Recruiters have been far too slow to react to this.

Decades of kowtowing to ‘clients’ and focussing all metrics on ‘job orders in’ and ‘clients won‘ have taken the spotlight off the fundamental reality

A job is not worth working if it’s not fillable or the chances of a ‘fill’ are too low.

A client is not an asset if they don’t take advice. Especially in this market!

Not all job orders are equal.

Many recruiters are working harder and harder for less return.

Plenty of recruiters ‘live comfortably’ with the fact that they fill one job order out of every four they take.

I have written before on the absurd chaos that results when recruiting clients engage multiple recruiters to work on the same job-order.

[As a special bonus, see my 10 minutes video on selling exclusivity at the end of this piece.]

But now more than ever, we need to focus on a critical component of selling exclusivity.

We must work with clients who partner with us.

There are massive talent shortages. It takes extensive work to unearth a shortlist. We need time to do quality work.

So, we need time and client commitment.

And it starts with a clear understanding of why working with one quality recruiter on a specific brief is in the clients’ best interests.

Well, here are 15 excellent reasons for starters.

Be ready to engage your clients in this conversation with confidence and conviction.

(Watch the video for tips on how)

As long as you can deliver when they give you a chance.

• The Client is getting the Recruiter’s total commitment to filling their vacant role. Let’s not beat around the bush here. A client may think they get more effort from a recruiter when the role is in competition, but what really happens is a short burst of activity from the Recruiter. Then our interest wanes as we realise the Client is not committed, and we go and put our energy into clients who will work with us as partners.

• The responsibility for success is now shifted to the Recruiter. If the job is given to one Recruiter, retained or exclusive, we own the problem. The Client can focus on whatever it is they do for a living. This is an extremely powerful dynamic, and it is clearly in the client’s interests. [The only sleepless nights I have had in recruitment is when I sold a retainer process to a client and a week later I had no candidates. Then I was interviewing candidates on Sunday morning over coffee. No BS. Do you think I (or you) would do that for clients who gave us orders in competition with four other recruiters?]

• The Client is taking the focus off speed and back on quality. Why would you want your crucial hiring decision based on who can get candidates to you first? Would you hire a brain surgeon because they could do the job fastest? A house painter? A hairdresser?  ‘Exclusivity’ means the Recruiter has time to do thorough work.

• Exclusivity allows the Recruiter to bring all their resources to bear in the talent search. Not just a quick database search. But a thorough, detailed talent search including networks, communities, and social media.

• Working exclusively usually means there is time for the Recruiter to take a detailed job order. The better the order, the better the match.

• There is time for the Recruiter to do a complete and comprehensive database search. The Client gets the best, not the best we saw that week.

• The Recruiter has time to comb networks, online resources, social media networks and tap into the passive talent market.

• If the Recruiter is a regional, national, or global business, exclusivity allows time to access Candidates through our broader reach.

• Exclusivity means more time to thoroughly screen, saving the clients time and frustration.

• Time allows thorough Candidate interviews, including a full assessment of skills, experience, and attitude.

• The Recruiter will be able to fully qualify the Candidate in terms of start date and salary, once again saving the client much time and frustration.

• The Client will save time by dealing with one competent Recruiter. No multiple agency briefings and numerous contacts to deal with.

• The Clients’ confidentiality is preserved as the role is not being touted around town by five or six recruiters, each speaking to 9 or 10 candidates about the role.

• The Client’s brand and image are improved by using one Recruiter because their job is not devalued in the eyes of candidates, who will be suspicious if the job is represented by multiple recruiters.

• Exclusivity means you will not have the issue of recruiters referring the same Candidate to the same Client – which can be very sordid indeed.

My ‘Post-Covid dream’ includes killing off the scourge of contingent, multi listed-order recruitment, which drives much that is bad in our industry.

Speed over price, short cuts, resume racing, fee discounts, poor service to candidates and clients, and recruiters spending 75% of their time on work for which they don’t get paid!

You need to change your terms of business. You need to change your mindset! You need to set up the process and the infrastructure. And you need to train your staff to sell exclusivity and deliver on it.

So I prepared this 10-minute video for you (Actually, I made it for the Savage Recruitment Academy, which you really should subscribe to ASAP. 35 hours of delicious recruiting ideas there)

Watch it, please.

Show it to all your recruiters.

Discuss and finesse my points and build them into your process.

****************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Get your Savage books now.