You Want More Business? So Get on the Phone!

James Caan, multi-millionaire, Dragon, founder of the Alexander Mann Group was asked, “How can I get my consultants to be more productive?” His reply,”Tell them to get on the f***ing phone.”

That’s how he built his business in 1985, cold-calling prospects from a tiny office in Pall Mall. Would that still work today? James says so, I agree. But I know some people will think:

‘The world’s changed Mark. We use social media now.’ And sure enough, the young person without a smart phone and an agile thumb is a rare bird.

But what is all that digital activity achieving? Lots of entertainment certainly, but imagine for a moment, hypothetically, that your sales results are unimpressive and you’d like the kudos and pay which comes from being a star producer, what are you going to do, type faster?

No amigos, time for a cold reality shower – you will never close a recruitment deal with an email, you have to talk to the client.

Emails, texts, browsing are distracting you from what actually gets deals closed.

Now don’t go thinking that I don’t know anything about social media, I have fully considered the advantages and today use and teach methods which bring in warm leads. But outbound calling on the telephone remains the most powerful tool we have.

Social Media may be good for branding and visibility, but if you are sending tweets and hoping that the phone is going to ring, you are deluded. It won’t happen often enough for you to build a profitable business.

But you’ve seen trainers promoting the idea, ‘Cold-calling is dead.’

That’s a seductive pitch; working smart not hard. Only what they don’t tell you is that it takes a lot of time / effort / energy / trial and error to set their system up. In reality it’s not going to put food on the table or pay your mortgage for a number of months. Even then you will need to supplement it with the telephone.

Telephone prospecting is never going to be popular, I won’t claim otherwise, but it works. The reason is based on a fundamental; the human animal is strongly influenced by speech framed in well chosen words. Throughout history oratory is the tool leaders have used to motivate people facing great challenges. But your task is easy, all you have to do is to get a prospect to say, ‘Come and see me.’

So if it’s that good why would people do everything they can to avoid cold-calling? Again the answer lies within our DNA, we’re afraid of rejection, failure, looking stupid to our peers or our prospects. We fear saying the wrong thing, mucking it up, not knowing what to say or how to counter objections.

There is a cure for this and if you have ever stood on a high diving board, looked down and hesitated to take the plunge, you will know what it is.

Just do it.

… and ignore the critical voice inside your head, the one telling you: “cold calling doesn’t work, people won’t want to talk to me, I’m rubbish at business development, this is a waste of time.”

Recognize these beliefs for what they really are: excuses. Excuses which are not serving you. Excuses which keep you playing small. Excuses which limit what you can achieve. Excuses which shut down your potential. Excuses which stop you from taking action. Excuses which prevent you from doing what it takes to reach your goals. Excuses which keep you from earning the income you desire.

Are you going to accept those lame excuses? Are you doing to retreat from the edge of the diving board, and climb down feeling shabby? Of course not!

So man up, and just do it.

Deal with the temptation to procrastinate. Don’t put off making a start by tidying your desk, chatting to colleagues, or looking in the fridge for the last slice of pizza. And strictly avoid the worst of all temptations, email.

When you start your day, don’t even look at your inbox. Pick up the phone and start dialling. Make it your first task. Call new prospects, introduce yourself, find out what they might require.

What’s the worst that can happen? Supposing a prospect says, “We aren’t interested at the moment,” could you manage politely to reply ‘Thank you, have a nice day?’

When you make an active sales approach to prospects, there is only a limited range of possible outcomes. They range from, ‘No we aren’t interested and never will be’ (only that may not be true) through to the other extreme, ‘We need someone right now, when can you come and see me?’ Typical responses will be somewhere between the ends of this spectrum and that is where most business is to be found.

To make these calls you need just a phone and mental energy, no fancy hardware or apps, just sufficient motivation.

Do your prospecting when you are fresh and have the most energy. That won’t be if you have been putting it off for most of the day, knowing you have the task still hanging over you.

Once you have made a decent number of calls and picked up a lead or two, you will feel good about yourself. The hardest (and most productive) part of the day is dealt with so now you can get to the lower priorities, which include your emails.

Regardless of whether you prefer it or the client prefers it, you are not going to close sales by email.

So get on the freaking phone.

For More Info: http://recruitmentcoach.com/

Harnessing the Power of Testimonials, Part 1

Do you ask your clients for testimonials?

Sure you might receive a few unsolicited testimonials.  That’s nice when it happens.  But do you actively solicit them from every client you place with?

As a tactic for winning new business, client testimonials are deceptively simple.  But don’t underestimate the impact they can have on your business.


