Build a Hiring Process Candidates Won't Abandon - ApplicantStack

Candidate drop-off is a problem that often gets overlooked in small business recruiting. Understanding this important metric can give you insight into a candidate’s application experience. It can also help you identify and make changes to keep them engaged and excited about working for your company.

Problems and Solutions in Small Business Recruiting

Prospective candidates form opinions about your company immediately when submitting an application. If you haven’t scrutinized your process recently, consider some of the following common friction points. These often cause job seekers to give up before completing their applications, along with some solutions:

Problem: Lengthy applications

Indeed found that 49 percent of applicants agree that employer applications are too long and complicated. Most people looking for work have developed a detailed resume, and requiring the same information in an application form can feel repetitive and tedious. Asking for personal information, such as a social security number, at the application stage can feel like a violation.

Solution: Require only the most important information on the initial application. Use a candidate’s resume and/or a cover letter to learn more about the details. Save detailed questions or sample work for the interview process.

Problem: Outdated technology

Modern job seekers often handle business on their phones. An application process that’s not mobile-friendly may prevent someone from filling it out at all. People looking for jobs often fill out multiple applications and lack patience with glitchy websites, slow page loads, or sites that don’t work across all browsers.

Solution: Create a minimal, mobile-friendly application with clear instructions and a user interface that’s easy to read. From the beginning, prepare the applicant for what’s coming: the number of questions, any required documents to upload, and the estimated time to fill out, and display a progress bar once they start.

Problem: Unclear next steps

As soon as they hit submit on an application, job seekers want to know where they stand. They want to know the next steps in the process, how long each step takes, and what time commitment may be required. Little to no initial feedback can feel like a form of rejection, and their experience can affect their enthusiasm about working for your company.

Solution: On the submission confirmation page, provide an estimate of the typical timeline for your hiring process. This helps job seekers evaluate whether the timeline is a good fit for their professional goals. It could read something like this: “Thank you for your application. We will review it within 7 business days and send a response. Our typical hiring process includes two rounds of video interviews, followed by a site visit. We try to accomplish those interviews within 4 to 6 weeks, but when the schedule varies, we will keep you informed at each step.” Send the same information via the candidate’s preferred communication type, email or text.

Problem: Slow follow-up

A variety of factors can contribute to delayed follow-up on applications in small businesses: understaffed and overworked hiring managers, an overwhelming number of applicants, technology that poorly organizes applicant data, and inefficient communication systems. Job seekers aren’t responsible for behind-the-scenes troubles, and yet they often suffer the consequences, leading to frustration and missed opportunities.

Solution: When you provide an estimated timeline for communication milestones, stick to it or send messages indicating any changes to the timeline. Use warm, professional language that conveys interest and encourages continued engagement. Indeed’s survey reports that over half of job seekers research the company before applying, including employee reviews and applicant experience. Prioritize communication, and your company will be known as one that didn’t keep job seekers in the dark about their place in the process.

How an Applicant Tracking System Can Help

Knowing how users experience your application process is the first step toward building something robust, intuitive, and streamlined on the back end. Recruit testers to walk through every step of the process, and report back on bottlenecks, errors, and frustrating experiences. You’ll discover which data points are most vital and use an applicant tracking system like ApplicantStack to seamlessly organize every potential candidate.

ApplicantStack features a customizable interface, where you create a profile for each candidate and a series of actionable steps to keep the process moving quickly and efficiently. Automation tools help you search for valuable keywords to categorize and prioritize the most promising candidates. Communication occurs within the software, with delivery to the candidate’s preferred format and clear cues for pending and completed tasks.

Even small corrections in your hiring process can make a big difference in avoiding abandoned applications. Adopting streamlining and automation tools can remove some of the burden from hiring managers, and recruit top talent to your business. Explore how ApplicantStack can transform the process and reduce candidate abandonment rates.