Because of the present state of the economy due to the Covid-19 pandemic, where many clients are not actively hiring or seeking new employees, many recruiters feel as though they can’t do much regarding business development. But experienced recruiters know that just because clients don’t have a specific search for you, or they are on a hiring freeze, doesn’t mean it’s time to stop marketing.
This is where an MPC presentation can help, which is calling up a potential or existing client and telling them about a “Most Placeable Candidate” – someone you know would succeed and have a great impact on your client.
Clients don’t want to lose out on difference-makers who can make an immediate, positive impact on their team. And they especially don’t want their competitors to get that top talent.
Marketing MPCs is not a new process, and is very effective not only in an economic downturn, but anytime. By marketing a very strong candidate, it can “kick down the door” and allow you to engage with and develop a relationship with the key decision makers in the company.
This isn’t for any old candidate… this is for a candidate with a “Wow” factor. The MPC typically:
- Has a highly desired skill set and a track record of proven success
- May address diversity issues in companies
- Is marketable – realistic about their wants, open to looking and relocating, etc.
- Is ready to interview and reference-checked
- Is currently employed and not already passing their CV around to other recruiters/companies
Then, when you market an MPC, you have to make a presentation call… never just an email. You can utilize a tool like Lusha to find the contact info for the key decision makers and senior executives. When you present the candidate, don’t tell them who it is. For example, you can use the line “we’re working with an individual who is currently a sales director within one of your direct competitors” — that line alone will get their attention. Then give them a few bullet points about the candidate, utilizing the FAB (Features, Achievement, Benefit) approach to let them know how this candidate would help their team.
If you catch their attention and them interested, talk through with the senior executive what challenges they have in the business now, and where have they struggled to find skills and people. When you finish the call, you want that contact to remember you and call you in the future. Follow-up with an email with a bit more information about the MPC if there was interest… that way, they have your contact info.
However, in order to be successful in marketing MPCs, you must also gain the candidate’s trust. You need to build a great relationship with that candidate so they trust you to introduce them to clients and keep their search discreet. You don’t want to throw a candidate’s name around and alert the whole market that they are looking. You want to first ensure there is interest from the company before disclosing who your MPC is.
You need to know what the candidate is looking for – learn about what they desire in a company, and if there are any companies they want to avoid. If they only want to work for small start-ups, you don’t want to be marketing them to the Googles of the world. Once you know what the candidate is looking for, you must select the right companies to target and contact.
Even if you don’t place that specific candidate with the company, clients are sure to be impressed with the caliber of candidate you work with, thus increasing your credibility, which may help you secure a search assignment in the future.