Here are 7 reasons why you need to start asking all your clients for testimonials:

1. Testimonials let your clients do the selling for you!  Third party testimony has far more impact than any sales pitch.  Why?  It’s more believable.  People are more inclined to believe what others say about you than what you say about yourself.
2. You gain instant credibility.  Especially if you have testimonials from big companies or well known industry figures.  If your referees are credible, you gain credibility by association.
3. You harness the power of “Social Proof.”   People tend to follow the majority and do what they see others doing.   If you’ve got lots of testimonials, people feel safe in assuming that you’ll do a good job.
4. When a client writes you a testimonial, they are re-selling themselves on your service!  They are reminding themselves why they like dealing with you, which could lead to stronger relationships and more repeat business.
5. You move them up the relationship ladder from “client” to “advocate.”  When a client endorses your services in writing, they are making a psychological commitment to recommend you to others.
6. It feels fantastic to get a testimonial!   And when you feel great about yourself, you’re more likely to put in your best performance.
7. The most important – but least understood – benefit of testimonials is that they reinforce your belief in yourself and the value you provide to clients/candidates.  Even if your prospects don’t read your testimonials, you will be a more confident salesperson because YOU have read them.

So how do you get testimonials?  You guessed it … just ask!

Not sometimes, EVERY time. Make it a habit to ask every client you place with for a testimonial.  And you can ask your placed candidates for testimonials too!

It’s so easy and the rewards are so great, it amazes me that more people don’t solicit client testimonials.  However the fact that few recruiters do it creates an opportunity for you to get an edge on the competition!

Next week, in Part 2 of this article, we’ll be looking at 9 secrets for getting really impressive testimonials.

In the meantime, here’s your homework…

Assuming you agree that getting client testimonials is a good idea, why not get started today?  Call at least one client and ask for a testimonial.  Go ahead!  It’s really not difficult, and I promise you’ll get a buzz when that testimonial arrives in your inbox!


For More info: http://recruitmentcoach.com/

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For More Info: http://recruitmentcoach.com/

Banish Distractions With The Pomodoro Technique

Want to avoid distractions and be more productive?  Here’s a simple yet effective way to stay focused and get more done each day.

Recently voted as the most popular productivity hack, the Pomodoro Technique is a time management philosophy that helps people to maximize their productivity while avoiding burnout.  It enables them to manage the inevitable distractions of the working day and focus on the task at hand.

Created in the 1980s by Italian entrepreneur and software developer Francesco Cirillo, the concept behind the process is simple:

You use a count-down timer and assign 25 minutes to the completion of a certain task. That period of time is called a “Pomodoro” (named after the tomato-shaped timer that Cirillo used). You can use any timer you like, from a basic kitchen timer to an app on your mobile phone.

Simply set the timer and get to work. During your Pomodoro, you should not allow yourself to be distracted from your task.  Once the 25 minutes is complete you make a note in order to track how many Pomodoros you have successfully completed.  Then follows a compulsory five-minute break to refresh mind and body. If you happen to be distracted during a Pomodoro, then you don’t get to press “pause” — the Pomodoro ends there, and you have to start a new one later.

This working in focused sprints may seem a little inflexible to some people, but if done properly, it empowers an individual to be in control of their day rather than their day being in control of them.

Have you ever noticed that at the start of the working day, it seems that you have ample time to achieve all your objectives, but when it is time to go home you often wonder why you haven’t achieved more?  The Pomodoro Technique is a great tool for becoming much more accountable as to how you’re using your time and what you’re actually achieving.

I personally find that being aware of the timer ticking down really helps to focus the mind.  The effect is quite remarkable in terms of increasing your concentration while not allowing yourself to get distracted.  The subtle pressure of seeing the seconds disappear can often bring out the best in people.

The other benefit of this technique is that it allows you to work with higher intensity while staying fresh throughout the day.  The 5-minute breaks every 25 minutes allow you to relax, take a walk around the office, call a friend or watch a motivational or funny video on YouTube. Your mind switches off from work as you are giving it permission to do so. Every 4 Pomodoros it is suggested that you have a 20-minute break, just enough for a stroll outside or a bite to eat.

You won’t always be able to complete a full Pomodoro.  Some surprizes and genuinely urgent or business critical interruptions are unavoidable.  However, the end goal is to complete as many Pomodoros as possible. You will be surprised at how many you can do if you are truly focused.  You can even compete with your colleagues to see who can do the most in a day, and who has the highest average number of completed Pomodoros per day.  Soon the office becomes a hive of productivity.

