The Recruitment Marketing and Sales Podcast

What You’ll Learn in this Post and Podcast Today, let’s talk about social media marketing on LinkedIn. Are you worried that posting on LinkedIn will make you look like an influencer? You’re not alone. In this episode, we tackle the concern head-on and explain why consistent visibility isn’t about chasing likes; it’s about building authority. We explore the difference between recruiters who only appear when they need work (and are categorised as “available”) and those who maintain a consistent presence (and are seen as “busy and successful”). You’ll learn why being a trusted advisor who educates and adds value is completely different from performing for an audience and how sharing genuine market insight positions you as the obvious choice when hiring needs arise. With a real client example showing how consistent content led to retained work after 28 years of contingency-only recruiting, this episode makes the case that visibility creates choice, and the answer to noise isn’t silence, it’s being the signal that cuts through. Today I want to address something that’s been circulating on LinkedIn and in conversations with recruiters for several weeks. I recently posted about the importance of consistent visibility on social media, and it sparked a really interesting response. Someone pushed back and said, “I don’t want to become an influencer. I think too many recruiters are acting like influencers now, and honestly, isn’t all this content just adding to the white noise?” And you know what? They’ve got a point. Sort of. There IS a lot of noise on LinkedIn. But here’s what I want to explore today: the problem isn’t posting content. The problem is posting the wrong content for the wrong reasons. So, let’s dig into this. What’s the difference between being an influencer and being a trusted advisor? And why does consistent visibility matter for your recruitment business? 1. The “Busy and Successful” vs “Available” Perception Let me start with something I see happening frequently. Most recruiters only become visible when they need work. They post jobs when they have open roles. They reach out to clients when their pipeline is empty. They suddenly appear on LinkedIn when things get quiet. And here’s what happens: clients unconsciously categorise them as “available” rather than “in demand.” Now contrast that with recruiters who maintain consistent visibility. They share insights regularly. They comment on industry trends. They provide value continuously, not just when they need something. These recruiters get categorised as “busy and successful.” They’re seen as the go-to experts in their space. Which category would you rather be in? 2. The Difference Between an Influencer and a Trusted Advisor Now, let’s address this influencer concern head-on, because I think this is where the confusion lies. Influencers chase likes and followers. They post content designed to go viral. They’re performing for an audience. A trusted advisor? Completely different. A trusted advisor shares insight that helps their audience make better decisions. They’re not performing. They’re educating and adding value. For recruiters, this means sharing information such as hiring trends in your sector, what candidates are actually looking for right now, salary movements, common mistakes you’re seeing hiring managers make, and insights from your actual work in the market. This isn’t about being an influencer. It’s about positioning yourself as someone worth listening to. Someone who understands the market. Some clients want to work with you before they even pick up the phone. 3. Yes, There’s Noise. But Silence Isn’t the Answer The commenter was right that there’s a lot of white noise on LinkedIn. But here’s the thing: the solution isn’t to stay quiet while your competitors dominate the conversation. The solution is signal over noise. What we see working for our clients is structured content themes. Things like a weekly market pulse, role spotlights, polls about industry challenges, and posts about common client mistakes to avoid. When you have a structure, it’s easier to produce content, and it’s easier for your audience to know what to expect from you. Proactive commenting on target clients’ posts is another high-impact activity. You don’t even need to create content to build visibility. The goal isn’t to sell in comments. It’s to demonstrate insight and build familiarity over time. And here’s something the research backs up: between 61 and 81 per cent of people will visit a website or social profile before they engage with a company. Your clients are checking you out before they respond to your outreach. What do they find when they look? 4. Real Results from Real Recruiters Let me share a quick example from one of our clients, Steve Lea at Coalesce Recruitment. Steve had been in engineering recruitment for 28 years. Always contingency, always competing on price. When he committed to consistent content, something shifted. His LinkedIn connections increased by 35%. He secured 8 new clients in just eight months. He generated £26,000 in net fee income directly from LinkedIn candidate engagement. And here’s the big one: he secured his first retained work after 28 years in the industry. What Steve said really stuck with me: “Fee negotiations became almost secondary. The clients had already bought into my expertise through the consistent content. They could see the value I offered before we even discussed terms.” That’s not being an influencer. That’s building authority. That’s becoming the obvious choice in your market. 5. It’s About Being There BEFORE They Need You Here’s the fundamental shift I want you to think about. The recruiter who posts helpful insights regularly is the first call when a hiring need arises. They’re already known. They’re already trusted. The conversation starts from a completely different place. The recruiter who only appears to sell? They’re competing with everyone else, sending cold outreach. They’re starting from zero every single time. Visibility creates choice. When clients and candidates know who you are before you contact them, you stop competing on price. You no longer have to justify your fees. The trust is already there. So let me bring this together. Should you worry about becoming an influencer? No. Because that’s not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about being visible between placements, so you’re top of mind when opportunities arise. We’re talking about sharing genuine insight from your market, not posting fluff to chase likes. We’re talking about building the kind of presence that has clients coming to you, not you chasing them. Yes, there’s noise out there. But the answer isn’t silence. The answer is the signal that cuts through. Consistency beats perfection. You don’t need to go viral. You need to show up regularly with something useful to say. The recruiters who do this? They get categorised as busy and successful. They get the first call. They win the retained work. They stop competing on price. That’s not being an influencer. That’s being smart about how you build your business. Thanks for listening. If this episode resonated with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Drop us a message, leave a comment, or better yet, share it with a fellow recruiter who might be wrestling with this same question. Until next time. Denise and Sharon How We Can Help Knowing you need to post consistently is one thing. Actually doing it when you’re busy placing candidates and winning new business is another. That’s where Superfast Circle comes in. Our members get access to a library of ready-to-use, recruitment-specific content, so you can show up consistently without staring at a blank screen, wondering what to post. We’ve done the hard work for you. If you’ve been thinking about how to build your authority without it taking over your week, book a call to find out how we can help. www.superfastrecruitment.co.uk/call   The post LinkedIn for Recruiters: Building Authority Without Becoming an Influencer appeared first on Superfast Recruitment.

Welcome to episode 497 of the Recruitment Marketing and Sales podcast, and I am your host, Denise Oyston. Today, we are wrapping up our kick-off series for 2026 about the what and how of Standing Out this year. Over the past few weeks, we have covered mindset, visibility, and re-engaging your database. If you missed any of those episodes, go back and listen; they build on one another. This week, we are discussing something that can completely change how you approach your marketing: creating longer-form content that works harder for you. Now, before you switch off because you think this is going to be about writing 5,000-word essays, hear us out. This is actually about working smarter, not harder. It is about creating a single, substantial piece of content and getting maximum value from it. Whether that is a podcast, a report, a webinar, or a detailed blog post, the principle is the same. Create once, repurpose many times. So let’s get into it. The Pillar Content Approach Let us start by explaining what we mean by pillar content. A pillar piece is a substantial, detailed piece of content that demonstrates your expertise in your niche. It could be a comprehensive blog post or series. A thorough market report. A webinar where you go deep on a specific topic. Or a podcast episode where you really explore something properly. The keyword here is substantial. This is not a quick LinkedIn post or a two-paragraph update. This is something meaty that shows you really know your stuff. Why does this matter? Short-form content is brilliant at getting attention, but it is your longer-form content that builds trust. When someone engages with your quick posts and wants to know whether you actually understand what you are talking about, they will look for something more substantial. They want to confirm that you understand their sector and its challenges. Think about it from your own experience. When considering working with someone, do you look at their social media posts? Or do you dig a bit deeper? Do you read their blog? Listen to their podcast? Download their report? Of course you do. We all do. The research backs this up. 71 per cent of B2B buyers consume blog content before making a purchase decision. They want depth. They want evidence. They want to feel confident that you know what you are talking about. The Repurposing Model Here is where it gets exciting, especially if you are running a small team and do not have endless hours for content creation. The smartest recruitment companies we work with follow a simple principle: create one substantial piece of content, then repurpose it into multiple shorter pieces. Let us give you a concrete example. Say you record a 45-minute podcast episode about hiring trends in your sector. From that single recording, you could create six LinkedIn posts pulling out key insights. Two blog articles going deeper on specific points. A dozen short videos or audio clips for social media. An email to your database summarising the main takeaways. Content for your newsletter. And quotes and statistics you can use in proposals and pitches. That one piece of content has now given you weeks’ worth of material. And the beautiful thing is, it all came from the same source, so your messaging stays consistent. This approach ensures quality and depth before brevity. You are not scrambling to come up with something to post every day. You have already thought. Now you are just packaging it in different ways for different platforms. Why Podcasts Work So Well We would like to discuss podcasts, as they are particularly effective for recruitment businesses. Podcasts continue to grow in popularity, particularly with executives and founders, which is exactly the audience most of you are trying to reach. Decision-makers listen to podcasts during their commute, at the gym, or while walking the dog. It is a way to reach them when they are not at their desks, ignoring emails. But here is the bit that makes podcasts especially clever for recruitment businesses: they serve a dual purpose. First, they are relationship-building and positioning tools. When you invite someone onto your podcast as a guest, you are building a relationship with them while positioning yourself as the go-to person in your niche. And who might make a good guest? Often, your potential clients. Think about it. You reach out to a hiring manager or business owner in your niche and invite them to share their expertise on your show. That is a much warmer conversation than a cold sales call. You are offering them something valuable: a platform to share their knowledge and raise their profile. Second, podcasts are content engines. As we just discussed, one episode gives you material for weeks. The conversation generates ideas, insights, and quotes that you can use across all your other channels. And niche podcasts can reach very specific audiences. A show about scaling health tech companies. A podcast for legal practice managers. A series on finance recruitment trends. When you narrow your focus, you become the go-to voice for that specific audience. Other Forms of Pillar Content Podcasts are not the only option, of course. Let’s discuss other formats that work well. Market reports and salary guides are brilliant for recruitment businesses. You have access to data and insights that your clients and candidates find genuinely valuable. A well-researched report on salary trends or hiring challenges in your sector positions you as the expert. It also makes a great lead magnet: people will happily give you their email address in exchange for useful data. Webinars let you go deep on a topic while building your email list. You can invite guests, share screens, and answer questions live. The recording becomes an asset you can use long after the live event ends. A detailed blog series lets you explore a topic in depth across multiple posts. Titles such as “The complete guide to hiring fintech sales leaders” or “Everything you need to know about legal recruitment in 2026” demonstrate genuine expertise and attract readers seeking that specific information. The format matters less than the substance. What matters is that you create something substantial enough to demonstrate your expertise and generate enough material for repurposing. Quality Beats Perfection Now, we know what some of you are thinking. “This sounds great, but I do not have the time or resources to create professional-quality content.” Here is the truth: you do not need professional production values. What you need is valuable, consistent content. A podcast recorded on a decent microphone in your office is absolutely fine. A report created in Word or Canva will suffice. A webinar run through Zoom works perfectly well. The key is consistency and specificity, not production value. Your audience cares far more about whether your content is useful and relevant than whether it looks like a big agency made it. In fact, overly polished content can feel less authentic. People want to hear from real experts sharing real insights, not a slick marketing production. So do not let perfectionism stop you from starting. Good enough, published consistently, beats perfect, but never finished. Using AI Smartly We cannot talk about content creation in 2026 without mentioning AI. Yes, AI can help you create more content more efficiently. But here is the important bit: AI works best when you give it good raw material to work with. The companies that get AI right use it to increase output without sacrificing quality. They do not publish AI-generated content as-is. They use AI as a starting point, then make the content specific, opinionated, and genuinely useful. This is where your pillar content becomes so valuable. Record a podcast where you share your genuine expertise and opinions. Now you have rich source material that AI can help you repurpose into other formats. The insights are yours. The expertise is yours. AI helps you package it more efficiently. The human element, your knowledge, your opinions, your specific experience in your niche, that is what makes your content valuable. AI cannot replicate that. But it can help you get more value from it. Getting Started Without Overwhelm If you are new to creating longer-form content, the prospect can feel daunting. So let us make it simple. Start with what you know deeply. What questions do clients ask you all the time? What mistakes do you see companies making when they hire? What do candidates always want to know about your sector? You already have expertise. You need to capture it. Choose one format to start with. Do not try to launch a podcast, write a report, and run webinars all at once. Pick one. Get good at it. Build the habit. Then expand. If you want to start a podcast, the minimum setup is simpler than you think. A decent USB microphone, free recording software, and a hosting platform. You could be publishing your first episode within a week. If a podcast feels like too much, start with a detailed blog post. Write the definitive guide to something in your niche. Make it thorough. Make it useful. Then break it down into shorter pieces for your social channels. The most important thing is to start. Your first piece of content will not be your best. That is fine. You will get better with practice. But you cannot improve on something you have not created. Closing Let us conclude this series with a final thought. Over these four episodes, we have talked about mindset, visibility, re-engaging your database, and creating content that works harder for you. And if there is one thread that runs through all of it, it is this: the recruitment businesses that will stand out in 2026 are the ones that commit to consistently delivering valuable content. Not perfect content. Not content with massive production budgets. Just useful, relevant, consistent content that demonstrates your expertise and keeps you front of mind. Creating pillar content and repurposing it is one

