Expert Telephone Techniques

Recruiters know how to use the phone since they spend so much time calling clients and candidates yet many are ineffective in their ability to set appointments or present candidates. I still hear recruiters telling me all the time about how they submitted a candidate via email vs doing a call-and-present. Technology is a great asset to us but we need to get off email and do more F2F, especially in this market, and the best way to get there is to improve your phone skills.

Here are some tips to help recruiters and job seekers alike to break through all the noise and to get in front of decision makers. It' hard to get a relationship going if you can't sit down with the client or get to the second step in the process...

> Remember the objective or purpose of your call - Why are you calling? If you are trying to set an appointment for a visit then don't reveal too much. You can't close the deal on the first call so give up trying.

> Get into the right frame of mind - Be positive and put a smile on your face. Clients and candidates want to work with recruiters who are happy and eager to help them them. A smile is just us important over the phone as it is when you meet in person. People love to be on the phone with people who are warm and friendly.

> Be a big ear with a little mouth - Don't conduct one-sided conversations. Give your clients a chance to respond to questions and listen to their answers. Don't try to solve all the problems and answer all the objections on the first call, instead think of these as a reason for getting together or for a second call. Most of all, ask open-ended questions and let them do most of the talking.

> Be personable - There is no sweeter sound to another person than the sound of their own name so refer to them by name whenever possible. Focus on their needs. Don't forget to say "thank you" at the end of a call. Avoid small talk, most people don't like it when a stranger opens a conversation with "How ya doin'?" Try to stick to the point of the call and save the schmoozing for later.

Happy Hunting!

Craig Silverman

Comment by Charles Van Heerden on October 21, 2009 at 3:05am: Craig, agree with all your points. My experience is that voice mail is not that effective, as you lose control of when the person gets back to you. Most of the time I prefer to phone again at a later/better time. Your thoughts?

Comment by Craig Silverman on October 21, 2009 at 3:19pm: I think you might try a few times to catch the person with out leaving a voicemail but if I am not successful then you should leave a voice message. I'm working on a post to help people with few tips to leave a great message, one that gets a call back...

Comment by Thomas Patrick Chuna on October 21, 2009 at 4:53pm: good post..I would just add this -

If you're talking about shopping candidates to generate business, then yeah, just emailing is dumb..but an email combined with a call referencing the email a day or so later can work.

And i always leave a message. I just look at it this way..any avenue we try to connect with someone has a chance of working, so why not have a system where we use all the tools we can?

Comment by Craig Silverman on October 26, 2009 at 12:48pm: Leaving a message is a good thing! make sure you sounds good. Write a script. Slow Down. Set a hook and give them a reason to call you back...

Comment by Jacqueline Bozorgi on October 29, 2009 at 10:46am: Craig, all these tips are fantastic! Thank you for sharing. You are right- recruiting is becoming less personal and we don't want to lose the some of the techniques that technology will never replace.