For the recruiters who I train and coach, this increased awareness of, and accountability for, how they’re spending their time can pay big dividends.  It helps them to focus more of their time on those activities that bring them closer to the next placement.  For example, they can allocate blocks of time for contacting clients or candidates, and get far more calls done by using this technique.  The Pomodoro Technique could be applied to social media, which can be a major source of distraction and drain on productivity if it’s not used efficiently.

For me, the most important aspect in this is purely psychological. You set yourself a task every 25 minutes, and as long as it’s realistic, there is no reason why you shouldn’t accomplish it. That sense of achievement, every 25 minutes is addictive.  Go ahead and try the Pomodoro Technique for yourself.  You’ll be amazed how great you feel when you get your day (and your life) back under your control!

For More Info: http://recruitmentcoach.com/

Using Google Alerts to Spy On Your Clients and Competitors

Here’s a really cool idea from those smart people at Google. It’s called Google Alerts.

According to Google, “Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results based on your choice of query or topic.” If you don’t already use Google Alerts, you need to check it out today: http://www.google.com/alerts.

Basically, you tell Google Alerts which topics / search terms you want it to monitor. Every time your keyword is mentioned on the web (including blogs, videos, groups and news) then you get an email from Google with a link to the relevant webpage.

I personally use Google Alerts to:

• See what my competitors are doing
• Stay current on my industry news and gossip
• Keep track of my clients’ activities
• Pick up new leads and gather market intelligence
• See who’s talking about ME, and what they’re saying!

It’s extremely fast and easy to do, and you can track as many keywords as you want – automatically. Here are some suggested search terms to get you started:

1.  Enter your own name and/or company name as a search term.
2.  Enter all your competitors and key clients
3.  Enter any specific keywords that relate to what you do. E.g. mine are “recruiter training” and “recruitment training.”

You can even select how often you want to receive alerts: as it happens, once a day, or once a week. Again the link is: http://www.google.com/alerts.

With Google Alerts, you’ll always be “in the know” and can impress clients and candidates with your market knowledge. In the recruitment game, information is power and even a slight advantage is worth having.
See more at: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com/

3 Reasons Why I Love Recruitment

You have to love being a recruiter. Otherwise you wouldn’t last very long!

Let’s face it — recruitment is not as glamorous as it looks. With all the frustration, knock-backs, disappointments, and the constant pressure to perform, it can be pretty tough. Recruitment has often been described as an emotional rollercoaster. One minute you’re jumping for joy, the next minute you feel like you’ve been kicked in the groin.


So why on earth do you do it? Lots of reasons! Here are three good ones…

1. The Money

You’re motivated by money. It’s OK to admit it. The potential rewards in recruitment are phenomenal — top performing recruiters can earn more than doctors, lawyers and accountants. That’s a pretty big incentive, but the reality is that money is only part of the reason you love recruitment.

2. The Buzz

You’re addicted to the buzz. Recruiters run on a mixture of caffeine, adrenaline and endorphins. Think of it… The rush of persuading a new client to give you a job order. The excitement of finding the perfect candidate. The anticipation of booking the interview. The exhilaration of getting the offer. The joy of the candidate accepting the offer! The triumph of getting your commission cheque! Ever since your first taste of success, you’ve been hooked.

3. The People

You’re a “people person.” You get enormous satisfaction from helping others and building relationships. Recruitment really does give you the chance to make a difference. You help your clients to hire great people and grow their businesses. You help your candidates to find out about new opportunities and develop their careers. What we do has a positive impact on people’s lives! And that’s a cool feeling.

There are other reasons why you’re a recruiter. The desire for success, the variety of the work, the satisfaction of winning, the sense of significance, the feeling of contribution, being part of a team, the chance to make new contacts, the ability to determine your own income and take control of your own destiny.
Of course not every recruiter loves recruitment. And nobody loves it all the time — especially not in the moment your candidate has accepted a counter offer or walked off the job on the first day! But the fact remains that you can’t become a Big Biller without feeling passionate about what you.

So why do YOU love being a recruiter? Why have you chosen this profession? How does your success in this business enable you to realize your dreams, goals and desires? By asking yourself these questions every day, reminding yourself of the bigger picture, you’ll develop the determination and mental toughness to deal with any challenge that comes your way.

See more at: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com/3-reasons-why-i-love-recruitment/

The 3 Ways to Differentiate Yourself from the Competition

Most recruiters are desperate for new business right now, which means clients are inundated with calls. As a result, they’re becoming more resistant and less receptive to marketing calls. In order to survive and thrive in the current climate, you need to find ways to differentiate yourself from the competition.

