Last week, I came across an article from Tech Cocktail which gave some great advice on how to hire top talent for your startup. Oftentimes, startups are overlooked in the topic of recruitment; a fact that I find to be pretty misleading when it comes to highlighting both the importance of this issue, and the reality of how invested startups tend to bein the war for talent. After all, recruiting the best possible employees is arguably one of the most important factors in determining the success or failure of a startup company. Without the talent to back it up, even the most revolutionary idea will not succeed.

So, when there are literally thousands of startups out there, how do you make sure yours stands out? How do you separate yourself from the pack and identify your company as the one worth working for, aside from offering killer incentives or building a tree houseas part of your corporate office? As I read the list of tips in the article, I realized that they were not only great ideas, but every single one could be accomplished simply and efficiently using an Applicant Tracking System. Technology to the rescue!

Here’s a run-down of Tech Cocktail’s comprehensive list of pointers, infused with some of my insight on how recruitment software can optimize any startup’s strategy for undertaking each piece of advice:

Establish yourself as a great employer: The more applicant-friendly and immersive your recruitment process is, the more impressive your company will seem. Choose technology that will make your job openings easily accessible online, and then ensure candidates know that they are valued through professional, timely communications. ATS software can send automated emails at each step of the recruitment process for you, without looking like an impersonal mass-email.

Know the position: Job templates make fine-tuning your messaging for each of your open positions a breeze. Determine exactly what skills and requirements would make a candidate a great fit for each job, and then distribute the descriptions to your career site and job boards with one click. It’s also important to know what you don’t want in a candidate, making hot-matching tools and automated screening questions just as vital to your process.

Get existing employees involved: Employee referrals are an invaluable resource in the world of recruitment. Specialized employee career sites and the ability to network through employee social networks makes it easy for employees to stay informed on what positions you’re recruiting for and how they can help.

Utilize social media: Not only can you use an ATS to post jobs to social media sites and make employee referrals a breeze, but you can also greatly simplify the application process for candidates by allowing them to pre-populate their applicant information using their social media profiles.

Get out of the office: Need access to your system while you’re networking at events and career fairs? Many recruitment software providers are answering the call for mobile-friendly technology, making use of your system on-the-go both simple and effective.

Place value on culture:Highlight your company’s values, current employees, and a glimpse into a day in the life of your startup with media-rich career sites. The right ATS can simultaneously turn your website into a powerful recruiting tool and utilize your brand to engage applicants and immerse them in your company culture.

Understand which techniques work for you:You can’t take advantage of the recruitment strategies that provide your company with the best results without analyzing your efforts. Tracking applicant data in an automated database can put powerful, personalized reports at your fingertips so you can optimize your processes.

The moral of the story is that applicant tracking software is not just for sizeable, established companies. The key to startup recruitment success is combining these great recruitment strategies with automated, user-friendly tools that bring them to life without exhausting your resources. Incorporate recruitment software as part of your startup’s recruitment initiative, and you’ll have an influx of qualified, eager applicants in no time.