Today, we are continuing our Standing Out in 2026 series. If you have been following along, you will know we started with mindset, then last week we talked about being more active and more visible. This week, we are talking about something that could be the fastest way to generate business this year, and yet it is one of the most neglected areas we see in recruitment businesses. We are talking about your database. Your past clients. Your old contacts. The people sitting in your CRM and your LinkedIn connections who already know who you are. Here is the thing: most recruitment business owners are so focused on finding new leads that they completely ignore the warm relationships they have already built. And that is like leaving money on the table. So today, we are going to talk about why your database is a goldmine, why it gets neglected, and how to re-engage those contacts in a way that feels natural, not awkward. So, let’s get into it. The Hidden Goldmine Let us start with a question. How many contacts do you have across your CRM and your LinkedIn connections right now? We are talking about past clients, placed candidates, people you have spoken to over the years, connections you have made at events, and all those LinkedIn connections you have built up over time. For most recruitment business owners, that number is in the hundreds, often thousands. Some of you listening right now have 5,000, 10,000, or even more LinkedIn connections alone. And yet, when we ask how many of those people have heard from you in the last three months, the answer is usually… not many. Here is why this matters so much. Database re-engagement is one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies available to you. These people already know who you are. They have worked with you, or at least had a conversation with you. They accepted your LinkedIn connection request. They do not need to be convinced that you are legitimate. The trust-building work has already been done. Email marketing has one of the highest returns on investment of any marketing channel, and the reason is simple: your list is an owned asset. You are not paying for ads. You are not fighting an algorithm. You are simply staying in touch with people who have already raised their hands and said, “I am interested in what you do.” One of our clients did exactly this. He focused on re-engaging his database with insight-focused emails, and within three months of sending his first campaign, he had secured £120,000 in new roles with a client he had not spoken to in ages. That is not a typo. £120,000 from people who were already in his database, just waiting to hear from him. The Awareness Cascade Let us talk about why these contacts are so much more valuable than cold leads. Think about the journey someone goes through before they decide to work with a recruiter. At the top, you have people who do not know you exist. They are completely cold. They have never heard your name, never seen your content, never had a conversation with you. Then you have people who are aware of you. They have seen your name around. Maybe they follow you on LinkedIn. Perhaps they met you at an event once. They know who you are, but they are not actively thinking about you. Then you have warm people. They have worked with you before or had a proper conversation. They trust you. They are not in buying mode right now. And finally, you have hot people. They have a need right now, and they are ready to pick up the phone. Here is the key insight: the people in your CRM and your LinkedIn connections are already warm. They are much further down that awareness cascade than any cold lead you could find. Which means they are far easier to convert when the time is right. The only thing you need to do is stay front of mind, so that when they do have a hiring need or they are ready to make a career move, you are the name that pops into their head. Why This Gets Neglected So if your database is such a valuable asset, why do so many recruitment business owners neglect it? We see a few patterns here. First, there is the obsession with the new. Something is exciting about finding new leads. It feels like progress. Reaching out to the same people again can feel like you are going backwards. But that is completely the wrong way to think about it. Those existing contacts are not old news. They are warm relationships waiting to be activated. Second, there is a lack of systems. Most recruitment business owners do not have a process for staying in touch with their database and LinkedIn connections at scale. They might reach out to individual contacts when they remember, but there is no consistent rhythm. No automated sequences. No regular touchpoints. And without a system, it just does not happen. Third, and this is a big one, there is the fear of being annoying. People worry that if they email their database or message their LinkedIn connections, they will be seen as pushy or salesy. They do not want to bother people. So they stay quiet. But here is the reality: if you are sending genuinely useful content, you are not being annoying. You are being helpful. People only get annoyed when you send them stuff that is irrelevant or purely self-promotional. And fourth, there is the data decay problem. Contacts go stale. People change jobs. Email addresses bounce. If you have not cleaned up your database in years, it can feel overwhelming just knowing where to start. The same goes for LinkedIn connections you made years ago and never followed up with. The Cost of Neglecting Your Database Let us talk about what happens when you do not stay in touch. That client you placed three candidates with two years ago? They have probably had vacancies since then. But if they have not heard from you, they might have used someone else. Not because you did a bad job, but simply because you were not front of mind when the need arose. That candidate you placed five years ago who is now a hiring manager? They could be sending work your way. But if they have forgotten about you, that referral is going to someone else. That LinkedIn connection who accepted your request three years ago, and you never messaged them again? They might have the perfect vacancy for you right now, but they do not even remember who you are. Every relationship that goes cold is a potential opportunity lost. And the frustrating thing is, these are not strangers. These are people who already know you, like you, and have worked with you or connected with you. The barrier to re-engagement is so much lower than starting from scratch with a cold lead. We see this pattern constantly. A recruitment business owner is so busy chasing new clients that they forget to nurture the ones they already have. Then, when the market gets tougher, they realise they have no warm pipeline. They have to start building relationships from zero, at exactly the moment when they are under pressure. That is a stressful place to be. What Effective Re-engagement Looks Like So, how do you re-engage your database without feeling awkward or salesy? The key is to lead with value, not with a pitch. Nobody wants to receive an email or a LinkedIn message that says, “Hi, just checking in to see if you have any vacancies.” That is not valuable. That is just asking for something. Instead, think about what you can give. What insights do you have about their market? What trends are you seeing? What challenges are other companies in their sector facing? What would be genuinely useful for them to know? The most effective email strategies we see are insight-focused newsletters that position you as a market observer rather than just a vacancy broadcaster. Share hiring trends. Talk about salary movements. Discuss regulatory changes affecting their niche. Give them something worth reading. Another approach that works brilliantly is plain-text messages from individual consultants, whether via email or a LinkedIn direct message. Not templated marketing emails with fancy graphics, but genuine, personal messages that share a specific story or insight. These tend to get much higher reply to rates because they feel like real one-to-one communication. And if you want to get more sophisticated, behaviour-triggered sequences work really well. For example, if someone downloads a salary guide from your website, that could trigger a three-part email sequence with related insights, a case study, and then an invitation to a call. It feels timely and relevant, not pushy. Re-engaging Past Clients Specifically Let’s talk specifically about past clients, because they deserve special attention. These are people who have already paid you money. They trusted you enough to hand over a fee. That is a significant relationship. And yet, so many recruiters make a placement and then disappear. They move on to the next search, the next client, the next fee. The relationship goes quiet until someone happens to remember to pick up the phone. Here is a simple question: when was the last time you reached out to a past client to see how things are going? Not to pitch. Not to ask for work. To maintain the relationship. A quick check in every few months keeps you front of mind. You could share a relevant article. Congratulate them on the company news. Ask how the person you placed is getting on. These small touchpoints add up over time. And do not forget the referral potential. A happy past client is one of the best sources of new business. But they will only refer you if they remember you. Staying in touch keeps that door open. What to Say When You Have Not Been in Touch Now, let us address the elephant in the room. What do you say when you have not been in touch for ages? This is what stops many people. They feel awkward reaching out after a long gap. They worry it will seem strange or opportunistic. Here is our advice: do not overthink it. You do not need to apologise for being quiet. You do not need to explain why you have not been in touch. Just reach out

Today, we are continuing our Standing Out in 2026 series and talking about your visibility. If you caught last week’s episode on mindset habits, you would know we have been diving into the practical actions that will help you stand out in your market this year. Last week was all about what goes on between your ears and the thoughts you are having. This week, we are talking about what you actually do. Specifically, being more active and more visible. Here is the thing: most recruitment business owners know they need to be more visible. They know they should be posting, engaging, and showing up. But they are not doing it. They are too busy, too distracted, or waiting for things to calm down. Spoiler: Things do not calm down. So today we are going to talk about why visibility matters more than ever, what is getting in your way, and how the recruitment businesses that are winning right now are the ones that show up consistently. Key Takeaways: Recruitment Visibility in 2026 61-81% of potential clients check your LinkedIn and website before making contact — an outdated or inactive profile costs your business before you know they exist Visibility compounds over time: content you create today continues generating leads 12-24 months later, building familiarity and trust with future clients The “too busy” trap is a myth — waiting for things to calm down means your competitors become the default choice while you stay invisible Consistency beats perfection: two LinkedIn posts weekly outperform ambitious plans you abandon after a month Personal brands outperform company pages — buyers trust people, not logos, making founder-led content your most powerful marketing asset The Visibility Gap Let’s paint a picture for you. Imagine two recruitment business owners. Both are brilliant at what they do. Both have years of experience. Both genuinely care about their clients and candidates. Both have all the knowledge they need to succeed. One of them posts on LinkedIn three or four times a week. Sends a monthly email to their database. Picks up the phone to past clients every few weeks. Shares insights about their market. Comments on other people’s posts. Shows up at industry events. The other one is busy. Really busy. They are on the phone all day with candidates. They are chasing clients. They are doing the work. But their LinkedIn has been quiet for six weeks. Their email list has not heard from them since last quarter. They keep meaning to reach out to that client who placed three candidates with them two years ago, but something always comes up. Now here is the question: when a hiring manager in their sector has a vacancy to fill, which one do you think comes to mind first? It is not even close. And here is what the research tells us. Between 61- 81 % of people will visit a website or social media profile before engaging with a company. That means your potential clients and candidates are checking you out online, whether you realise it or not. They are forming opinions about you based on what they see, or do not see, before you even know they exist. If they land on your LinkedIn and the last post was from three months ago, what does that tell them? If your website feels like it has not been touched in years, what message does that send? We are not saying this to make you feel bad. We are saying it because it is the reality of the market we are all operating in right now. Why We Get Distracted So, if visibility is so important, and we all know it, why do so many recruitment business owners struggle with it? We have been working with recruitment business owners for approaching eighteen years, and we have seen every version of this story. Here are the common patterns we see repeatedly. First, there is the delivery trap. You are so caught up in the day-to-day work of filling roles, managing candidates, and keeping clients happy that marketing always falls to the bottom of the list. And we get it. When you have a client on the phone with an urgent vacancy, that feels more pressing than writing a LinkedIn post. The problem is, urgent always beats important. And marketing is important, even when it does not feel urgent. Second, there is the overwhelm factor. Marketing advice is everywhere, and a lot of it is contradictory. Should you be on TikTok? What about a podcast? Are you supposed to be making videos now? For a small business owner juggling multiple responsibilities, it can feel paralysing. So you do nothing. Third, and this is a big one, there is the “I’ll do it when things calm down” myth. We hate to break it to you, but things do not calm down. There is no magical quiet period where you will suddenly have time to focus on your marketing. If you wait for the perfect moment, you will stay forever. And fourth, there is the shiny object syndrome. You start posting on LinkedIn, then you hear about email sequences, then someone tells you about webinars, then you read about a new platform, and before you know it, you have started five different things and finished none of them. Sound familiar? The Compound Effect of Showing Up Here is what we want you to understand: visibility compounds over time. The content you create today does not just work for you today. A blog post you write this week could still be bringing people to your website 12 or even 24 months from now. A LinkedIn post you put out on Monday might be seen by someone who is not ready to use a recruiter yet, but six months later, when they have a vacancy, your name pops into their head because they have been seeing your content regularly. This is the bit that so many people miss. Marketing is not about instant results. It is about building familiarity and trust over time. People need to see you multiple times before they remember you exist. They need to experience your expertise before they believe in it. We work with a recruitment business owner, Steve. He had been in engineering recruitment for 28 years! Twenty-eight years . But nobody knew who he was. He was working alone in a competitive market, relying solely on one-to-one business development. His LinkedIn sat dormant. His expertise was completely hidden. When he joined our Superfast Circle programme, the transformation did not happen overnight. He admits he stopped and started at first. But eventually, something clicked, and he committed to showing up consistently. Following the process. Using the monthly content. Posting regularly. Within a year, he had won eight new clients. He had generated over £26,000 in fees from LinkedIn alone. His connections were up 35 per cent. But here is the part that really gets us: after nearly three decades of contingency-only work, Steve secured two retained projects worth £36,000 in just two weeks. That did not happen because he learned a secret technique. It happened because he became visible. People could finally see his expertise. Clients were buying into his value before the fee conversation even started. What Being Active Actually Means Now, we want to be clear about something. When we talk about being more active, we are not talking about being everywhere, all the time, doing all of the things! That is a fast track to burnout, and it is not necessary. What we are talking about is a consistent, focused presence in the places that matter for your business. For most recruitment business owners, that starts with LinkedIn. It is still the single most important social platform for B2B. But here is what works: it is not about posting all your company announcements or sharing every vacancy you have. The most effective LinkedIn strategies are founder/MD/CEO-led or consultant-led. Posts that share opinions, lessons learned, and commentary on what is happening in your specific market. Something that makes consistent posting easier is having structured content themes. For example, you might do a weekly market update on Mondays. A candidate tip on Wednesdays. A client challenge you helped solve on Fridays. When you have themes, you are not staring at a blank screen, wondering what to say. You know what Monday’s post is about before Monday arrives. And here is something many people overlook: commenting on others’ posts is just as powerful as creating your own. If your target clients are posting on LinkedIn, and they probably are, then showing up in their comments with thoughtful insights is a high-impact way to get on their radar. IMPORTANT: The goal is not to sell in comments. It is to demonstrate your expertise and build familiarity over time. The keyword in all of this is consistency. You do not need to be perfect. You do not need polished videos and professional graphics. You need to show up regularly enough that people start to recognise your name and associate you with your specialist area. Personal Brand vs Company Brand While we are on this topic, let us touch on something our research made very clear: personal brands matter more than company pages. Buyers trust people more than logos. They respond to content where real human beings share their experiences, their opinions, their expertise. Your company page has its place, but it should not be your primary focus. If you are the founder or MD of a recruitment business, your profile should be the main hub for your content. The company page can amplify and support, but the human connection happens through your personal presence. And if you have consultants on your team, encourage them to build their own presence in their niche. One of the most powerful positioning moves we see is when someone becomes known as the go-to person for a specific thing. The person everyone thinks of for data roles in Manchester. The recruiter who really understands the legal sector. The one who knows the fintech market inside out. You do not need a big team to do this. You need two or three people who are willing to post consistently, share their opinions, and engage in conversations with potential clients. The Cost of Invisibility We want to spend a mome