Your goal is for the client to perceive you as the recruiter of choice within your market niche. I believe you have three chances to achieve that goal.

1. Short Term — Make a Positive Impression on the First Call 

The first opportunity to differentiate is the very first time you contact a prospect. Whether your initial communication is a phone call, letter or email, this is your one and only chance to make a positive first impression.

 2. Medium Term — Build Rapport by Following-up on a Consistent Basis 

The second opportunity to differentiate is the way you follow up. After the first contact, every subsequent communication is a follow up.

Having an effective process for following up with your clients and prospects consistently is even more important than having a great call opening. It’s more difficult to differentiate yourself in the first call because you can be the best sales person in the world, but if you are the twentieth person who has called them that day, they may not be in the most receptive frame of mind!

However, here is the “hidden” opportunity: 99 percent of sales people and recruiters are poor at following up. And the follow up is the key to building a relationship. People buy from people they know, like and trust. Especially in a client driven market, they are going to choose the person or the company they have a relationship with. So if you are better at following up, you are going to build a better relationship.

In addition, if you rely on the first contact, you only have one chance to distinguish yourselves from your competitors. But by following up consistently, you have multiple, ongoing opportunities to differentiate.

 3. Longer Term — Develop a Relationship by Delivering Exceptional Service

The third opportunity to differentiate and that is in the service delivery. This is probably our most important chance to differentiate when the client says “yes” and gives you an opportunity to fill a job. Now you can differentiate in several ways:

•  • Your professionalism when writing the job order • How rapidly you respond with relevant candidates 
• • The value that you add to the client’s hiring process — e.g. the advice, expertise and market knowledge that you bring to bear 
• • How confident and competent you are at managing the entire placements process 
• • How much the client enjoys the experience of working with you 
• • Most importantly — by getting results and filling the job!

Next week, we’re going to go into detail about how to open the call in a way that creates an impact and leads to a productive conversation. In the meantime, remember that even if the first call doesn’t go as well as you would have liked, don’t give up! You still have many more chances to differentiate.

See more at: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com/

8 Reasons for Not Accepting a Counter Offer

   1.  Statistics show that if you accept a counter offer, it is highly probably that you will be back on the job market within 6 months.

    2. The underlying reasons that caused you to consider a change are likely to repeat themselves in the future.

    3. What kind of company waits until you threaten to resign before they agree to pay you what you’re worth?

   4. Where is the money for the counter offer coming from? Could it just be an advance on your next rise? Are you ever likely to get another rise again?

5. Your employer is now aware that you are unhappy. From this day on, your loyalty will always be in question.

6. When promotion time comes around, your employer will remember who was loyal, and who was not.

7. When times get tough and your employer makes cutbacks, the people with inflated salaries and a perceived lack of commitment will be the first to go.

8. Your company is likely to being looking for your replacement immediately, in case you decide to resign again.

About the Author

Mark Whitby is the leading sales performance coach to the UK recruitment industry. He’s the best selling author of 12 audio training CDs, and delivers in-house recruitment training seminars throughout the UK and Europe.

Mark has over 12 years experience of sales, marketing and business development in both the UK and North America. Since 1997 he has recruited and trained hundreds of salespeople from trainee to director level. His clients range from small independent recruitment companies to some of the biggest names in the recruitment industry.

Over 83% of Mark’s revenue comes from repeat business. That’s because he gets measurable results for his clients in the form of increased sales, higher profits, improved staff motivation and retention. And he’s the only recruitment trainer who offers a money back guarantee.

Mark is the creator of Big Billers ClubTM – the world’s first monthly coaching programme for recruitment professionals. Every month hundreds of recruiters dial into his popular teleconference training sessions from the convenience of their own office.

Mark also provides a telephone mentoring service for owner/managers of recruitment companies who want to “work less and make more.”

For a F.REE Audio Seminar called: How to Overcome Fee Objections: 23 Great Answers for when Your Client says ‘You’re too Expensive’ visit: www.RecruitmentCoach.com

For more information about training and coaching, please call Mark’s personal assistant Julie today on 0800 019 8899. International enquires dial +44 131 664 8064.

The 10 Characteristics of a Qualified Vacancy

• You have taken a detailed job order.
• Terms of business have been agreed, ideally at full fee!
• You will get a reasonable reward (fee value) for the time & effort required.
• The vacancy exists, and has been signed off.
• The vacancy is URGENT.
• The candidate exists – i.e. the client has realistic expectations.
• You have decision-maker contact
• Co-operative employer – will return your calls, provide good feedback,
• interview your candidates, etc.
• Client is committed to the process, and to YOU. Preferably this involves limiting the competition, e.g. exclusivity, head start on the competition,
• agreed interview dates prior to sending CVs, etc.
• Mutual trust and respect.

