Alternative Revenue Sources for Recruiters

The recruitment business has always been somewhat cyclical. Like the stock market, there are bull markets for recruitment and bear markets for recruitment. Based on demographics, it looks to be a bull market well into the future, but certainly there will bumps in the road ahead.

Many small and mid-sized recruitment firms achieve nearly 100% of revenue from recruiting operations exclusively. While the market is hot now based on the sheer demand for recruitment, some firms are beginning to look for ways to smooth the peaks and valleys of a hot-then-cold market for recruitment. They are looking for alternative revenue sources for recruiters. Here are some ideas of services to offer that do not cycle directly with the need for talent and create an alternative revenue source.

• Retention Training. Evaluate the talent employers want to retain and create strategies to ensure the results desired.
• Interview Training. Many employers have little to no basis for behavioral-based interviewing or even asking legally acceptable questions of candidate. They require training.
• Reference Checks. There are providers that offer incentives for referrals. Victig is one example.
• Employee Satisfaction Benchmarking. Employers can be coached on surveys and other tools to evaluate where they stand with existing employees.
• Onboarding. Often critical to the short and long-term success of new hires.
• Candidate Preparation. This is always a fine line for recruiters. There are many services you can direct candidates to that pay a referral fee to you as the recruiter if you would rather not do this yourself.
• Position Description Writing. Your employer clients need this as you know. You have read the documents that make a fabulous job look miserable. Offer your consultation for a fee.
• Job Advertisement Creation and Consultation. Again, those closest to the situation see it less clearly. Job adverts are typically a mess with boring and irrelevant details.
• Candidate Attraction Consultation. Employers would benefit from having a discussion about this before the jobs pop open and need to be filled. This is about thinking long-term.
• Hiring Strategy Coaching. It is fair to say most employers do not have a strategy. They react and use your recruitment services to fulfill on that immediate need. Maybe you can change the terms of your engagement and move from reactionary to proactive with some strategy.
• Employment Branding. Companies always need help with their brand.
• Predictive Analysis Creation. Do your clients know what makes their top 5 sales people successful? Have they evaluated it and tested for it? Can you help them set that standard and then apply it in the process of hiring?
• Assessment and Appraisal Process Creation. How do your clients evaluate the talent they have?
• Social Media Strategy Consultation. Employers want to be active but many do not know how. Offer assistance on a consultative basis.
• Outplacement. Do your clients have people that need to be moved out? This is yet another revenue stream for you as a consultant.

All of these alternative revenue sources for recruiters will require and create a more entrenched relationship with your employer clients. These services can be done on an hourly basis, can be offered on a consulting fee basis, or flat fee-for-service option. Start small and start to build your skills around one of these, offering at a time and in a year you will have a model for delivery of these services to each and every client and prospect that you work with. It would be great to separate your recruitment firm from those that lack this full service capability.