Let me describe a morning that might sound familiar. You wake up. Before your feet hit the floor, you have already grabbed your phone. You are scrolling LinkedIn. Checking emails. A client has chased. A candidate has pulled out. There is a message from a team member about a problem. And suddenly, before you have even had a coffee, you are in reactive mode. Putting out fires. Responding. Reacting. Sound familiar? Here is the thing. That pattern of starting the day in someone else’s agenda is costing you more than just peace of mind. It is costing you momentum, marketing consistency, and, ultimately, the growth you know your business can achieve. In this episode, I will share seven daily mindset habits to help you lead with intention rather than firefighting. These are not fluffy “think positive” suggestions. These are grounded, practical habits designed for recruitment business owners juggling delivery and growth in a noisy, competitive market. Before I get into the habits, let me provide some context on what we are doing here. This episode is the first in a series of podcasts we are releasing over the coming weeks, all focused on one question: how do you stand out in your sector in 2026? If you have read our 2026 Marketing Trends Report, you will know that the recruitment landscape is shifting. The companies winning right now are not the biggest or the best funded. They are the ones who have chosen a clear niche, built authority in that space, and consistently deliver content and conversations that matter. In this series, we will cover practical strategies to help you do exactly that. We will talk about content, visibility, LinkedIn, business development, and building your personal brand as a recruitment leader. But we are starting here, with mindset. Because here is what I have learned after eighteen years working with recruitment business owners: you can have the best marketing strategy in the world, but if your head is not in the right place, you will not execute it. You will start strong and then drift. You will get busy with delivery and let the marketing slide. You will tell yourself you will do it next week, and next week never comes. Before we get into tactics, we need to align your mindset. Think of this episode as laying the foundation that everything else will build on. Why Mindset Matters in 2026 Let me explain why this matters more now than ever. 2026 is shaping up to be one of the most challenging and opportunity-rich years for recruitment business owners. The market is noisier than ever. AI is moving fast, and everyone seems to be talking about it. Clients are more cautious with their hiring budgets. Candidate expectations are shifting. And the companies that are winning? They are not the biggest. They are the ones who have built authority in a niche, who show up consistently, and who market their expertise rather than fill roles. Most recruitment agencies are still running on old habits. Reactive. Transactional. Short-term. That worked when there were more vacancies than recruiters. It does not work now. Here is what I have noticed working with recruitment business owners over the past eighteen years: the ones who grow sustainably are not necessarily the ones with the best tech stack or the biggest team. They are the ones who protect their mindset. They lead their business rather than letting it lead them. Let me share seven daily habits that will give you an edge. Habit One: Start with Intent, Not Your Inbox The first habit is this: start your day with intent, not your inbox. When you grab your phone and dive straight into email or LinkedIn first thing in the morning, you have handed control of your day to everyone else. Your brain immediately goes into response mode. You become a firefighter. And firefighters do not build businesses. They stop things from burning down. Here is the two-minute ritual I want you to try. Before you open your inbox, before you scroll LinkedIn, ask yourself one question: “What one outcome would make today a win for the business?” Not ten things. Not a to-do list. One outcome. Maybe it is: “Have two quality BD conversations with target hiring managers.” Or: “Create and post one useful LinkedIn update for my niche.” Or: “Finish the proposal for that retained brief.” Please write it down. Protect time for it. Then, and only then, open your inbox. Let me paint you a picture. Imagine a recruitment owner called Sarah. She runs a small tech recruitment firm. Every morning, she would wake up, check her email immediately, and within ten minutes she would be responding to a client query, resolving a candidate issue, and following up with her consultant about a CV. By nine o’clock, she felt exhausted, and she had not done a single thing to grow her business. Sarah takes two minutes before touching her phone. She writes down her one outcome. This week, it was: “Send three personalised messages to CTOs in my target companies.” She does that first, before email. And here is what happened. She is now having more conversations with decision-makers than she has in months. At the same time. Same effort. Completely different results. Because she started with intent, not in the inbox. Habit 2: Manage Your Thoughts; “Is That Really True?” The second habit is about managing your thoughts. And this one might feel a bit different, but stay with me. Here is the truth: your thoughts about your business are not facts. They are stories. And some of those stories are holding you back. You know the thoughts I am talking about. “Clients are not spending.” “No one is replying on LinkedIn.” “I am terrible at content.” “The market is dead.” When you have a thought like that, and you will because you are human, I want you to pause and ask two questions: “Is that really true?” “What else could be true here?” Let me give you some examples. “Clients are not spending.” Is that true? Some clients are spending. They are just spending with recruiters who have clearly positioned their value. Maybe the question is not whether clients are paying. Maybe it is whether you are visible to the right ones. “I am terrible at content.” Is that true? Or have you not yet practised? Are you comparing yourself to someone who has been posting daily for five years? That is not a fair comparison. “No one is replying on LinkedIn.” Is that true? Or did you send three messages last week and expect a flood of responses? What if you sent thirty intentional messages over the next month? This habit is not about toxic positivity. It is about reducing drama and opening space for constructive, problem-solving thinking. When you catch yourself in a stressful thought, challenge it. Ask: Is that true? What else could be true? You will be amazed at how much clearer you think when you are not trapped in your own stories. Habit 3: Data-First, Not Drama-First Habit three is about data. Specifically, it is about making decisions based on what is happening, not what it feels like is happening. Here is what I mean. Many recruitment business owners run their businesses on mood. One good placement comes in, and it feels like things are going brilliantly. A candidate pulls out, and suddenly everything is terrible. That is drama-first thinking. And it leads to inconsistent decisions. What I want you to do is create a tiny daily dashboard. Nothing fancy. Just four or five numbers you look at every working day. Here is what I would suggest: How many new roles came in this week? How many shortlisted candidates are active? How many BD actions did you take, such as calls, messages, and conversations? How many visibility actions did you take, such as LinkedIn posts, content, or comments on client posts? Every day, take two minutes to look at those numbers. And ask yourself one question: “What is this data telling me to stop, start, or double down on today?” Maybe the data shows you had a great week for candidate shortlists, but you made no BD calls. That tells you where to focus today. Maybe the data shows you have posted three times on LinkedIn and got decent engagement, but you have not converted that into any conversations. That indicates you should include a call to action next time. Data-first thinking keeps your marketing and business development intentional, rather than reactive. It removes the drama from your decisions. Habit 4: Consistency Over Heroics Habit four is one I come back to again with the recruitment owners I work with. It is about consistency over heroics. Here is the pattern I see. An owner gets busy with delivery. BD and marketing slide. The pipeline empties. Panic sets in. They do a “big push, a flurry of calls, a burst of LinkedIn activity. A few leads come in. They get busy with deliveries again. The cycle repeats. This feast-or-famine approach is exhausting. And it does not work. What moves a recruitment business forward is consistency. Small, repeatable actions, every single working day. I call these your “minimum viable consistent actions.” They are the things you commit to doing even when you are busy, even when you do not feel like it. Here is what that might look like. Thirty to sixty minutes of focused BD or relationship-building, every working day. No exceptions. One small visibility action every day, whether that is a LinkedIn post, a thoughtful comment on a client’s content, or a useful insight shared in a DM. Notice I said “small.” I am not asking you to write a 2,000-word blog post every day. I am asking you to show up, consistently, in small ways. Here is the mindset shift. Instead of saying “I will do a big push when it is quieter, because let us be honest, it never really gets quieter, say this: “I touch my growth levers every single working day, even when it is busy.” And here is the identity piece. Start telling yourself: “I am the kind of owner who shows up, even when I do not feel like it.” That statement changes everything. Because once you believe it, you act on it. And once you act on it consistently, you

Last week, we talked about why strategic prioritisation matters and how it creates your unfair competitive advantage. We looked at how the spray-and-pray approach is costing you 5 times as much to acquire clients, resulting in 52% lower marketing ROI and 40% higher client churn. More importantly, we discussed how strategic prioritisation transforms your business: marketing spend decreases whilst results increase, you grow 30% faster, and you build sustainable competitive advantages that can’t be easily replicated. So now the question becomes: where exactly should you focus your limited resources for maximum impact as you plan for late 2025 and into 2026? Today, I’m going to walk you through the critical areas that research shows demand attention. Let’s dive in. What You’ll Learn in This Episode Identify your true business driver by analysing conversion data—discover which activities actually close deals versus those that just create awareness (one agency increased conversions 40% using this method) Niche specialisation delivers 300% higher profitability than generalist approaches, with specialist agencies filling roles 2.3x faster and commanding 20-30% premium fees Client retention strategies that boost profitability by 25-95% with just a 5% improvement, including proactive communication frameworks and multi-stakeholder engagement tactics The Lead Generation Triad framework for building predictable sales pipelines using current connections, content marketing, and systematic cold outreach 2026 recruitment marketing priorities, including AI-driven solutions (81% of agencies investing), social sourcing strategies, and authentic employer branding approaches Technology stack essentials that reduce time-to-fill by 60% and help agencies close 40% more deals through integrated CRM-ATS systems Identify Your Key Business Drivers Before you dive into any of these priority areas, there’s one critical step that far too many recruitment business owners skip: identifying your key business driver by reviewing actual conversion data. Here’s what I mean. I was speaking with an MD recently who was convinced that their time should be split equally across all their marketing activities. They were doing a bit of LinkedIn, a bit of email, some cold calling, and attending the occasional networking event. But when we sat down and analysed where their converted clients came from over the last two years, you know, the ones who signed terms and generated revenue, we discovered something fascinating. Their LinkedIn content was absolutely working. It was creating awareness, generating engagement, and booking initial meetings. But here’s the thing: those LinkedIn connections only converted into actual clients when they transitioned to messaging, face-to-face meetings, or structured follow-up calls. The pattern was clear: LinkedIn opened the door and built credibility, but it was the in-person meeting or the strategic phone conversation that closed the deal. Without that crucial next step, the LinkedIn engagement rarely converted to revenue. This revelation completely changed their strategic priorities. They didn’t stop posting on LinkedIn; it was a vital awareness tool. But they realised their true business driver was the face-to-face meeting. So, they restructured everything around getting more of those meetings and making them count. They used LinkedIn to create awareness and credibility, then systematically moved prospects toward booking virtual coffee meetings or office visits. The result? A 40% increase in client conversions over the next quarter. So, before you commit to any strategy for 2026, I want you to do this simple exercise: Look at your converted clients over the last two years. Trace back through the entire journey. What created the initial awareness? What built the credibility? And critically, what was the final touchpoint that actually converted them into a client? Was it a face-to-face meeting after connecting on LinkedIn? A follow-up call after they downloaded your content. A presentation at their office that you arranged through email outreach. Whatever that conversion moment was, that’s your key business driver. Everything else is supporting that driver. Once you’ve identified this, you can build your entire priority framework around creating more of those conversion moments, whilst using your other channels strategically to feed that pipeline.  Market Positioning and Niche Specialisation One of the most fundamental strategic decisions you face is whether to operate as a generalist or specialist agency. The evidence overwhelmingly favours niche specialisation for agencies seeking competitive advantage. Listen to these numbers: • Niche recruitment agencies fill roles 2.3 times faster than generalists because they know the industry inside and out. • They earn 3.2 times more referrals due to the trust and credibility that comes with deep industry expertise. • They command 20 to 30% higher fees thanks to demonstrated specialisation. • They achieve 89% client retention rates, far above the 62% average for generalists. • And they see a 300% boost in revenue and profitability compared to generalist counterparts. The qualification rates tell the story: niche recruiters achieve 20-25% qualification rates, compared to just 5-8% for generalists. With 72% of hiring managers struggling to fill specialised roles, niche agencies are uniquely positioned to meet this challenge. Client Relationship Management and Retention Though new client acquisition often dominates business development discussions, client retention represents one of the most profitable priorities. Here’s a stat that should make you sit up: increasing client retention by just 5% can boost profitability by 25-95%. Let me share some priority actions: Exceptional service delivery: The temps and contractors you place are your frontline ambassadors, but this principle applies equally to permanent placements. The care you show the people you’ve placed directly impacts on your client relationships. Research indicates that highly engaged placements are 59% more productive and 87% less likely to experience premature departure. When you invest in looking after the candidates you’ve placed, checking in regularly, and ensuring they’re settled and supported, this directly impacts client perception and repeat business. Your client views you as someone who prioritises the long-term success of placements, not just someone who fills roles and then disappears. Proactive communication: The best partnerships are built on regular, strategic conversations, not just transactional job orders. Quarterly hiring roadmap sessions keep you close to client businesses, even when they’re not actively hiring, transforming you from a vendor to a strategic partner. Value-added services: Agencies providing strategic insights into workforce management achieve 33% higher revenue growth than those focused solely on transactional recruitment. Sharing data-driven insights, market trends, and salary benchmarks positions your agency as indispensable. Multi-stakeholder engagement: Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator to identify key decision-makers beyond your primary contact. Companies increasingly want relationships at the strategic level where budget allocation decisions are made, not just where job orders are placed. Business Development and Lead Generation A robust, predictable sales pipeline separates recruitment companies that thrive from those that merely survive. We teach the Lead Generation Triad, which provides a framework for balanced business development: Current Connections: Your existing network of clients, candidates, and industry contacts represents your most valuable lead source. Regular re-engagement of your database through targeted campaigns can generate hundreds of downloads and follow-up opportunities. Content as a Convincer: Strategic content marketing establishes your agency as a trusted industry resource. Recruitment agencies with active blogs generate 126% more leads than those without consistent content publication. Cold Outreach: Whilst uncomfortable for many, systematic cold outreach, when done consistently across multiple channels (phone, direct messages, texts, video messages, emails), revolutionises business development over the long term. The key is integration: all three components working together create momentum across short, medium, and long-term horizons. Recruitment Marketing and Employer Branding As we look towards 2026, recruitment marketing capabilities have become essential competitive differentiators. Successful companies are prioritising: • Media diversification: Reducing dependency on just LinkedIn posts by using images, polls and videos on multiple platforms. • Employee advocacy programmes: Leveraging authentic employee-generated content to showcase company culture. • Candidate quality focus: Moving beyond volume metrics to emphasise quality of placements and long-term retention. If you haven’t listed/watched Sandra’s post on candidate care click here. • Content marketing: 45% of agencies plan to use content generation as a main tool for candidate and client attraction. • Social sourcing: 75% of agencies plan to utilise social sourcing strategies for candidate attraction. The shift is clear: recruitment marketing in 2025 and beyond requires authenticity, strategic channel selection, and consistent value delivery. Technology Investment and Automation An integrated tech stack that powers both growth and operational efficiency is potentially transformative for recruitment agencies in 2026. By the end of 2024, 81% of agencies were investing in AI-driven recruitment solutions, and 67% of recruiters believed that increased AI usage would be a top trend in 2025. Strategic technology priorities include: Integrated CRM and ATS systems: Disjointed systems cause inefficiencies, outdated data, slower sourcing, and missed opportunities. Research indicates that automation can reduce

