.S. automobile industry. Their product is now arguably as good as that produced by foreign manufacturers, but in many cases, our neighbors don’t think much of it. Your friends next door will probably gasp when a new BMW pulls into the driveway, but they’re likely to have a very different reaction when you pull up in a Pontiac. And that reality influences what consumers ultimately buy and what they don’t. It’s imperative, therefore, that employers do whatever they can to ensure accuracy in the opinions expressed about them online. The goal is not to get into a debate, but rather, to offer the employer’s side of the story whenever inaccurate or negative comments are posted online about the employer on blogs and at sites such as F_ _kedCompany.com and Vault.com.

Today, out-selling the competition for “A” level performers is a core competency of business success. That’s not hyperbole; it’s reality. It is the only way we recruiters can win the War for the Best Talent, and our victory is the only way our employers can win the War for a Big Bottom Line.

Peter Weddle is a recruiter, HR consultant and business CEO turned author and commentator. Described by The Washington Post as "... a man filled with ingenious ideas," he has earned an international reputation, pioneering such concepts as Human Capital, Career Fitness and the Internet as a resource for recruiting and HR management. He has authored seven books, edited six others and published dozens of articles in professional and trade magazines. He writes a weekly column about online recruiting for CareerJournal.com from The Wall Street Journal and a monthly newsletter that is distributed worldwide. In addition, he oversees WEDDLE's Publications, the leading print publisher of newsletters, guides and directories about employment resources on the Internet. Known for their accuracy and usefulness, WEDDLE's publications have helped to put job seekers, recruiters and HR professionals on the Information Superhighway to success. Indeed, the American Staffing Association has called Peter Weddle the "Zagat" of the online employment industry. Visit www.weddles.com.

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