Comments:

• These 10 characteristics set the conditions for success in your favour and maximize your chances of filling the position. Evaluate every vacancy against the above checklist. If it does not meet your criteria, contact the client and address any deficiencies prior to commencing work on the assignment.
• If you are unable to resolve any of these issues to your satisfaction, you need to ask yourself “is this project worth working on?” Your time may be better spent finding another vacancy to work on.
• Ideally the Job Order should be taken face to face. This gives you the greatest opportunity to influence the above characteristics.

About the Author
Mark Whitby is the leading sales performance coach to the UK recruitment industry. He’s the best selling author of 12 audio training CDs, and delivers in-house recruitment training seminars throughout the UK and Europe.

Mark has over 12 years experience of sales, marketing and business development in both the UK and North America. Since 1997 he has recruited and trained hundreds of salespeople from trainee to director level. His clients range from small independent recruitment companies to some of the biggest names in the recruitment industry. Over 83% of Mark’s revenue comes from repeat business. That’s because he gets measurable results for his clients in the form of increased sales, higher profits, improved staff motivation and retention. And he’s the only recruitment trainer who offers a money back guarantee.

Mark is the creator of Big Billers ClubTM – the world’s first monthly coaching programme for recruitment professionals. Every month hundreds of recruiters dial into his popular teleconference training sessions from the convenience of their own office. Mark also provides a telephone mentoring service for owner/managers of recruitment companies who want to “work less and make more.”
For a F.REE Audio Seminar called: How to Overcome Fee Objections: 23 Great Answers for when Your Client says ‘You’re too Expensive’ visit: www.RecruitmentCoach.com

For more information about training and coaching, please call Mark’s personal assistant Julie today on 0800 019 8899. International enquires dial +44 131 664 8064.

3 Tactics For Getting Past Voicemail and Reaching More Decision-Makers

Are your marketing and recruiting efforts being thwarted by voicemail?

Recruiters are finding it increasingly difficult to reach prospects by telephone. Some clients and candidates seem to leave their voicemail on permanently! Here are three tried and tested tactics to get past voicemail and have more conversations with decision makers.

1. Don’t leave a message until you’ve called at least 3 times.

Leaving a voicemail message should be a method of last resort. It’s preferable to simply keep calling back because then you retain control of the process. Once you leave a message, the ball is in their court and they may not call you back. Or worse, they may avoid your calls in the future! So try calling back several times at different times of day before leaving a message.

2. Don’t hang up too soon!

Upon reaching voicemail, don’t hang up. Listen carefully to the message for important information – such as your prospect’s mobile phone number, and clues about their communication style.

Then hit “0” to go back to reception and see if you can locate the person you want to contact, or at least gain more information. Say: “Can you please help me? I’m trying to reach Bob, but I keep getting his voicemail. Do you happen to know if he’s in the office today and if not when he’s due back?”

• If Bob’s on holiday, find out when he’ll be back. Set a reminder to call him back 2 days after he returns, and make a note to ask him about his holiday.
• If Bob’s in a meeting, find out when it’s due to finish. Assuming the meeting finishes at 4pm, you would leave this message: “Please tell him that Mark Whitby called and I’ll try him again after 4pm.” Decline to leave your telephone number. Then when you call back, if you’re asked what the call is regarding you can say “He’s expecting my call.”
• If Bob’s stepped away from his desk, ask for him to be paged. (Provided you’ve got a valid reason for calling and a strong call opening for when Bob finally comes to the phone!)
• If Bob’s working remotely ask for his mobile phone number. You might only get it 10-20% of the time, but if you don’t ask, you don’t get!
• If the receptionist doesn’t know Bob’s whereabouts, ask to be put through to somebody else in Bob’s department who might know where he is.

Think about it this way. How important is it that you speak to Bob? If you have something that could benefit Bob, surely that’s important enough that you should make every reasonable effort to contact him. If you don’t really consider this to be an important call, then you probably shouldn’t be calling him in the first place!

3. Do use a script – but don’t give a sales pitch

Don’t wait until the “beep” to think of what you want to say! You’ve got one shot to nail this so have your voicemail script ready before you place the call.

Having said that, don’t promote the voicemail box to the role of sales representative. Your message should have only one objective – to get a return call. Curiosity is a powerful motivator and you’re more likely to get a call back if you don’t leave a detailed message. For example:

“Hi Bob, this is Mark Whitby calling at 10.30 on Friday. Please call me when you get this message on 0131 664 8064. I look forward to hearing from you.”