Setting Sales and Marketing Priorities is the topic of the next couple of podcasts as we end one year and move on to the next. Sharon and I have been working with recruitment business owners for approaching nineteen years now, and there are a couple of things we see time and time again from brilliant recruitment owners. They are either stuck and inactive, waiting for the market to change, or they might be researching multiple tools and avoiding the real work. Or they start juggling several ideas that they have heard about, exhausting themselves with marketing and sales activities that won’t work for them because they haven’t got the basics dialled in first. Today, we’re going to start part one of a discussion that could transform the way you approach the rest of 2025 and into 2026: setting real priorities instead of the “spray and pray” approach many of us fall into under pressure. Here’s the thing: we all know deep down that being busy isn’t the same as being effective. But when you’re juggling client relationships, candidate pipelines, and multiple placements all at once, it’s so tempting to believe that doing more of everything will somehow yield better results. I’m going to share several things with you over the next two episodes that will help you understand where to focus your limited time and resources for maximum impact. Because the truth is, your competitors can outspend you on ads, hire fancy agencies, or temporarily outrank you in search results……However, they cannot replicate the authentic relationships you create by consistently showing up in your chosen areas, providing real value, and demonstrating genuine expertise. So, let’s dive in. Why “Spray and Pray” Is Costing You More Than You Think Let me start with something that might surprise you. Several pieces of marketing data reveal that a focused competitor might spend £500 to acquire a client, whereas an agency using a spray-and-pray approach could easily spend £2,500 or more for the same result. That’s five times more for the same outcome! However, what’s even more concerning is that this isn’t just about wasted spending. It’s about the opportunity cost of resources used ineffectively. Several studies demonstrate that organisations prioritising low-cost, scattered tactics over strategic focus experience a 52% lower marketing ROI and a 40% higher client churn rate within 18 months. Think about that for a moment. Not only are you spending more money, but you’re also losing clients faster. Resource Dilution: The Silent Killer The fundamental problem with spray-and-pray marketing is resource dilution. When you attempt to be everywhere at once, you spread your budget too thin, lack an integrated strategy, and fail to excel at anything. For recruitment businesses operating with limited resources, this scattergun approach not only wastes money but also prevents you from developing genuine expertise and market positioning. Here’s a fascinating statistic: companies that select fewer priority initiatives are 16% more likely to be in the top tier of their industry than those with many or no priority initiatives. Conversely, those with many or no priorities are 10% more likely to be in the bottom tier. The Hidden Costs Nobody Talks About Beyond the direct financial drain, unfocused strategies create several hidden costs that compound over time: First, there are wasted resources. Without a plan, you’re essentially throwing money at marketing tactics, hoping something sticks. Second, brand confusion. Inconsistent messaging across scattered campaigns erodes trust and makes it harder for clients to understand what you actually stand for. Third, missed opportunities. Whilst you’re busy executing unfocused activities, you’re missing golden moments to connect with your ideal clients. Fourth, poor attribution. Without focus, you can’t accurately measure what’s working, making it impossible to improve or justify your investment. The Strategic Alternative: What Happens When You Set Real Priorities Now, I don’t want you to think that strategic prioritisation is about doing less just for the sake of it. It’s not about being lazy or cutting corners. It’s about doing the right things with clarity and commitment. And the benefits? They’re transformative. Strategic prioritisation creates a single, forward-focused vision that can align your entire business. When a business owner understands their strategic priorities, they can make better daily decisions about where to focus their energy. One of the most immediate benefits of this level of prioritisation is the ability to allocate resources (budget, personnel, and technology) properly. Here’s what happens: • Marketing spend decreases whilst results increase: Focused campaigns deliver better returns than scattered efforts. • Faster sales growth: With effective pipeline management and strategic focus, recruitment organisations can accelerate growth significantly; SMEs working with a strategic plan grow 30% faster on average. And here is something else. A robust strategic plan provides a consistent framework for evaluating new initiatives as they arise. The recruitment market is dynamic and constantly changing. Still, with clear priorities, you can quickly assess whether a new opportunity aligns with your strategic direction or is a distraction in disguise. This is so important because every single day, you’re bombarded with “opportunities”: new marketing platforms, new AI tools, new networking groups, new partnerships. Having clear priorities gives you permission to say no to things that don’t serve your strategic goals. Your Unfair Competitive Advantage Recruitment, search and staffing companies that embrace strategic prioritisation position themselves to outperform competitors in several ways: Market differentiation: By focusing resources on specific areas, you can become genuinely excellent rather than merely adequate across many areas. Client confidence: Demonstrated expertise in priority areas builds trust and commands premium fees. Faster adaptation: When market conditions change, a clear strategic framework allows you to pivot intelligently rather than react chaotically. Sustainable growth: Focused strategies create predictable revenue streams and reduce the feast or famine cycle. And here’s the beautiful thing: trust is earned, not bought. Once you’ve earned it through strategic focus, it drives long-term growth. What’s Coming in Episode 2 So now you understand why strategic prioritisation matters and the competitive advantage it creates. You can see how the spray-and-pray approach is costing you far more than just money, and you understand the transformative benefits of setting real priorities. But here’s the question everyone asks me: “Denise, this all makes sense, but WHERE exactly should I focus?” That’s what we’re going to dive into in next week’s episode. I’m going to walk you through the seven critical priority areas that research shows drive real results for recruitment businesses in 2026. We’ll cover everything from niche specialisation and client retention to the technology investments that actually matter. Thanks Denise   The post Setting Sales and Marketing Priorities For Your Recruitment Business Part One appeared first on Superfast Recruitment.

This week’s post and podcast is about candidate aftercare and why it matters more than you might think. I’m chatting with Sandra Karamitelios from Recruitment Central in Australia, who’s been in the recruitment industry for over 20 years. She’s transformed her agency’s approach to aftercare, turning what was once a loose, repetitive process into a structured programme that adds real value for both candidates and clients. If you’ve ever wondered whether your aftercare efforts truly make a difference, or if you’re going through the motions, this conversation will provide you with fresh ideas to strengthen your approach. How I Accidentally Became A Recruiter I literally fell into recruitment a bit accidentally. I got a job in a recruitment agency, and the next thing I knew, the temp girl went on annual leave. My manager said, ‘Sandra, you can run a temp desk.’ Of course I can, right? So it just snowballed from there. I worked with an agency for a while, handling various tasks. Then I accidentally had this opportunity to set up my own company, which I’d never really wanted to do. I grew up in a family business, and I didn’t want to own my own business. But here I am many years later. We started in 2003. We work across the shared services sector, encompassing operational, accounting, and HR services, among others. We have a big focus on temporary staff. We’re based in Brisbane, but we recruit primarily across Australia. Generally, we do more work in Sydney and Brisbane than anywhere else. That tends to be our sweet spot. The Moment I Realised Our Aftercare Needed Work We’ve always had an aftercare programme. It’s always been something the business has had, but it was just a bit loose. It was the usual follow-up on the first day, the first month, the third month, the sixth month, and those kinds of things. I just felt like I was ringing people, saying, ‘How’s it going?’ And I felt like I was being a bit repetitive. The gap for me was that we were doing these check-ins, but no one was really offering anything helpful to our candidates. The recruiters would call and say hello, and candidates would respond that everything was fine, but there was no structure or depth to what we were doing. Then one day, I sat down and thought, ‘Okay, I really want to fix this programme because I just feel so bored when I do it.’ I thought about all the things I’d heard from people about their first day, about starting a new job. Also, from managers, what they’d heard about people coming on board for their team. The same things kept coming up. Things like, I didn’t have a computer ready, there were no logins, my manager wasn’t there on my first day, and I didn’t know where to park my car. There are many little things that people sometimes get annoyed about. Or a candidate would turn up and they didn’t even bring a notebook to write notes for their first day, or something like that. I started thinking about how I could add some value. But me being me, I couldn’t stop at just the first day. It had to be the first week, then the first month, and then I thought, well, what else can we do? So I just started adding more and more things that I thought would help. I put myself in their shoes and thought, ‘How would I feel, and what would help me in a better situation, starting a new job or managing a new person?’ What Happens When The First Day Goes Wrong Mostly, they feel undervalued. They’ve gone through this recruitment process. They might have had two or three interviews. They’ve gone for coffee with the manager. They’re really excited, and they’re nervous on their first day. They don’t know anybody. They don’t know the expectations, those kinds of things. Then, when they arrive and there’s no login, no computer, and no desk, a couple of weeks ago, there was no manager for the first time. They feel like they were really valued, and then they dropped the ball. They can also feel a bit lost because they’re going in and have to prove themselves. I’ve come in to do this job, and they arrive and don’t have any of the necessary tools to do their job. No one’s really there to help them. Little things like, did someone show them around for the first day? Did someone say that it’s a really quiet office and nobody talks to each other? We all email or WhatsApp, just those kinds of rules of engagement. People feel let down. Where Recruitment Agencies Often Miss The Mark I think they fall down because maybe they’re a bit like us. Not enough structure, not knowing what to say when they rang. But also, there’s probably that feeling of there’s nothing in it for them. Will they actually receive a return on investment? When you’re busy with recruiting and have lots going on, it’s very easy to have aftercare as the thing you do when you’re not doing anything else. When actually, if you make it part of your everyday process, like just another step in the recruitment funnel, it makes it a lot easier. For permanent placements, we have a guarantee period. That period is anywhere from eight weeks to three months, depending on the client. So for us, that is our core focus. We want to ensure that we’re protecting that fee by setting our candidate up for success from day one. However, I think we received really good feedback from clients, saying, ‘Your aftercare programme is brilliant.’ When we first launched it, I think we had about 20 people go through the programme. We contacted every single client and said, ‘What did you think about our new aftercare programme?’ Every single one said it was excellent. We had one particular client whose HR manager rang us and said, ‘I’ve received a new starter guide for the manager and one for the candidate. Can we use this as our new starter process for everybody coming on board?’ So that was a bit of a wow moment for us. That made it really clear that we were adding value beyond just the placement. Building A Structure That Actually Works If an owner is listening who thinks, as I mentioned at the beginning, that we do a bit but we could do better, we could be slicker, and we could add more value, I think the first thing I would put in place is actually just a process timeline. Create a structure that works for your business. The fact that I’m doing pre-start, start, week one, month one may be completely irrelevant depending on what you’re recruiting for and who you’re placing. But make it something that you can actually stick to. If you make it every single week, you’ll probably fall. I think every agency can adapt to what suits their personal rhythm within their business. And then just be consistent with that timeline. Actually stick to it. If you start with a larger first step, you can always add more steps as needed. But you can start with that overview and then go, ‘Oh, that’s really working nicely,’ and add in more. Use Surveys And Feedback Loops The second thing I would suggest is a survey or a feedback loop. People on the phone may not always tell you what they really want to say, but I find that they will often express their true thoughts in some form of feedback or survey, especially when allowed to write freely. People will generally always write something in there. I’m always surprised at what people will write. You don’t have to add another subscription and another piece of software to your repertoire. Many people use Office 365 or Gmail. G Suite also offers tools that you can utilise. We use forms, and it’s super easy. Conducting a survey and gathering feedback allows you to collect data, enabling you actually to start seeing what’s happening. If you’re getting lots of ones on how a first day went with a client that you’ve placed 20 people with, you’re going to have an alarm bell. These people don’t have a first day that goes well. I need to prep my candidates and say, ‘Listen, this company, day one, things don’t always go smoothly. Just be aware that it could not always go well.’ I have one particular client where we onboard temporary staff, and they have to log into Amazon Workspaces. It is incredibly frustrating because they have to log in from their personal account, create an account, set a password, and then reset their password. The day goes on a bit like that, with reading this and then that. By lunchtime, they’re pretty depressed. All of my candidates who go to this company are aware that this will be their first day. Their first day is probably going to be depressing. Make sure you go out and have a really nice lunch because the afternoon probably won’t get any better. But day two will be great because they’re set up and they’ve read all the boring confidentiality stuff. Add Practical Value At Every Touchpoint The third thing I think is to consider how you are adding value to the conversation or whatever you’re providing to them. Something that’s practical for them. At every touchpoint, think about whether this is useful to my candidate and the client sector. The resource, the guide, the conversation, whatever it is, really think about that value adding. Thanks to Superfast, there are a couple of things in my aftercare programme that have received an upgrade, thanks to some of the information I received from you. One of the main things I really love is that we send out a career growth planner at month 12. Many people might view it as an opportunity to plan their next job. However, we’ve used that thinking to help them move forward with their career at that company. We also tie in personal branding, which is another resource I acquired from Superfast. The Real Secret: Making It Easy To Follow I don’t think it’s really that hard to do this, but I think what is hard is actually sitting down and creating the process and then working with it and tweaking it as you go along. Change is always the hard thing. For me, one of the things was thinking about month 12. We’d had them through their rebate or guarantee period. We’d had them through their probation. They were established in their job. What can we do to ad

