Showing candidates your company without stepping through the door

Like me, I’m sure many people are actually missing the office environment. The routine, the camaraderie, the chats in the kitchen – these are all things we have become accustomed to. But how much is a candidate not being able to visit your office affecting how excited they are about the role and more importantly, how likely it is for them to accept it.

Many businesses are still moving ahead with their recruitment plans and adapting how to interview, offer and onboard new starters remotely (some advice here if you aren’t sure). But the most successful hiring companies are the ones who can sell their company without the tangible and often mandatory visit to HQ.

Your office is designed to motivate staff/visitors and sell your brand, but now we don’t have that luxury. Here are some tips when speaking to candidates remotely:

1. Good news

Share good news stories, videos or articles about the company and your team. This could be the team having virtual drinks on a Friday or regular catch-ups in the morning or some charity/community work the company have done recently.

2. The team

Describe the team and culture in a bit more detail than normal. This can be as simple as talking about each team member, what they do and something interesting about them. Maybe invite them to virtual team drinks!

3. Values

Now is as good a time as ever to understand the brand values and how your business and team reflect them. Rather than just having brand values plastered on the wall, talk about who does what to implement them into their day to day role/life.

4. Perks

Know your company benefits inside out. Work with the talent team to ensure you know all the perks and that they are well advertised within the business and online. Another great idea is to find out how all of your team utilise the perks and anything extra they find useful. It might seem simple and normal to you, but it won’t be to the candidate and that could be the difference.

5. Video

We all know the benefits of video content, so make sure your brand videos are well advertised and if not, send them over to the candidate. If you are doing a video interview and you are still in the office, you could do a live tour or if you don’t, send over a video of an office tour that has been done or any video content where you might see the office.

6. Reassure

Don’t be afraid of talking about the current situation and make sure you highlight what your company is doing about it and the plans for the future. These are uncertain times and it’s good to know that you are planning ahead.

It can be a challenge, but this is a great opportunity to really understand how important selling your company is and also how great it is to work in your team. So, speak to your talent team or recruiter and get some ideas together.