If you're looking to employ graduates in your business, salary is an important part of your recruitment pitch.

No matter how good a job is, or how well suited to their qualifications, applicants are naturally going to want to know how much you'll be paying them.

How does the salary on offer impact the recruitment process? And how can you set your salary to get the right employees at the right price?

Numbers Matter

Face it; offering the right salary matters.

Graduates are looking for a lot of things in a job - a chance to hone their skills, an interesting and engaging role, and a job that offers good career prospects. They're also looking for a decent salary.

As the article "Cosmetology School Graduates: How Much Do They Make" says, the amount of money to be made is a major consideration when choosing a career.

The chances are, you're not the only potential employer a graduate is looking at. If another business can offer the same opportunities and benefits as you, but with a better salary, you could lose a potentially great employee.

Alternatively, you'll get a stream of employees who take a job with you until something better comes along, quickly moving on as soon as it does.

The bottom line is the cost of recruiting and training new employees will end up outweighing the benefits of trying to keep your salaries low.

If you want to get and retain the best employees for your business, you need to make sure a job with you is the "something better".

Salary is an important part of that package, so how do you decide where to set it?

Do Your Research

Research will help you decide where to set your salary.

Here are some things you need to know:

• What's the current going rate for this kind of job in my industry?
• What specialist skills or specialist knowledge does this job require?
• What salary are my competitors offering for a similar role?
• What are the expectations of graduates in this field?
• What is the demand for this job?

The better your understanding of the current market and the expectations of applicants, the better placed you will be to offer a competitive salary.

For example, you will be able to offer a lower salary for a job that's in demand, than for one that isn't so popular. If a job requires specialist skills or knowledge, the salary will generally need to be higher.

In all cases, it's a good idea to keep your salary in line with or better than industry expectations.

Make It Part of a Package

What can you do if your budget constrains you from offering as competitive a salary as you would like? The answer is, make it part of a package.

Salary is clearly a very important consideration when applying for a job, but it's not the only consideration.

To make your salary part of an attractive package, consider:

• What other benefits you can offer, such as health care, a good pension plan, or even perks such as gym membership or a range of discounts;
• What educational and training opportunities you can offer - the chance to learn and excel in a specific field is an attractive prospect;
• What career advancement opportunities you can offer - graduates are looking for careers that are going somewhere;
• What your company culture is like - a positive and nurturing company culture is a genuine selling point.

If you want the best graduates for your business, get informed about salaries in your industry, and figure out how you can make your company the better choice.

Photo credit: BigStockPhotos.com

About the Author: Tristan Anwyn writes on a variety of topics including social media, how to build customer relationships, content marketing and how to recruit the best graduates for your business.