This week’s post and podcast are about recruitment pricing strategies and how to communicate the real value of your services. This podcast is one of our expert interviews, where I got an opportunity to speak to Jon Brooks, who has a unique position in our industry. He’s the only person in the world who specialises exclusively in helping recruitment companies with pricing strategies. We covered everything from why 66% of recruitment work goes unpaid on contingent models to the surprising truth about winning retained business. If you’ve ever struggled to justify your fees or wondered how to move away from contingent work, this conversation is packed with practical insights you can use immediately. Understanding The Value Problem in Recruitment Jon started his career at Reed, one of the UK’s biggest recruitment brands, working directly with founder Sir Alec Reed. That experience taught him something fundamental about business: when you create different services, you need to price them differently. If you price everything the same way, it looks the same to your clients. Here’s the thing: Price isn’t just a number. It’s a signal. It positions what you do. If you launch a new service and charge the same as your existing offering, clients will think it’s just fancy words with no real difference. But when your price reflects genuine value, it helps define and position what you’re actually selling. Jon worked with a management consultancy that specialised in value and pricing. The consultants had never worked in recruitment before. They came from law firms, global engineering companies, and manufacturing businesses. That outside perspective was gold. It showed him how other industries think about pricing and how those principles could work for recruitment consultants sitting with clients. He left Reed about six or seven years ago to build his consultancy. The timing was questionable (just before COVID), but he’s been helping recruitment owners ever since. Interestingly, every agency must get pricing right, yet hardly anyone focuses on it properly. We all learn on the job, but research and knowledge from other sectors can make a huge difference. Why Recruitment Has a Future Despite AI We talked about AI and technology and whether recruitment has a future. It’s a fair question. LinkedIn allows anyone to find anyone, yet recruitment and search businesses have become more valuable since it became mainstream. Fees have increased, and we are more important than ever. AI is bringing massive change, that’s certain. We’re already seeing AI-generated applications overwhelm hiring managers. However, recruitment companies have always adapted to technology shifts. Think about the journey from motorbike couriers driving CVs around London to digital databases, job boards, and LinkedIn. People predicted the end of recruiters; companies found new ways to add value each time. Here’s Jon’s prediction: AI tools that help manage candidate applications won’t be cheap. Individual hiring managers in most companies won’t get access to the best solutions because they only recruit occasionally. It’s too expensive to give every manager premium AI tools. However, a smart recruitment company can invest in these solutions and spread the cost across hundreds of clients. That’s what companies have always done brilliantly. You invest in LinkedIn licences because you use them constantly across multiple clients. The same principle will apply to AI recruitment tools. Companies will have access to better technology, processes, and ways to cut through the noise. Your value will be in helping clients through the complexity that AI is creating. The Real Difference Between Contingent and Retained Let’s discuss the truth of contingent recruitment. Jon laid it out clearly: with a typical success rate of 33%, you’re not getting paid for your work 66% of the time. That’s devastating for your business and your self-worth. It affects how you value yourself and your services. But here’s the mistake most companies make when trying to move to retained work: They sell the retainer and list all the benefits of retained recruitment. They’re doing the right thing, tactically focusing on benefits rather than features, but strategically, they’re getting it completely wrong. A retainer is just a payment schedule. There’s no intrinsic value in when money gets paid. The value is in your service, not in the timing of payments. If you explain why retention is better for you, clients will immediately see through it. They’re not interested in what’s better for your business. So, what’s the answer? Create demand for your service, not for the retainer. When clients desperately want to work with you, they’ll pay whatever you ask. They’ll work to your terms. It becomes a non-issue. Jon gave a brilliant example. When he was putting together his book, he’d seen a designer whose work he loved online. He thought, “If I ever make a book, that’s the person I want.” When the time came, he was willing to pay pretty much anything within his budget. He would have paid upfront, in instalments, however the designer wanted. The demand was so high that payment terms didn’t matter. That’s what you need to create with your clients. Get them to the point where they say, “Yes, I really want to work with you. How can I work with you?” Then it’s easy to say: “You pay some fee now, some more later, and here’s how it works.” They’ll say yes because they’ve already decided they want to work with you. Think about any supplier you’ve desperately wanted to work with. Maybe it was a particular consultant, a software provider, or a service you’d heard brilliant things about. When you finally got to work with them, did you quibble about payment terms? Probably not. You were just pleased they had space for you. That’s the position you want to be in with your clients. How To Actually Demonstrate Your Value Most recruitment companies already have huge value within them. The problem isn’t that the value doesn’t exist. The problem is that clients can’t see it. You’re not presenting it in a way that makes it obvious. Jon broke this down into a simple framework. First, you need to understand your value. What do you do that’s genuinely different and better? Then, you need to map that value to your clients’ concerns. What keeps them awake at night? What problems are they trying to solve? Finally, and this is the crucial bit, you must present it so that clients can immediately understand and recognise that value. Think about your typical client conversation. You might be brilliant at finding passive candidates, understanding company culture, and managing complex stakeholder processes. But they won’t see the value if you’re not articulating those capabilities in language that resonates with your client’s situation. They’ll see another recruiter offering to find them people. Here’s what changes everything: specificity. Instead of saying, “We have a great network,” say, “We placed three finance directors in your sector in the last six months, including one who increased their company’s profitability by 40% in the first year.” Instead of saying, “We understand your market,” say, “We’ve tracked salary movements in your region for five years and can show you exactly why you’re losing candidates at the offer stage.” Value is always in the client’s eye. What matters to them? What outcomes are they trying to achieve? When you can draw a direct line from what you do to outcomes they care about, pricing conversations become completely different. This is where most companies fall. They know they’re good at their work, and their clients tell them they’re happy. But can they articulate exactly why they’re better than the five companies the client could call? Can they explain their value in concrete, measurable terms? Usually not. And that’s why they compete on price or get pushed into contingent terms. Let’s get practical about this. Say you specialise in engineering recruitment. You don’t just say “we know the engineering market.” You say: “We’ve placed 47 engineers in the last 18 months with an average time to hire of 32 days, compared to the industry average of 58 days. That means your projects start faster, you beat competitors to market, and you save roughly £15,000 per hire in lost productivity.” See the difference? One is vague. The other is concrete, specific, and directly tied to business outcomes the client cares about. That second version makes it easy for a client to justify your fee because they can see exactly what they’re getting and why it matters. Building Your Value Proposition Step by Step Jon emphasised that this isn’t about making things up or exaggerating what you do. It’s about being honest and clear about the value you deliver. Start with what you know. Look at your last ten placements. How long did they take? What happened next? Did those people perform well? What feedback did you get? Then think about your process. What do you do that other companies don’t? Maybe you interview every candidate face-to-face. Perhaps you do reference checks that go beyond the standard questions. Maybe you provide market intelligence reports with every search. Possibly you have a 12-month guarantee. These things all have value, but only if you articulate them clearly. Now consider your relationships. Do you have access to passive candidates who aren’t on job boards? Do you understand the culture of companies in your sector well enough to predict who’ll fit? Have you built trust with candidates so they tell you things they wouldn’t say to another recruiter? This is valuable, but clients won’t know about it unless you tell them. The key is connecting all these capabilities to client outcomes. Don’t just list what you do. Explain what it means for them. “We interview every candidate face-to-face” becomes “We interview every candidate face-to-face, which means you only meet people we’ve thoroughly assessed for cultural fit, saving you

Here’s a question: What if I told you there’s a marketing tool that converts and educates your prospects about what they need, AND makes them genuinely like you more? Sounds too good to be true. Stay with me because we’re talking about quiz and assessment marketing, and no, this isn’t some gimmicky Buzzfeed “Which sandwich are you?” situation. This strategic business asset is changing the game for B2B companies, especially in professional services like recruitment. By the end of this episode, you’ll understand why quiz marketing is exploding right now, how it solves multiple business problems simultaneously, and most importantly, how you can implement this in your business. Let’s get into it. Why Assessment Marketing is Powerful Let’s discuss what makes quizzes and assessments valuable to your marketing toolkit. You’re probably already doing great work with your marketing, creating content, building relationships, and establishing your expertise. And that’s brilliant. But here’s what’s exciting: quizzes and assessments offer something that complements everything you do. Here’s what makes them unique: They’re interactive rather than passive. Instead of reading or watching content, your prospects are actively participating. They’re clicking, thinking, and engaging with your brand in a way that creates a different kind of connection. They’re personalised from the start. Every person who takes your assessment gets results tailored specifically to their situation, not general advice that might apply to them, but specific insights about where they are right now. They provide immediate value. There’s no waiting, no “we’ll get back to you.” When someone completes your assessment, they receive insights they can use immediately. That instant gratification creates a powerful positive association with your brand. And here’s the fascinating bit: while your prospects discover insights about their business, you’re also learning about them. They voluntarily share information about their challenges, goals, and priorities; not because you’re asking intrusive questions, but because the process is valuable to them.  Getting Remarkable Results We’re not talking about entertainment quizzes. We’re talking about diagnostic tools wrapped in an engaging experience. Think of it as a conversation starter that provides value. But it’s not just about the numbers, it’s about the psychology. Think about the last time you took a quiz or assessment. What happened? You got curious. You wanted to know where you stood. You kept clicking to find out more. And when you got those results, you felt like you learnt something valuable. This is the psychology of self-discovery at work because humans inherently need to understand themselves. About 80% of people use personality or diagnostic quizzes at least monthly. Each question answered triggers a small dopamine hit, which your brain rewards you for making progress. And when you reach the results? That’s a sense of accomplishment. Here’s the beautiful part for business owners: While all this is happening, your prospects are actively educating themselves about their challenges, gaps, and opportunities. They’re not being told they are discovering, and that makes all the difference in how they receive and act on the information. The Dual Power: Diagnostic Value and Rapport Building Let me break down why assessment marketing is particularly powerful for business owners. It serves two critical purposes simultaneously. Purpose Number One: Diagnostic Value Most of your ideal clients don’t fully understand their own problems. They know something’s not working but can’t pinpoint exactly what or why. A well-designed assessment helps them: Identify specific gaps they didn’t even realise existed Benchmark themselves against industry standards Recognise pain points they couldn’t articulate before Understand the urgency of addressing these issues When someone takes your assessment and sees their results, they’re not being sold to—they’re getting an objective evaluation. You’re positioning yourself as the expert diagnostician who understands their challenges deeply. This creates a different kind of relationship from the start; one built on insight and expertise rather than just promotion. Purpose Number Two: Rapport Building Through Engagement Here’s something that’s often underestimated: Quizzes break down psychological barriers uniquely. Something powerful happens when you lead with education and insight through an interactive experience. Your prospect’s defences naturally lower. They’re having an enjoyable, valuable experience. They’re interacting with your brand helpfully and collaboratively. The “fun factor” of interactive content creates positive brand associations. The interactive format makes it engaging even if the topic is a serious business strategy. And here’s the key: By providing immediate, personalised insights for free, you demonstrate genuine interest in helping, not just selling. You’re giving them transparency about what they need before you ever ask for a meeting or a sale. This builds trust at a foundational level. Trust that translates into warmer leads, shorter sales cycles, and higher conversion rates down the line. The Power of Personalisation Now let’s talk about something that should excite every business owner: data. When someone takes your quiz, you’re collecting gold: Their specific pain points and challenges Their current situation and goals Budget and timeline indicators Decision-making authority What they prioritise most This isn’t invasive because they volunteer this information in exchange for value. Making it Practical Okay, so you’re probably thinking: “This sounds great, but how do I actually do this?” Let me make this practical. Start with the right quiz type. For business owners, I recommend starting with a diagnostic assessment. Something like: How Effective Is Your Talent Attraction Strategy? Is Your Business Ready to Scale? This positions you as the expert while providing genuine value. Keep it focused. Six to ten questions is the sweet spot for B2B audiences. You want completion rates above 65%, so don’t make it too long. Target under 7 minutes to complete. Structure your questions strategically. Start with easy, engaging questions to build rapport and momentum. Then move into more specific business questions. Include one or two qualifying questions about budget, timeline, or authority and make them natural, not pushy. Make the results page powerful. This is where the magic happens. Your results page should include: Personalised insights interpreting their score Specific, actionable recommendations Social proof testimonials or case studies A clear next step with a strong call-to-action Build the follow-up sequence. This is crucial. When someone completes your quiz, trigger an automated email sequence: Immediately: Send their detailed results Day 2-3: Deep dive into their specific challenge Day 5-7: Share a relevant case study Day 10-14: Provide educational content addressing their gaps Day 14-21: Invite them to the next step, maybe a consultation Platform-wise, tools like ScoreApp or Typeform make this incredibly easy. You can build your first quiz in 20-30 minutes using templates. You don’t need to be technical. The investment is minimal, usually £20-100 per month for a platform, but the returns are exponential compared to traditional lead generation. Your Next Step Experience It Yourself Now, I believe in practising what we preach. If you are curious about the current state of your marketing, we’ve created an assessment designed specifically for recruitment search and staffing owners based on our insights from working with clients over the last eighteen years. The Client and Candidate Attraction Scorecard is a perfect example of today’s discussion. In just 3 minutes, you’ll get a personalised snapshot of your current marketing across five critical areas: Goal Clarity and Strategic Focus Your Offer and Value Proposition Brand and Positioning Lead Generation Effectiveness Implementation and Measurement You’ll receive instant results showing where you’re strong and where small, focused improvements could make a significant difference. No fluff just actionable insights tailored to your business. You’ll see what we’ve been discussing firsthand. You’ll experience how engaging and valuable a well-designed assessment can be. You’ll understand why these convert so much better than traditional lead magnets. To take your free scorecard, go to superfastrecruitment.co.uk/scorecard. After you get your results, we offer a complimentary 45-minute Marketing Strategy Consultation. In this consultation, we’ll review your scorecard in detail, identify your highest-impact opportunities, and outline specific next steps. There is no pressure or obligation; just practical strategies you can implement immediately. Let’s wrap this up with the key takeaway: Quiz and assessment marketing is a powerful addition to your marketing toolkit. It engages prospects through interactive, personalised experiences that provide genuine insight. By combining diagnostic value with engaging experience, you’re not just generating leads—you’re pre-qualifying them, educating them, building trust, and personalising their journey, all automatically and at scale. Recruitment business owners who implement this alongside their existing marketing will have multiple touchpoints to engage prospects differently. You’re giving people options for how they want to interact with your brand; that flexibility is valuable. So, here’s my challenge to you: Take that first step. Experience the scorecard at superfastrecruitment.co.uk/scorecard and experience how it feels from your prospect’s perspective. Then start thinking about what assessment you could create for your own business. Because here’s the truth: Your ideal clients are out there right now, trying to figure out what they need. They’re looking for clarity and dir