“Hi Bob, this is Mark Whitby. I have reason to believe you might be able to help me with a project I’m working on and I’d like to ask you a couple of quick questions. Please call me back on 0131 664 8064.

You want to create a sense of intrigue. If you tell them everything they need to know (“I’m a recruiter and I’ve got an opportunity that might be of interest to you”) then they have no reason to call you back.

The voicemail “game” is not one of pure chance. Winning this game involves a combination of both luck and skill. You can’t control when your prospects schedule meetings or take their lunch. However by adopting the right mindset, and refining your technique, you can significantly improve your odds of success.
See more at: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com/

How to Increase Your Sales Activity

Do you ever procrastinate when it comes to prospecting? I know I certainly do. It’s human nature to avoid tasks that we find uncomfortable.

Yet most recruiters would agree that developing new business is absolutely essential for success in recruitment, especially in the current climate. So how can we get ourselves to pick up the phone and make those marketing calls consistently, instead of waiting until we’re in the mood (which is never)?

The solution is to make prospecting part of your daily routine; something you do habitually, without hesitation.

The Power of a Standing Appointment

Cold calling is like going to the gym — short-term pain for long term gain! I find that the longer it’s been since my last workout, the harder it is to get back into the gym. On the other hand, when you’re in the habit of exercising regularly, the whole process feels natural and even enjoyable.

The key is sticking to a routine — exercising at the same time, on the same days, every week. Many people prefer to exercise in the morning, because they start the day feeling great and there’s less chance of skipping their workout if they get “too busy” later!

Similarly, we can defeat procrastination by setting a “standing appointment” for telephone selling. In other words, set yourself specific time slots for making business development calls. By locking those core calling times into your diary, you remove the decision of “if/when” to call and are therefore less prone to procrastination.

10 before 10:00

Here’s a simple, yet effective formula that has worked well for me and my coaching clients. It’s called “10 before 10:00″ and here’s how it works…

1. Set yourself the goal of reaching 10 prospects before 10:00am every single day.
2. Schedule this activity in your calendar as a recurring appointment.
3. Start dialling at 8.30am (or 9:00am at the latest) and stay on the phone until you reach 10 prospects or until you get a qualified job order.
4. The only calls that count are conversations with decision-makers. Voicemail messages don’t count!
5. Remove all distractions. Turn off your email and screen your mobile phone calls mercilessly. Unless the call is critical for closing a deal, let it go to voicemail.
6. Don’t replace the handset between calls, just disconnect and dial the next number. Keep up the intensity! Don’t update your database in-between calls, learn to type and talk at the same time. And save sending follow-up emails until you’ve finished all your calls.
7. You’ll need to plan your calls the night before, and have the names and numbers of 25-30 prospects to phone because you’ll only reach 30-40% of the people on your list.
8. Start with your hottest leads (companies that are currently hiring) and/or MPC calls (selling-in your “most placeable candidates”). Then move to call-backs and cold-calls.
9. Don’t just go through the motions — give every call your full effort.

Of course, if your market is extremely candidate-driven, and you’re lucky enough to have more job orders than you can handle, then you can adapt the “10 before 10:00am” formula and make recruiting calls instead.

Imagine how fantastic you’ll feel knowing that by 10:00am you’ve already achieved so much! This simple little idea of “10 before 10:00″ has helped me enormously in my own business. I challenge you to try it for yourself starting today and judge the results for yourself. If you stick to it for the next 2-3 weeks, I’m confident that you’ll experience a big boost in productivity and motivation.

For More Info: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com

Are Recruiters a Necessary Evil?

You’ve probably heard the expression “necessary evil.” Usually it applies to something unpleasant that we do not like but are forced to accept in order to achieve a particular objective. Taxes, for example.

Recently however, I heard this idiom applied to recruitment consultants. Not by a client or candidate, but by a recruiter! Even worse, he was a team leader.

Let’s examine this statement for a moment.

