What is Attraction-Based Recruiting?

There are three parts to attraction-based recruiting.

 

First, attraction-based recruiting is appealing to the candidate’s unique hot buttons or pain points, and telling and positioning your story in a way that inspires and excites someone you are recruiting. It’s putting yourself in their shoes and thinking, “What would I be looking for in a new group if I were looking for a new position? What would I want?” It’s telling your company’s story in a way that hits on as many of what are known as the Five Prime Motivators as possible.

The Five Prime Motivators are those hot buttons and pain points that candidates look for and carry with them from one place of employment to another. They were determined by our coach, Greg Doersching, and are outlined below:

1. Work-life balance. Having more time with loved ones.
2. This position sounds prestigious. I would be proud to tell others what I do, and I am good at this.
3. The position offers a way to advance skills and improve career trajectory.
4. Proximity to loved ones. They want to be close to.
5. Typically, people make a 5–10 percent increase in base salary when they take a new position. If they stay in their current job, on average people received a 2–3 percent increase each year.

 

Attraction-based recruiting is listening closely to why candidates are looking for a new position and what they see in your opportunity—and selling to that. You will only be able to get these truths from your recruit if they can let their guard down enough to trust you. Build rapport so that they know you care about them more than you care about what they can do for you. They will open up to you and be candid about why they are seeking a new position and what makes your position attractive.

Attraction-based recruiting is courting candidates and recruiting them based on the information they have given you. It shows that you are really listening and you really care, and people want to join organizations where leadership cares about them and hears them. People respond more openly to others when they can tell that you care.

Attraction-based recruiting draws in candidates by telling your company’s unique story. Growth, mentorship, voice, purpose— these are the qualities that motivate today’s future workforce. Attraction-based recruiting gives these candidates a clear picture  of your  company’s  past  and  present,   and outlines their place  and  purpose  in its forward trajectory. Candidates are attracted to winning organizations, especially when they can envision their role in your company’s success.

The second part to attraction-based recruiting is building a relationship and a connection. Put yourself out there. No one cares what you have to say unless they first know that you care about them. The more you connect with the candidate and build a relationship during the recruiting process, the much more likely they are to pick your company over another. At the end of the recruiting process, they are going to ask themselves, “Who wants me more and who cares about me more?”

Third, attraction-based recruiting is painting the picture to the candidate of where you see them going in your organization. Tell them specifically where you see them going and what role you see them playing in five to ten years. This will motivate someone more than you can imagine, plus, it shows you care enough and have enough foresight to look after their future, which no one else is doing that for them—almost guaranteed.

The big premise here is that people want to join what they perceive to be winning teams.

Everybody wants to be a part of a winning team, especially the younger workforce. ftey want to get behind a grand purpose, something bigger than themselves. What is attractive to this younger workforce is seeing that a company is going in some really cool direction and they’re doing some really big things.

I learned this when I was a baseball coach. I coached at San Francisco State University and Charleston Southern University, both smaller schools. When we were recruiting athletes that we wanted to play on our team, I found that nine out of ten times they always chose the bigger school with the bigger name in the bigger conference. They chose the Pac-12 school or the SEC school—even though they knew they weren’t going to play in the games right away. ftey might sit on the bench for two or three years, whereas at our school they could start as a freshman and make a big impact right then. And yet, nine out of ten would choose the bigger school, like Stanford, University of Texas or University of Florida. Why? Because of the image and the perception of being on a winning team.

It’s human nature to want to join the team with the bigger and better image. That’s why, in business, telling your story is so important. Not only where you are now, but also where you came from and where you’re going. More importantly, how are you winning? What are the metrics that show how you’re winning? What is uncommon about you? What is your vision for continued winning in the future?

Attraction is the key to recruiting, especially with the future workforce.