Are your candidates not showing up?

How to avoid the new trend of being Ghosted by candidates

Imagine you’ve just spent months recruiting the perfect candidate. Their first day finally arrives … but they don’t. You’ve been ghosted. In case you’re not sure what “ghosting” means, Urban Dictionary has the answer:

And while it may sound like something that’s only relevant for dating or friendships, ghosting has crept into the employer/employee relationship as well. Companies across the United States are noticing promising candidates vanishing and employees walking out and never coming back. And this phenomenon is on the rise.

In the current talent market, candidates can afford to be picky about the opportunities they pursue, which means more work for you to make sure they show up on day one and stick around. 

But you needn’t be spooked by ghosts. To keep candidates engaged and interested at every stage of the hiring process, here are a few simple steps you can take:

1. The application process: keep candidates informed about where they stand to improve their experience

For candidates actively looking for a new job, there’s no shortage of opportunities out there right now. So if candidates apply to your company and don’t hear anything for weeks or months, chances are they’ll simply give up and look elsewhere.

Keeping candidates in the loop can be time-consuming, especially when you’ve got a lot of people to get back to. Luckily, you don’t have to write every response manually if you have an ATS. Sending automatic responses through your ATS is a simple fix to the application black hole. Even a short message lets candidates know their application has been received and you’re on the case. If possible, give them a rough time frame for the review process, inform them about next steps, and notify them if their application wasn’t successful. Even bad news is better than no news at all.

2. The initial outreach: if a candidate goes quiet, send a friendly, nonsalesy follow-up

If you’ve been courting a candidate through LinkedIn or email, you may be disappointed if, out of the blue, they stop replying. But don’t let their silence discourage you. The best candidates are fielding a lot of messages from recruiters, so it’s possible they’re swamped and they’ve just forgotten to respond.

Give them a reason to remember you. Sending a quick follow-up message never hurts, especially if it sounds friendly and organic. This isn’t the time for a pushy sales pitch.

3. The interview stage: shift the conversation from the company to the candidate’s goals

The interview is your best opportunity to find out if the candidate is a good fit for the role. But it’s also a chance for the candidate to decide if the role and company are a good fit for them. If they don’t have a feeling for that by the time you show them out, they may be less open to considering an offer.

By making your interviews less about the company’s goals and more about the candidate’s personal and professional development, you’re showing that you’re invested in their future. In turn, they’ll be more invested in your company, reducing the likelihood that they’ll leave the interview and never be heard from again.

4. The offer phase: establish a clear timeline to let candidates know when they’ll hear back from you

When the final interview is over, you’re faced with the task of choosing the best fit. After all that effort, this would be the worst time for your top candidate to ghost you.

The best way to avoid it is simple. Don’t ghost them first.

Establishing a clear timeline is vital at this stage. If you plan to have a final answer for your candidates within five days, tell them that immediately after the interview and then stay true to your word. If they’re invested in the role and know when they’ll hear back from you, they’re less likely to accept another offer first.

Candidates will appreciate knowing that you haven’t forgotten about them. If you just go silent, on the other hand, you can’t be surprised when candidates respond in kind when you finally reach out with an offer.

5. The first day and beyond: ensure your employer brand delivers on its promise

People sometimes ghost on jobs because it’s easier than having an awkward conversation about a change of heart. And often those second thoughts arise because the job or company didn’t live up to the expectations of the new hire.

Be honest about possible downsides of the job and tell candidates how your company is striving to improve. If your employer brand is transparent and accurate, your new hire will certainly be excited for their first day — and probably for most of the days that follow.

Ghosting goes both ways: keep candidates as informed as you want to be

Communication is a two-way street. While you’d never intentionally ghost a candidate, it is easy to do inadvertently when you’re busy. The more you communicate with candidates, the more they’ll communicate with you.

With Plooral you can keep an open channel of communication through our Email Campaigns and Direct Messages! The candidate receives and can keep track of everything through our Plooral App, making the communication instant and direct!

You can use these and many other advantages by including Plooral in your Recruiting Process. Facilitate and streamline your recruiting process!