Today, I want to share something that happened recently that completely changed how I think about our business—and it might just transform how you think about yours, too. So, I’ve just moved house. And if you’ve ever moved, you know it’s chaos, right? Boxes everywhere, trying to find the kettle, wondering where you packed your phone charger… But, moving forced me to do something I hadn’t done properly in months, maybe even a year: I stopped. Not by choice, really. I had to stop. And at that stop, something fascinating happened. I started seeing our business differently. I began noticing patterns I’d been too busy to spot. I realised I’d been so caught up in the day-to-day that I’d stopped asking myself the most important question: “Is what I’m doing actually working?” Here’s the irony – and I’m smiling as I say this – we help recruitment businesses with their marketing strategy. We’re always telling our clients to take time to plan, review, step back, and look at the big picture. But was I doing that myself? Not really. So today, I want to discuss the power of taking a break—a real strategic pause. What if I told you that the fastest way to grow your recruitment business might be to stop and think? Let’s dive in. The Recruitment Hamster Wheel Let me paint you a picture. I bet it sounds familiar. You wake up and check your emails before getting out of bed. What if there’s a hot vacancy? You get to your desk, and your day explodes. There’s the client who needs someone yesterday. There’s the candidate who’s just received a counteroffer. There’s the interview feedback you need to chase. The LinkedIn messages. The job ads that need writing. The screening calls. The candidate who ghosted. The client who has suddenly changed the brief. And then… you blink, and it’s 6 pm. You’ve been busy all day – you’ve barely had time for lunch – but when you sit back and think, “What did I actually achieve today?” sometimes the answer is… not as much as you’d hoped. This is what I call the Recruitment Hamster Wheel. You’re running fast, working hard, and busy, but are you moving forward? Here’s the uncomfortable truth: busy does not equal effective. In fact, I’d argue that being constantly busy can be dangerous for your business. Why? Because when you’re stuck in the day-to-day, you miss things. You miss that your market is shifting, and the skills clients need are changing. You miss that the BD activity you’re doing every week isn’t bringing in new clients. You miss that one of your “big” clients costs you more time than they’re worth. You miss that you’re marketing to the wrong people, in the wrong way. You miss the forest because you’re staring at individual trees all day. I was doing this, too. We work with recruitment companies worldwide—UK, Australia, US, Canada—and we’re passionate about helping them build effective marketing systems. But when my house move forced me to slow down, I realised I’d been so busy delivering for clients that I hadn’t stopped to ask what we needed to do differently. The cost of never stepping back isn’t just missed opportunities; it’s burnout, frustration, and that feeling of working harder and harder but not really getting anywhere. Sound familiar? What Reflection Reveals Okay, so here’s where it gets interesting. When you take that pause and create space to reflect, you start seeing things you couldn’t see before. Let me share what happened to me during my break. We’ve been creating marketing content for recruitment businesses for over 17 years. We have systems, templates, and frameworks—we know what works. But during my two weeks of forced downtime, I started really looking at our own numbers. I noticed something: We were spending a disproportionate amount of time on one particular type of marketing activity, but when I traced it back to actual results, it wasn’t delivering. Meanwhile, something else we’d been doing almost on autopilot was quietly bringing in our best clients. How did I miss this? Because I was too busy to stop and assess. This is the 80/20 rule in action, which applies to every recruitment business. 20% of your clients probably generate 80% of your revenue – but do you know which ones? 20% of your marketing efforts probably generate 80% of your leads – but are you focusing on those? 20% of your sectors or specialisms might be where your real competitive advantage lies – but are you positioning yourself there? Taking a break – taking time to reflect – reveals these patterns. When I stepped back, some questions emerged for me, and I bet they’ll resonate with you. First, which clients are actually profitable? Not just in fees, but in your time? We all have that client who pays well but is so high-maintenance that the hourly rate is actually terrible. Second, which marketing activities work? Are you posting on LinkedIn because it works, or because everyone says you should? Are your email campaigns generating meetings, or just sitting unread? Third, what’s changed in your market that you’ve missed? AI is transforming recruitment. The skills candidates need are evolving. Hybrid working has changed what clients want. Have you adapted, or are you still recruiting like it’s 2019? Fourth, where are you reacting instead of leading? Are you chasing jobs, or are clients coming to you? Are you always on the back foot, or are you seen as the expert? During my reflection, I realised we needed to shift our focus. We’d been creating general recruitment marketing content, but what our clients really needed was more specific, more strategic, more focused support. That insight didn’t come from working harder – it came from stopping long enough to listen to what the market was telling us. And I bet if you stopped long enough, you’d uncover insights just as valuable for your business. Working On Versus In Your Business Alright, let’s talk about something that might sting a little. Most recruiters – and I say this with love, because we work with recruiters every day – most recruiters spend 100% of their time working in their business and 0% working on it. What’s the difference? Working in your business means taking job specs, screening candidates, making placements, chasing feedback, and filling the pipeline. Working on your business means defining your niche and positioning, building a marketing strategy, creating systems that work without you, planning which clients to target, and asking, “Where do I want this business to be in 12 months?” Here’s the reality: if you only work in your business, you don’t have a business—you have a job—a busy, stressful, self-employed job. Taking a strategic break forces you to work on your business. When you step back, you can’t just keep doing the same tasks—you have to think differently. Here are the questions that strategic breaks force you to confront. Are my BD efforts targeting the right clients? Maybe you’re focusing on big corporates because they have many roles, but your sweet spot is growing SMEs who need a trusted partner. Maybe you’re spread too thin across sectors when you should be niching down. Is my marketing consistent or reactive? Be honest – is your LinkedIn presence a coherent strategy, or do you post when you remember? Are you building brand awareness or just hoping referrals keep coming? We see this all the time. Recruitment businesses will tell us, “Marketing doesn’t work for us,” but when we dig deeper, they’ve never actually done marketing. They’ve done random posting, sent a few emails, and tried LinkedIn for a week. That’s not marketing—that’s dabbling. Am I building a business or just a job? Could your business run without you for a week? Do you have processes, systems, and a brand identity? Or is everything dependent on you personally picking up the phone? One of our clients—let’s call him Mark—is a tech recruiter. He’s a great guy and excellent at building relationships. But when we first met him, he was working 60-hour weeks and felt like he was barely keeping up. We asked him to take a strategic Friday afternoon—just one afternoon—to map out where his revenue was actually coming from. One client he’d been chasing for two years had given him exactly two placements. Meanwhile, a smaller client he’d almost overlooked had given him twelve. He’d been so busy “doing the work” that he’d never stopped to see which work was worth doing. After that reflection, Mark shifted his focus. Six months later, his revenue was up 30%, and he was working fewer hours—not because he worked harder—but because he worked smarter. That’s the power of working on your business instead of just in it. I know what you’re thinking: “This sounds great, but I can’t just stop. I’ve got placements to make, clients to serve, a business to run!” I get it. But here’s the good news – you don’t need to move house to create strategic thinking time. Let me show you how. How to Take a Strategic Break Okay, let’s get practical. Because I promise you, your business won’t fall apart if you take time to think strategically. In fact, it’ll probably get stronger. Here are three ways to build strategic breaks into your routine – no house move required. The Quarterly CEO Day Block out a full day – ideally away from your office – four times a year to review your business. Book it in your diary like you would a client meeting. Because if you don’t schedule it, it won’t happen. What do you do on this day? Review your numbers – what’s working and what isn’t. Assess your marketing – are you visible and reaching the right people? Look at your client mix – are you working with the right companies? Set your priorities for the next quarter – what’s the one big thing you need to focus on? I do this every quarter now, transforming how I run our business. I put “CEO Day” in my calendar, and my team knows not to book anything. The Friday Afternoon Reflection If a full day feels impossible, start smaller. Every Friday afternoon, from 2 p.m. onwards, step back from the operational work. There will be

How often have you spent hours crafting the perfect blog post, hit publish, shared it once on LinkedIn, and then watched it disappear into the digital abyss? If you’re nodding along, you’re not alone. Most recruitment business owners treat their blog posts like one-hit wonders, missing out on the goldmine of content opportunities under their noses. Here’s the truth: creating quality blog content takes considerable time and effort, but the real magic happens when you multiply its impact through strategic repurposing. One well-researched blog post can fuel weeks of content across multiple channels. In last week’s podcast, we discussed the foundations of content marketing. This week, we’re diving into the practical side—how to extract maximum value from every single blog post you publish. 1. LinkedIn Carousel Posts Transform your blog’s key points into visually engaging LinkedIn carousels. Break down your main insights into 5-7 slides with compelling headlines and supporting visuals. This format performs exceptionally well on LinkedIn and positions you as a thought leader in your niche. 2. Video Scripts, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn Reels Convert your blog outline into video scripts for talking head content. Use your blog’s structure as a natural flow for your video, addressing each main point as a separate segment. This works particularly well for educational content and industry insights. Extract quotable moments, statistics, or quick tips from your blog to create short-form video content. These bite-sized insights work perfectly for Reels and can drive traffic back to your full blog post. Pro tip: Record multiple short videos from one blog post – one for each main section. 3. LinkedIn Newsletters and 4. Email Newsletters It is so easy to use your blog as your newsletter. Ask your favourite AI tool to make it more like a newsletter, and you’ll be ready. Break your comprehensive blog posts into digestible email segments sent over multiple days or weeks. This approach keeps your audience engaged while providing deep value from a single piece of content. 5. Podcast Episode Topics Use your blog posts as detailed show notes or expand them into full podcast episodes. The research is already done, and you have a clear structure to follow for engaging audio content. Bonus: Invite guests to discuss the topics you’ve covered in your blog posts for additional perspectives. 6. Social Media Quote Graphics Pull compelling statistics, quotes, or key insights from your blog and turn them into shareable graphics. These work across all social platforms and help establish your expertise. Design tip: Create a consistent template that reflects your brand for easy recognition. 7. Lead Magnets and Downloadable Resources Transform comprehensive blog posts into PDF guides, checklists, or templates that serve as lead magnets. To add extra value, include worksheets or action steps not found in the original post. 8. Email Signature Content Include links to your most valuable blog posts in your email signature, rotating them monthly to continuously promote different pieces of content in your regular business communications. 9. Client Presentation Materials Use insights, statistics, and frameworks from your blog posts in client presentations and proposals. This demonstrates your expertise while providing valuable context for your services. Application: Reference your industry research blog posts when discussing market challenges with prospects. 10. Multi-Platform Content Campaigns Create themed campaigns around your blog topics, sharing related content across multiple platforms simultaneously. Use the blog as your cornerstone content, then create platform-specific variations. Campaign example: Blog post: “2025 Recruitment Trends” LinkedIn: Professional insights post Instagram: Behind-the-scenes Reel of research process Email: Key findings summary Podcast: Deep dive discussion Stop letting your blog posts gather digital dust after one share. Your content deserves to work harder for your business. Thanks Denise and Sharon How We Can Help If you’re ready to maximise your content impact and want guidance on strategic repurposing, we can help. Our Superfast Circle program provides recruitment business owners with ready-to-use blog posts, frameworks, templates, and support required to turn one blog post into weeks of engaging content. We help you develop systematic content multiplication strategies whilst building your authority to stand out in today’s competitive recruitment market. The post 10 Ways to Leverage a Single Blog Post for Maximum Impact appeared first on Superfast Recruitment.

Today, we’re tackling a question I hear from recruitment business owners: “Is blogging really worth it anymore? Everyone’s talking about TikTok, LinkedIn videos, and AI chatbots. Why should I invest time in blogs?” While the digital landscape keeps evolving at breakneck speed, the data tells a completely different story. Companies that blog are seeing 67% more leads than those that don’t. Blog-driven leads close at 14.6% compared to just 1.7% for leads from other sources, while social posts rarely drive direct conversions above 2%. But here’s what makes this even more interesting for recruitment agencies: you’re one of the few B2B businesses serving two completely different audiences – clients needing hiring and candidates needing jobs. That dual-audience challenge isn’t a problem – it’s your secret weapon, if you know how to use it. Today, I’m sharing six data-backed reasons why blogging isn’t just alive for recruitment agencies – it’s thriving. And by the end of this episode, you’ll have a clear action plan to either launch or supercharge your agency blog in 2025. The Unique Recruitment Challenge Before we discuss the six reasons, let’s acknowledge what makes recruitment marketing uniquely challenging—and why that’s actually your advantage. Most B2B businesses have one target audience. Software companies sell to IT managers, marketing agencies sell to CMOs, and accountants sell to finance directors. You? You’re simultaneously attracting hiring managers who need talent AND professionals who need opportunities. You’re creating content for the CEO looking for a senior developer AND the senior developer looking for their next role. This dual-audience challenge means your blog content can work twice as hard. A single post about “The Future of Remote Work in Tech” attracts both tech professionals considering new opportunities AND companies planning their remote work policies. But here’s where most agencies get it wrong—they try to create generic content that appeals to everyone and ultimately fails to engage anyone. The agencies winning with blogs in 2025 understand that specific, valuable content attracts audiences more effectively than bland, one-size-fits-all posts. Now, let’s look at exactly why blogs are delivering measurable results for recruitment agencies right now. Reason 1: SEO and Organic Discovery Drive High-Intent Traffic  The Data: Businesses with blogs see 434% more indexed pages and 55% more website visitors than those without. This translates directly into more candidate applications and client inquiries for recruitment agencies. This matters more in 2025 than ever: when someone searches “best recruitment agency for software engineers in Manchester” or “how to find senior marketing roles,” they’re not casually browsing. They have a specific need, right now. Your blog posts targeting these searches capture people when they’re ready to engage. Practical Takeaway: Audit your most successful placements from the last six months. What questions did clients and candidates ask during those processes? Turn each common question into a detailed blog post. For example, “How long does executive recruitment typically take?” becomes a 1,500-word guide that attracts executives considering moves and companies planning hiring timelines. Reason 2: Dual-Audience Content Creation Multiplies Your Reach  The Data: 76% of B2B marketers generate leads through blogging, but recruitment agencies have a unique advantage – every piece of content serves two potential lead sources. Think about traditional B2B content marketing. A cybersecurity company creates content for CISOs and IT directors. That’s their entire addressable audience through content. You can create a post titled “Salary Trends for Data Scientists in 2025” that attracts data scientists evaluating their market value AND companies budgeting for data science hires. One piece of content, two lead generation opportunities. The Strategic Advantage: This dual-purpose content creation means your content marketing ROI is inherently higher than that of single-audience businesses. You’re not just creating content for companies or candidates—you’re creating an ecosystem where both sides of your market find value. Practical Takeaway: For every blog post you plan, ask: “How does this serve both my candidates and clients?” If it only serves one audience, expand the scope or create companion content that addresses the other perspective. Reason 3: Thought Leadership Differentiates You in a Crowded Market The Data: Companies prioritising thought leadership content are 13 times more likely to report positive ROI from their marketing efforts. The recruitment industry has a perception problem. Many people see recruiters as transactional middlemen rather than strategic partners. Your blog is your opportunity to change that narrative entirely. When you publish insights about industry trends, salary benchmarking, or hiring best practices, you’re not just sharing information – you’re demonstrating the depth of knowledge that makes you valuable to clients and candidates. The Authority Effect: Candidates are likelier to work with recruiters they perceive as industry experts. Clients pay premium rates to agencies that demonstrate strategic thinking beyond just CV matching. Practical Takeaway: Choose one specific trend or challenge in your sector and commit to being THE voice on that topic. If you specialise in healthcare recruitment, become the go-to source for NHS hiring trend analysis. Publish consistently on this theme for six months and watch how it transforms client and candidate perception of your expertise. Reason 4: Authentic Employer Branding Attracts Quality Talent  The Data: Recruitment websites with authentic, story-driven content see conversion rates of 8-12%, significantly higher than generic agency sites. In 2025, candidates are sophisticated. They research agencies before engaging, just like they research potential employers. Your blog is your opportunity to show them who you really are, not just what you do. This isn’t about corporate speak and stock photos. It’s about sharing real stories—the six-month placement that resulted in a perfect match, the candidate who faced redundancy and how you helped them pivot careers, the client whose growth story you supported through strategic hiring. The Trust Factor: Authentic content builds trust faster than any sales conversation. When candidates read about your approach, your values, and your success stories, they’re pre-sold on working with you before they ever make contact. Practical Takeaway: Dedicate one blog post monthly to storytelling. Share (with permission) real case studies of successful placements, focusing on the challenges overcome and the impact created. These posts will become your most shared and most conversion-driving content. Reason 5: Educational Content Builds Long-Term Relationships The Data: Blog-driven leads close at 14.6% compared to just 1.7% for leads from other sources, because educational content pre-qualifies and nurtures prospects. Your blog isn’t just about immediate conversions – it’s about building relationships with people who might not be ready to engage today but will remember you when they are. The candidate reading your “Interview Preparation Guide” might not be job hunting now, but when they are, they’ll think of you first. The hiring manager learning from your “Building Diverse Teams” series will remember your insights when they have their next hiring need. The Long Game: Educational content creates a warm audience of people who trust your expertise and appreciate the value you provide. When the timing is right, these relationships convert at much higher rates. Practical Takeaway: Create evergreen educational content that serves your audience regardless of their immediate needs. “How to Negotiate Salary in Tech” helps candidates now and positions you as their go-to recruiter for future moves. Reason 6: Measurable ROI and Business Growth The Data: Companies with blogs generate 67% more leads, and those posting 11+ times monthly see 4x more leads than minimal bloggers. The math is clear – consistent blogging drives measurable business growth. But here’s the specific advantage for recruitment agencies: your success metrics are clearer than those of most businesses. You can directly track blog traffic to candidate registrations, client inquiries, and, ultimately, successful placements. Every blog post you publish continues working for you indefinitely. A post from six months ago can still drive leads today, creating compounding returns on your content investment. In a world of increasing digital noise, quality content isn’t just an advantage – it’s becoming essential. The agencies that recognise this now will dominate their markets in 2025 and beyond. Thanks   Denise How We Can Help If the evidence is clear that blogging drives measurable results for recruitment agencies, but you’re struggling to find the time or expertise to create consistent, high-converting content, you’re not alone. Many successful recruitment business owners recognise the power of content marketing but lack the resources to execute it effectively while managing their day-to-day operations. That’s exactly why we created Superfast Circle. Our comprehensive marketing program provides recruitment agencies with: Ready-to-publish blog content tailored specifically for the recruitment industry Email marketing campaigns that nurture both client and candidate relationships Social media content that positions you as an industry thought leader Personal branding frameworks to build your individual authority Lead generation systems that work while you focus on placements Rather than struggling to create content from scratch, you get proven templates and strategies that our clients use to attract more quality leads and build stronger market positions. Want to see how your current marketing stacks up? Take our free 3-minute Client

