How To Improve the Candidate Experience

To strengthen and protect their brand image, companies need to (also) invest in candidate experience. In this post, we’ll explain why candidate experience is important and show you how to create a positive one.

What is candidate experience?

Candidate experience is the sum of the multiple interactions job candidates have with an organization during the hiring process — from job posting to job offer letter — and how they feel as a result.

Why candidate experience matters

Candidate experience can influence a job candidate’s decision to stay or drop out of the hiring process. It can also shape their future interactions with the company. As experts Kevin Grossman and Adele Schoolderman wrote, candidate experience determines “whether or not the job seeker will apply again, refer others, have any brand affinity and/or make purchases and/or influence purchases…”

Creating a positive candidate experience

So how do you ensure candidates will want to do business with you when the hiring process is over? By showing respect for them at all touchpoints. Here are some tips for doing that:

Create a good job posting

Create a job description that’s clear, honest, and inclusive.

Clear means simple, concise, and direct. (No jargon or buzzwords. No beating around the bush.)

Honest means reasonable requirements and an accurate depiction of duties. (You describe real job needs and challenges plus the skills needed to succeed.)

Inclusive means using words of belonging. (You eliminate biased language that alienates people from underrepresented groups.)

Respect candidates’ time

Simplify and improve every step in the hiring process.

Make the job application form shorter and optimize it for mobile.

Replace the job application form with a skills test.

Make interviews remote.

Overcommunicate

Gear up for timely communication.

Map out all the touch points in the hiring process. Decide what, when, and how to communicate with candidates.

Invest in recruitment technology. Start with an applicant tracking system (ATS) and a text expansion app.

Stay human

Add a human touch.

Understand how your tools and systems work. Know their limitations so you can explore alternative options as needed.

Get personal. Send personalized messages whenever possible. (Use TextExpander’s fill-in-the-blanks functionality to create templates you can personalize on the spot.)

Know when to call, text, and email. A text may be fine for confirming the details of an interview, but an email or a call might be better for giving feedback.

Be kind. Help candidates feel comfortable and safe.

What type of experience will you offer?

Job seekers are customers, influencers, and potential employees. By following the guidelines in this post — writing good job descriptions, respecting applicants’ time, overcommunicating, and “staying human” — you’ll keep them loyal to your brand.

Liked these tips? Check out our other posts in this series:

Comprehensive Guide to Job Postings

So You Want To Be a Recruiter?