 

Are we “necessary”? The fact is that when it comes to recruiting, clients have a lot of options:

1. They could head-hunt candidates for themselves. Of course, why would the client take time away from what they’re good at to spend time on something in which they have no training, experience or aptitude?
2. They could advertise on job boards. Assuming they know where to advertise, and are able to write good ad copy, they then have to sift through an inbox full of resumes — most of which are unsuitable. Oh, and they’ll have to pay full rate card for the advert.
3. They could search for resumes on job boards and call candidates directly. Assuming they’re willing make the investment of time and money, what would they say? Are they able to qualify candidates effectively? Do they know how to sell an opportunity? Do they know how to turn a “not interested” into 2-3 candidate referrals?
4. They could advertise the job on their own website. But will they generate sufficient traffic to get a decent response? Even if their company is well known and well regarded, they’re only attracting active job seekers. What about the great candidates who are not looking a job?
5. Advertise in local, regional, national or trade press. After shelling out thousands of dollars/pounds all they get is one day (or one week) of exposure with no guarantee of success. And they still have to do all the work themselves!
6. Word of mouth. They could conceivably find the perfect candidate by networking with their industry contacts, including clients, suppliers and employees. But then again, they might not.

It seems that clients do have several alternatives when it comes to recruiting staff. Therefore it would inaccurate to say that we’re necessary to the process.

On the other hand, there are obvious benefits to outsourcing all this work to a competent recruiter:

• We save our clients a lot of time, hassle and money.

• We work very hard to find candidates who fit our clients’ job role and company culture.

• We promote their employer brand and actively sell their jobs in the marketplace.

• We can produce better quality shortlists, faster than they can do it themselves.

• We manage the whole process and often have a higher acceptance rate than offers made directly by the employer.

• We usually take all the risk and the client only pays if we produce results!

It seems to me that we provide tremendous value to our clients and candidates, and the fee we charge is worth every penny!

Now let’s look at the second part of this expression, the part about being “evil.” Are recruiters evil?

Well let’s see…We help our candidates to improve their careers. We help our clients to grow their business and hire great people. I’m having trouble seeing where the “evil” part comes in!

So coming back to our cynical team leader who thinks “recruiters are a necessary evil”…

How does this bizarre idea (also known as a limiting belief) affect his performance?

• Does he perform to his full potential?

• Is he an obvious choice for future promotion?

• Is he a great role model for his team members?

• How do his beliefs affect his client/candidate relationships?

• What about his job satisfaction?

• How about his overall sense of fulfillment, achievement, happiness?

Even without knowing this individual, I bet you can answer the above questions accurately.

We need to be very careful when we come into contact with other people’s beliefs which ones we let in, and especially which ones we choose to accept.

Next time you have a negative thought, or hear something negative from a colleague, client, candidate, or manager ask yourself the following questions:

“Is that really true?”
“Where does that idea come from?”
“How credible is the source of that idea?”
“What evidence is that assumption based on?”
“If I adopt that idea, will it help me or hinder me?”
“Is that a thought that a big biller would think?
“If not, what would a big biller think instead?

I’ve had the privilege of working with, training, coaching and interviewing hundreds of recruiters including some of the biggest billing recruiters in the country. I can tell you for a fact that 99.9% of them have incredibly positive belief systems. Big billers wouldn’t entertain this “necessary evil” notion for two seconds.

You can choose your beliefs. Make sure they’re the right ones. Which ones are the right ones? They’re the beliefs that help you to maximize your performance and feel good about yourself!.

About Author:-  “Mark Whitby — The Recruitment Coach — helps recruiters and recruiting firm owners to maximize their billings and business performance.  If you want to generate more clients, candidates and placements, get your FREE tips now at: http://www.RecruiterTrainingOnline.com.”

Why We Love Retained Search (And You Should Too!)

What percentage of your business is contingency, versus retained search?

If you answered “all” or “mostly contingency” then you’re missing out. Because for permanent, mid to senior level positions then there’s no reason you shouldn’t receive part of your fee up front.

It always surprises me how few recruiters pitch for a retainer. Usually it’s due to either a lack of awareness (“I never thought about it before”), a limiting belief (“I don’t think my clients would agree”) and/or lack of training (“I’ve never been taught how to do it”).

That’s a shame because for the recruiters who have the skills and confidence to win retained search assignments, the benefits are substantial:

• A retainer is the highest form of client commitment, and sends a clear signal that they’re serious about filling the position.
• More commitment usually leads to improved communication and co-operation throughout the placement process.  Many of the roadblocks that contingency recruiters come up against are removed.
• Your client works with you exclusively, so you eliminate the competition.
• Your chances of filling the job increase dramatically, so you’ll make more placements.
• More placements equal increased billings, so you make more money for the same (or less) effort.
• You avoid wasting time on dead-end searches, so you experience less frustration.
• Your clients perceive you as a true “consultant” rather than just a salesperson, so you get treated with more respect.
• Your clients are happy to receive and return your calls, so you waste less time chasing them for feedback.
• Your clients are receptive to your advice, so you gain greater influence over the hiring process.  That often translates into faster decisions and fewer deal-breakers.
• You can predict your pipeline with greater accuracy, achieve improved cash-flow, and feel a greater sense of security.
• Because you’re not in a “race” against other agencies, you can do the job properly – and enjoy greater job satisfaction. You have an opportunity to add real value to the recruitment process and feel an increased sense of pride in what you do.
• When you re-position yourself as a retained search consultant / firm, you gain prestige with both clients and candidates. The assumption is that if you’re a retained recruiter, you must be good.
• Once your clients are accustomed to working with you this way, you can win repeat business on a retained basis, again and again.
• The more retained business you win, the more retained opportunities you will attract. Thus begins a “Virtuous Cycle” of success which snowballs and gains momentum.
• Best of all, you are assured of getting paid. Even if the client cancels the order before you complete the assignment — for example due to a merger, acquisition or internal re-structure — then at least you will have received 1/3 (or more) of your fee, which is better than nothing!

Retained business can be extremely rewarding, not just financially but also in terms of achieving self-actualization. If you desire to serve your clients at the highest level, and receive the maximum client commitment in return, then resolve to increase percentage of retained work you win – starting now.

Let Mark train your team! He offers a course called “Secrets of Selling Retained Assignments.” A few of his clients have won their first retainer within 7 days of attending the course! For a free course outline, with no obligation, please contact us.

For More Info: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com

5 Steps to Writing Your Annual Business Plan – Quickly and Easily

Many recruiters don’t bother writing a business plan. They either think it’s too hard, or believe it’s not necessary unless you’re trying to secure funding. That’s a shame because writing a business plan need not be difficult or time-consuming. And whether you’re a recruiter, manager or recruitment business owner, planning has a tremendously positive impact on your performance and profits.

If you’re reading this article, I’m guessing that you’ve decided to write a business plan but are not sure exactly what to write or even where to start. In this article, I’m going to give you a step-by-step process to follow which makes writing your business plan a snap.

Step One is to consider the purpose and intended audience of your business plan. Who are you writing for? Why are you writing a business plan? What do you want your plan to achieve?

Step Two is to decide on the format of your business plan. For recruitment consultants and solo recruiters, a 2-3 page Word document is sufficient. For department managers or recruitment company directors, you might choose to create your business plan in presentation software such as PowerPoint or Keynote so you can easily communicate your plan with others.

Step Three is to brainstorm an outline by listing the main topics your plan will cover. For this stage I like to create a “mindmap” (spider diagram) using flipchart paper and pens. Alternatively you could use mindmapping software such as Mindjet MindManager or iMindMap. There’s nothing worse than staring at a blank page, so don’t worry about it being perfect. The goal at this stage is just to get all your ideas down on paper in whatever order they occur to you.You can edit the topic list later, and put it into the proper sequence. Give yourself a time limit, and if in doubt don’t deliberate – just write it down.

Here are some sample headings for a desk-level business plan:

• Financial Objectives
• Strategic Objectives
• SWOT Analysis
• Market Sector(s)
• Value Proposition / Differentiators
• Key Accounts (and Expected Value)
• Sales Plan – Activity Targets and Ratios
• Marketing Tactics
• Marketing Calendar
• Critical Success Factors (80/20 Rule)
• Minimum Acceptable Levels

If you’re a manager,you will also want to include:

• Vision
• Mission
• Sales Forecast (broken down by team and/or individual)
• Projected Headcount (by month for next 12 months)

Finally if you’re the owner/director, the financials are critically important.Your finance manager or accountant can help you with this part:

• Profit & Loss Forecast
• Cash Flow Forecast
• Balance Sheet

Step Four is to move the sections (or slides) around until you have them in a logical order. Group similar items together and decide which ones are the main headings and which are the subheads. You might find that some topics you wrote down are pretty similar, so delete the duplicates.

Step Five is to fill in the details underneath each heading. This is not a school project, so complete sentences are not required. Just write in bullet point format. And remember you can complete the sections in any order – that’s the beauty of a mindmap.And there you have it – you’re done!

Hopefully this article has demystified the business planning process for you, and inspired you to get started. Business planning doesn’t have to be painful – it can even be fun! Your first action item is to schedule time in your calendar to work on your business plan. Why not seize the day and do it right now!

Top Tip: If you’re better at talking than writing, then play to your strengths. Ask a colleague to interview you, using the business plan outline headings as questions. Record the conversation, and have it transcribed. Voilà! Instant business plan. If your business plan is for an external audience (e.g. lenders, investors), you could even hire a freelance editor on elance to polish the transcription into an extremely impressive business plan.

For More Info: http://www.recruitmentcoach.com