If you’re a recruitment business owner listening to this in late 2025, you’re probably thinking about finishing the year strong and setting yourself up for a brilliant 2026. Here’s the thing – the recruitment market is more competitive than ever, and standing out requires more than just being good at what you do. Today, I’m going to share four practical marketing strategies you can implement right now – before the year ends to create more demand for your services. These aren’t complex, expensive campaigns. They’re simple, actionable steps that can make a real difference to your pipeline. Step One: Analyse Your Client Source Map Let’s start with the most important exercise you can do right now, it will take less than an hour. I want you to grab a spreadsheet or even a piece of paper and list every client you’ve won in the past 12 months. Next to each name, write down exactly how they found you. Was it a referral? LinkedIn? Your website? A networking event? Cold Outreach? Be honest. According to McKinsey, 87% of companies are experiencing skills gaps in key areas this year, which means there’s massive demand for good recruitment services. The question is: How are your best clients finding you? When most recruitment business owners do this exercise, I see that 60-70% of their business comes from just one or two sources. Maybe it’s all referrals from existing clients, or perhaps it’s all from cold outreach. Once you’ve mapped this out, ask yourself: “How can I do more of what’s already working?” If LinkedIn brings in business, are you consistent with your activity there? The mistake most people make is trying to be everywhere at once. Instead, double down on what’s already working. If 40% of your clients came from referrals this year, your goal should be to make that 60% next year by getting better at asking for and facilitating introductions. Here’s your action step: by the end of this week, identify your top two client sources and create a plan to increase activity in those areas by 50% over the next 60 days. Step 2: Reconnect With Your Database Now, let’s talk about the goldmine under your nose – your existing database. Think about it. Your company spends millions of dollars attracting candidates through job boards, paid ads, events and sourcing efforts. All of those candidates end up in your talent database, yet most companies consistently fail to engage and nurture talent in their community. The same applies to your client database. When did you last properly connect with everyone in your database? I’m talking about proper, value-driven outreach not just a “checking in” message. Here’s what I want you to do over the next few months. First, the email campaign. Create a simple email sequence – just three emails sent over two weeks. The subject line could be something like “Quick thought before year-end” or “Planning for 2026 hiring?” Email one should provide value – maybe share a trend you’re seeing in your sector or offer a free resource like a salary guide or market update. Email two could be a case study of a recent successful placement. Email three is your soft call-to-action – perhaps inviting them to a coffee in the new year to discuss their hiring plans. Did you know 70% of top candidates are passive job seekers who don’t respond to traditional job ads? Your database is full of these people, and the same principle applies to clients. Now, LinkedIn. Go through your LinkedIn connections and identify the key connections you want as your clients. Spend 15 minutes a day engaging with their posts. Like, comment meaningfully, and share their content. Don’t pitch anything, just be genuinely interested in their business. After a week of this engagement, you can start reaching out with personalised messages. LinkedIn messages can achieve response rates around 10%, roughly double the 5% typical of cold emails. Reference something specific from their recent posts or company news. Here’s a template that works: “Hi [Name], I saw your post about [specific topic] it resonated with what we’re seeing in the market, too. I would love to catch up properly before the end of the year to share some insights on [their sector/challenge]. Are you free for a quick virtual coffee?” Step 3: Create A Consistent Cold Outreach Strategy Right, let’s talk about cold outreach, specifically on LinkedIn, because that’s where your potential clients spend their time. The biggest mistake I see recruitment business owners make is being sporadic with their outreach. They’ll do a big push for a week, get busy with current clients, then do nothing for a month. That doesn’t work. Instead, I want you to commit to what I call the “Rule of Five” – five new, targeted outreach messages every single working day. That’s just 25 a week, but it compounds quickly. Here’s your systematic approach: Step 1: Build your target list. Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator or even a basic LinkedIn search to find decision-makers in companies that fit your ideal client profile. Step 2: Research before you reach out. Check their recent posts, company news, and mutual connections. Personalisation is Key: Generic messages are the fastest way to get ignored. Examine your prospect’s profile, recent posts, or company news. Find something unique to comment on or relate to. Step 3: Your message structure. Keep it under 100 words. Open with something specific about them or their company. Mention a mutual connection if you have one. Share one piece of value or insight. End with a soft question about their hiring challenges or an offer to share a relevant case study. Here’s an example: “Hi Sarah, I noticed you’ve recently expanded your Leeds office, congratulations! We’ve helped several fintech companies navigate similar growth phases, particularly finding senior developers in competitive markets. I’m curious: What’s your biggest hiring challenge right now? I’m happy to share some insights on what’s working for similar companies.” Step 4: The follow-up sequence. Follow-Up: Don’t be afraid to follow up, but do it smartly. Each follow-up should add value—share a relevant article, comment on their recent post, or offer new insight related to their business. If they don’t respond to your first message, wait a week, then send a follow-up that adds new value. Step 4: Post More and Make More Offers Finally, let’s talk about visibility and making offers. Employee engagement has reached concerning lows, and the same applies to how often recruitment business owners are putting themselves out there. Posting consistently: You should be posting on LinkedIn daily. Not about how busy you are or how much you love recruitment – that’s not valuable to your audience. Instead, share insights about the market, trends you’re seeing, advice for hiring managers, or case studies of successful placements. Here’s the formula: Problem + Insight + Action. For example: “Seeing a lot of companies struggle to attract senior developers right now (Problem). The key isn’t just salary, it’s flexibility and growth opportunities (Insight). Try highlighting your learning budget and remote work options in job descriptions (Action).” Thought leadership content, such as white papers, industry reports, and expert articles, positions brands as trusted authorities and builds credibility. You’re building your reputation as someone who understands the market. Making offers: Here’s the big one – when did you last make a specific offer to your network? I don’t mean “give me a call if you need anything.” I mean a specific, time-bound, valuable offer. Before the year ends, make at least three specific offers to your network: “Free 30-minute strategy session on your 2026 hiring plans” “Complimentary salary benchmarking report for your sector” “Quick audit of your job descriptions to improve response rates” Put these offers in your posts, emails, and LinkedIn messages. The most successful B2B content marketers take a strategic approach, aligning content with business objectives and measuring performance to demonstrate ROI. Make it easy for people to say yes. Give them a clear next step – book a call, reply to your email, or download a resource. The key is specificity and value. “Let me know if you need help with hiring” is vague and forgettable. “Free review of your recruitment process to identify bottlenecks” is specific and valuable. The recruitment market is challenging, but that creates an opportunity for those who market consistently and strategically. While your competitors wait for the phone to ring, you’ll be out there building relationships and creating demand for your services. Don’t try to do everything at once. Pick one strategy from today’s episode and commit to it for the next four weeks. Small, consistent actions compound into significant results. Thanks, Denise How We Can Help Ready to implement these four end-of-year marketing strategies? We help recruitment business owners analyse their client sources, reactivate databases, build cold outreach systems, and create consistent visibility. Take our free 3-minute scorecard to identify your marketing gaps and get your personalised action plan. Get Your Free Marketing Scorecard → Finish 2025 strong and set yourself up for a brilliant 2026. The post Your End-of-Year Marketing Push: Practical Strategies for Recruitment Business Owners appeared first on Superfast Recruitment.

This week’s post and podcast explore LinkedIn Messenger campaigns and why they should be a core part of your ongoing business development efforts, not just a tool you reach for when desperate for leads or trying to fill last-minute jobs. Most recruiters only message on LinkedIn when they need something, but the real magic happens when messaging becomes consistent and strategic. With LinkedIn now hosting over a billion users and growing constantly, it remains one of the best ways to connect in recruitment today. This is particularly true if you work in the professional services sector, where it stands as the premier networking platform in the Western world. Despite what cold outreach experts might tell you, LinkedIn messaging achieves much higher engagement rates than cold outreach or emails. Think about your behaviour – when did you last check your LinkedIn messages compared to your email? While recruiters tend to be on email frequently, consider your clients and candidates. These are the people you want to connect with, and these individuals check their LinkedIn messenger more often than you might realise. The Problem with Reactive Messaging The difference between recruiters who use LinkedIn successfully and those who don’t often comes down to timing. Many only send messages when they’re desperate—when a job order comes in or they have no leads. This approach is purely reactive, and anything reactive is always less effective than something planned strategically. Imagine messaging regularly instead, consistently engaging your network with helpful content, conversations, and check-ins. This proactive approach puts you top of mind with people so that you’re the first person they think of when opportunities arise. One of our clients, Rachel, reaches out to connections, saying, “I know we connect with many people on LinkedIn, but do you fancy a quick virtual coffee? Let’s jump online and talk about where you’re going and what you’re thinking about.” Some might think this sounds cheesy, but it works brilliantly for her. It’s amazing how many people respond positively, saying, “Yeah, that’s a great idea. Why not?” How often do you do something similar or just reach out to make connections and then do very little with all those first-degree connections you’ve built up? Why Consistent Messaging Matters Messenger campaigns aren’t just a quick fix—they’re a powerful, ongoing business development strategy, particularly with all the tools we now can access. You should message consistently because recruitment is about relationships, not transactional selling. Many people thought recruitment was transactional pre-COVID, but people understand it’s about building familiarity, trust, and credibility in today’s market. This takes time. The great thing about LinkedIn is you have two key audiences: your first-degree connections and the new connections you’re reaching out to. Your first-degree connections are your silent gold mine. These warm contacts are just a few messages away from conversion if you start to nurture them properly. When you post content on LinkedIn, these people will likely see it, particularly if you start interacting with them. As a first-degree connection, they’ll see more of your content, a bonus point most people forget. I remember working with Mohammed, who had about 20,000 connections on LinkedIn. When we asked what he’d done with his existing connections, he said he hadn’t done much at all. The penny dropped for him; he had all these connections with people, but wasn’t leveraging them. Reaching New Connections Strategically Then you have new connections – the prospects, clients, and candidates you haven’t spoken to yet. Using LinkedIn to reach new connections means you can consistently expand your reach with targeted messages that create interest right from the start. When reaching out to somebody new and they accept your connection request, remember that people will check you out. This morning, someone called Phoenix reached out to me with a cold call. He was one of the few people who followed through – when I said to send me an email, he did. But the first thing I did was check him out on LinkedIn because that’s how people operate. This is why it’s important that your profile looks good and contains content. Best Practices For LinkedIn Outreach Here are four key considerations when reaching out to people: First, do not pitch your job or services straight away. Please don’t be like those financial advisors who pitch their services immediately. Don’t pitch jobs or services right away. Instead, start conversations around challenges, recent LinkedIn activity, or industry news – these approaches engage people much better. Second, personalisation is key. If you can reference a post they made or mention a mutual connection, it shows this isn’t a generic copy-and-paste message. Third, take advantage of all the different features LinkedIn now offers – voice notes, video messages, and other features that help you stand out in a crowded inbox and give that human touch. Fourth, set reminders for follow-ups. Follow these people up consistently. Consistency will always beat randomness. Ensure you reach out to people regularly, using a spreadsheet or whatever tool helps you maintain that connection. Remember, it takes 7 to 12 touchpoints – probably more now – before people engage with us. Tailoring Your Approach For Different Audiences LinkedIn allows you to reach out to 400 people monthly with connection requests. You may want to use these strategically with different people, so think about breaking down how you tailor your messaging campaigns for candidates and clients. For clients, share valuable market intelligence – salary trends, competitor hiring moves, workforce insights. Clients appreciate this type of information. Maybe invite them to participate in other ways, like panel discussions, interviews, or webinars. One of our clients does podcast interviews and contacts CFOs, which works well for him. Provide value first. A well-placed tip or helpful resource will always build a more powerful relationship. Remember, nowadays, people have so many choices. Be the recruiter who stands out for the right reasons—the one adding value. For candidates, share relevant job opportunities, but not always as a direct pitch. You can tell them about the types of roles you have on your website or that you have coming in the future, suggesting it would be worthwhile keeping in touch. Send them industry insights, career tips, relevant articles, blogs from your website, or LinkedIn newsletter. Invite high-potential candidates to calls even when you don’t have a job for them. Give them some time for exploratory calls – not just job interviews. This is about nurturing long-term relationships with these individuals because they’ll appreciate it and sing your praises to other people in their network. Staying Active Between Job Orders You can still be active with these people even if you’re not recruiting. We all know you never know when that role comes in that you suddenly have to fill. Rather than starting from scratch, having hundreds of warm candidate connections on LinkedIn makes a difference. I mentioned this before, but we’ve just started working with someone who began posting more than ever, and it’s made a huge difference. In just one quarter, simply by interacting with people and posting content, he went from cold outreach to having conversations about potentially three roles worth $/£120,000 in commission fees. You can see how a specific process and messenger approach like this can work on LinkedIn. Building Long-Term Relationships The key is consistency. If you’re getting into interactions with someone and can see they appreciate what you’re sending them, you can reach out to your warm first-degree connections every couple of weeks, 2 or 3 times a month, even. It might be slightly less for colder connections because this requires a warmer approach. Mix up your messages. Don’t just pitch jobs or services. Send congratulations. One of our clients always sends happy birthday congratulations to people he’s connected with, and he always adds, “Remember, if you’re looking or want to drop me a message, let’s have a conversation. If you’re hiring and think I could help, message me.” He has people who return to him purely because of this daily activity. He has it on his task list—he does his birthday connections and birthday comments every day. That makes a real difference. Measuring Your Success Track your success. Monitor response rates because the devil is in the data and tracking. Track how many conversations convert to phone calls and meetings. Analyse the time between initial outreach and placements or deals. This data will convince you that this approach is well worth doing. Now, I suspect some of you have conversations about not wanting to come across as spammy. Remember, this isn’t spammy if all you’re doing is providing value rather than just pitching. Friendly, helpful, personalised messages are welcomed, not dreaded. Some say they don’t have time, but you can use and customise different templates and ideas. Set aside time—this is part of your business development process and brings rewards and results. Can you automate this? Yes, there are tools you can use, and it depends on how many people you have. Honestly, this doesn’t take much time, and when you do this, you’ll see the results you can get. Your Weekly Challenge Here’s your challenge for this week: Reach out to your first-degree connections and send at least five personalised, value-driven messages. Dedicate 15 to 30 minutes weekly to connecting with and messaging new prospects. Personally, I’d suggest spending more time than that. I know people will say they don’t have time, but everyone has 30 minutes a week. I’d think 30 minutes a day is a better idea because LinkedIn is where the gold lies. Remember, LinkedIn messaging campaigns are a long game. Consistency bui

This week’s post and podcast discuss LinkedIn essentials for recruitment business owners. As we cycle through August and prepare for the back end of the year, many of you are getting ready to finish strong. With that in mind, if you haven’t completed our Candidate and Client Attraction scorecard yet, please visit superfastrecruitment.co.uk/scorecard. You’ll get a personalised report showing exactly where you stand with your marketing, plus a complimentary conversation to discuss your results. LinkedIn continues to grow at an impressive rate. I’m recording this in August 2025, and there are approximately 1.1 to 1.2 billion members on LinkedIn now. Generally, this increases by 60 to 70 million annually, so by January, we’re looking at 1.2 to 1.3 billion members. Not all members are active, but that’s still a rich database of people you can work with. This weekend, my great-nephew and his fiancée visited us. He’s just started a new management course and tends to dress differently. While other guys wear t-shirts and ripped jeans, he works in an engineering company and wears chinos and polo shirts. He does this because he knows making a good impression works. Sometimes we forget about first impressions, especially when someone lands on your LinkedIn profile. Making A Great First Impression With Your Profile Graphics And Image Let’s start with the basics. Your header banner is crucial. LinkedIn provides a standard muted-colour banner, but you can create your own using Canva. Look at the different LinkedIn banners available there. We create custom banners with our Superfast Circle clients, but you can easily do this yourself. Go to Canva and make sure you’re making the right impression. If you’re wondering what to include, look at my profile or Sharon’s. You’ll see it’s on brand – we use the same colours consistently. You can achieve this with Canva, too. We have a professional headshot because people like to know who they’re working with. The data on LinkedIn shows impressive results around profile views and engagement time for profiles with professional images. Nothing’s wrong with pictures with your mates, friends, or at weddings. However, get a professional headshot—it makes such a difference. Make sure your face is prominent, you’re looking directly into the camera (eye contact is crucial), and your shoulders are included in the image. You don’t need to hire a photographer—we all have smartphones with amazing cameras now. Use all available resources like Canva, the images in Canva, and your smartphone to create something professional-looking. Include your contact details so people can reach you. Remember, you want to appear both professional and approachable. Forget the holiday shots, ensure high quality, make it recent, and ensure your headshot is recognisable. My hair changes constantly, as does Sharon’s, so we always update our profile images. When people get on a call with you, they see a picture and think, “This is the person I saw on LinkedIn.” Consider your brand, too – if you’re targeting corporate clients, dress accordingly. If not, dress appropriately for your brand. Remember, this image represents your recruitment business. Would you trust someone with a blurry selfie to find your next senior hire? Here’s a helpful tip: use the same professional image across all your business and social media platforms. People who Google your name will click through to your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter profiles. Consistency in messaging builds recognition and trust. Your About Section Is Prime Real Estate Anyone you’re trying to connect with will examine your About section – they’ll check you out first. It’s prime real estate for converting profile visitors into connections, and connections into clients and candidates. Most recruiters waste this space with boring summaries often taken from their CVs. Instead, think of it as your elevator pitch that answers key questions in someone’s mind: Who do you serve? What problems do you solve? What makes you different? How can people contact you? Structure your About section around these questions. Here’s a helpful tip: look at my profile to see the structure I use. We help our clients get their profiles correct because we know how important LinkedIn is. If we’re not connected, please reach out – that would be wonderful. Make sure your profile is filled out. Depending on whether you have creator mode switched on or use a paid LinkedIn version, use your featured section. Have a newsletter, fill your profile with content, and get recommendations. Don’t just do your profile image and stop there – attention to detail matters. Like anything online, the more information you share, the more likely you are to appear in search results. We want people to find us on LinkedIn so they can decide whether we’re someone they want to work with. Posting Valuable Content That Builds Your Brand I shared data earlier about over a billion people on LinkedIn, but less than 4% post regularly – they’re missing out on being visible to the market. Content is where recruiters can shine or completely disappear. Content marketing generates three times as many leads as traditional marketing and costs over 60% less. Here’s where most people go wrong: they only post about jobs they have. There’s nothing wrong with posting jobs, but it’s useful to share insights too. This insight-driven content helps build your brand. You can post industry insights, practical advice, problem-solving content for candidates and clients, behind-the-scenes personal insights, and market intelligence. Regarding content frequency, the more you post, the better for you. We’ve had clients who only posted once weekly, then started posting more and saw huge impacts. We always recommend posting every single day on LinkedIn. If you’re an international recruiter with clients in different time zones—we have clients in Australia, the US, the UK, and Europe—post across all those time zones. People access LinkedIn at different times throughout the day, so post in the morning, lunchtime, teatime, and evening. People look for your content at various times, which is about correctly positioning you. Personal Branding In An Online World We recently spoke with someone about personal branding and living in an online world. Many recruiters don’t network in the same way anymore—they don’t see clients and candidates as much face-to-face. They must create connections differently, and personal branding is one effective method. Personal branding enables you to stand out in a crowded market. Think about how you’ll communicate your expertise, personality, and values. Consider your visual consistency, voice consistency, and the thought leadership you bring. Many people we work with have been in recruitment for years. They’re excellent at what they do regarding recruitment, but not always good at promoting themselves. This is where you could make a huge difference by being more personally present on LinkedIn. Having An Outreach And Engagement Strategy We’ve discussed imagery, personal branding, and sharing content. All these elements must be connected, and you need an outreach strategy. I’d add an engagement strategy, too—actively commenting on people’s content and strategically reaching out to make connections. Remember, LinkedIn limits connection requests – currently up to 400 daily and weekly. Utilise them. This is where key performance indicators can work effectively. Reach out to people daily, make those connection requests, and after posting content, make connection requests so you have a complete LinkedIn process to follow. We have a new client who started with us over the summer. He’s been following our processes that we give Superfast Circle members, and now he has three role options from one company worth about £120,000. That’s significant, and it’s simply because he started posting and reaching out strategically. You can see this makes a huge difference. I’ll discuss direct messages more in another podcast in the coming weeks. For those who haven’t done much on LinkedIn, it makes a difference towards the end of the year. Get started on this – you have five key areas to make a difference. Look at my profile and Sharon’s to understand where to start next. Even though we’re in August, you can still achieve so much before year-end. Thanks Denise and Sharon How We Can Help At Superfast Recruitment, we understand that LinkedIn can feel overwhelming when balancing client delivery with building your online presence. That’s exactly why we’ve developed our Superfast Circle programme – to give recruitment business owners like you the systems, strategies, and support needed to build a powerful LinkedIn presence that attracts the right clients and candidates. Our members get access to proven templates, personalised guidance, and ongoing support to ensure their LinkedIn efforts translate into real business results. If you’d like to discover where your marketing currently stands and get a clear roadmap for improvement, start with our free scorecard at superfastrecruitment.co.uk/scorecard. The post LinkedIn Marketing Essentials: 5 Actions That Lead to Success appeared first on Superfast Recruitment.

Hi everyone, this is Denise, and welcome back to the Recruitment Marketing Sales Podcast. Today, we’re talking about something that’s probably causing many of you stress – the complete chaos that may pass for marketing processes in your recruitment business. I suspect if you’re reading this, you’re juggling LinkedIn outreach, content creation, candidate nurturing, client relationships, and about 15 other marketing tasks. Then there’s managing your team and growth on top of that. Here’s what I know about the majority of recruitment business owners – you’re incredible at finding talent and closing deals. Still, when it comes to systematising your marketing processes, you’re winging it. In the UK, we have this saying about “flying by the seat of your pants” or making it up as you go along. This approach is costing you time, money, and probably your sanity. In today’s environment, there’s always another piece of software you could use or another AI tool you absolutely must try. It’s easy to get overwhelmed thinking you’re losing out if you don’t buy 30 different domain names or use every new platform. That’s not the case. What you need is to focus on the basics and have systems and processes around them. You build from there. That’s what we’re talking about today – standard operating procedures, a paint-by-numbers system that literally anyone can follow and implement. What Is A Standard Operating Procedure? Standard operating procedures have been around for years. The earliest documented SOPs were from the British Royal Navy, which needed consistency and reliability in its operations. They needed tasks completed within a specific timeframe with documented processes for onboarding tasks. SOPs became widespread during the Industrial Revolution, and the military adopted the formalisation of these procedures. As small business owners, we use them now for workflow and getting things done in a timely manner without losing our minds. An SOP is fundamentally the basics – it stands for standard operating procedure. It’s simply a step-by-step guide that documents how to complete a specific task or process in your business. Think about it logically – it’s like a recipe. But instead of making a cake or apple crumble, you’re creating a repeatable system for onboarding a new client or creating LinkedIn content. Over the years, SOPs have grown in their use, particularly with remote work. For marketing SOPs, there’s another element you can add – creating a video of the process. This is quite nuanced for marketing because you can record yourself doing something, and that video becomes a training resource. Here’s where most business owners get it wrong – SOPs don’t need to be fancy. They don’t need lots of workflows and fancy formatting. The best SOPs are simple, clear bullet points: Step one, Step two, Step three, Step four. They work well when you have a video to watch simultaneously. Simple Word document processes work particularly well for slightly more technical processes. Something I do is screen grabs using the snipping tool. You can paste these into your recipe if that works for you. Why Recruitment Businesses Need Marketing SOPs As a recruitment business, SOPs are particularly crucial because your marketing activities are relationship-based and require consistency. When you’re building relationships with candidates and clients, you can’t afford to be inconsistent in your approach. If you stop posting or a random post goes out that doesn’t follow your format, such as the wrong colour or imagery, it can impact your brand. Let me give you examples of marketing SOPs that every recruitment business should consider: Content creation SOPs could include how to research and write LinkedIn posts that generate leads, how to create video content for candidates, how to create video content for clients, and how to repurpose one piece of content across multiple platforms. Lead generation SOPs might cover how to identify and research potential clients, how to implement a LinkedIn outreach campaign, and how to follow up with prospects. Imagine having all of these that your team could follow, so you know things are getting done right. Using and implementing these systems is important with your team because you want to support them. SOPs do that and minimise the number of questions you get. I often say to team members, “Have you watched the SOP video and followed the SOP? Go back and look at them.” They’ll come back saying they worked it out because they’d missed step five or six. People often think they remember things, but even I use SOPs. For our email marketing, I know how to do everything, but I haven’t done it for a few weeks because a different team member has been handling it. So, I go back to the SOP to remind myself which button to click. They’re helpful as memory joggers for people implementing the process. The Sarah Success Story: From Chaos to Consistency Let me share about Sarah, who runs a recruitment company. Every week, she posted on LinkedIn ten times at completely random times whenever she got a spare minute. Sometimes she posted about industry trends, sometimes personal branding posts, testimonials, or just something interesting she found. Her engagement was inconsistent. She wasn’t getting many views and wasn’t sure what was working. I had a conversation with Sarah about creating an SOP for LinkedIn content creation. She now has a system: Monday is industry insights, Wednesday is success stories, Thursday is a poll, Friday is career advice. She has templates for each type of post. Once she started doing this, her engagement shot through the roof because she was doing something consistently. We’ve all experienced looking for something on a particular day. Most people listening to this podcast know that every Friday, you get a short email from us saying, “Here’s our latest podcast, you might find it useful.” It’s consistency. By knowing what to do when, people start looking for things. We’ve all watched soaps on TV and know they’re on at certain times. The BBC has news at 6:00 and 10:00 every night. I’m wired to look because I usually work till 6:00 in the evening and time it to one minute to six. That’s how people are wired – they’re looking for things from you. Having that SOP makes a huge difference. The Hidden Benefits of Marketing SOPs Let me share more benefits of creating SOPs that might convince you further. Consistency builds trust. In recruitment, consistency is everything. Your clients need to know they can rely on you. Your candidates need to feel confident in the process. When you have SOPs for marketing activities, you ensure every touchpoint with your audience reflects your brand, values, and standards while getting people excited about working with you. SOPs save you time. Have you ever thought, “Do I need to do this first, or that first?” only to spend time looking for passwords? You can waste hours each week on this. With your SOP, you may have saved it on your system with a search string to find it in Dropbox. That saves hours. Scalability without chaos. This is huge. Right now, for many of you, the business revolves around you, particularly if you’re new to creating content. What happens when you want to grow, hire team members, or take a holiday? SOPs help because people just need to follow them. If you’re working with a virtual assistant in the Philippines, South Africa, or anywhere remote, they can get consistent results. You become less of a bottleneck and more of the strategic leader you’ve always wanted to be. Increased quality and reduced errors. When you’re rushing through marketing tasks without a systematic approach, mistakes happen. You forget to follow up with leads, miss essential details in client communications, or publish content with errors. Having an SOP reduces these errors. One benefit I mentioned with Logan, one of our team members, is better training and onboarding. People feel included in the process. You can’t just hand someone something and say, “follow that step by step,” but having that SOP means you can go through training quickly and support your people. Documented systems mean improvement opportunities. Having a documented system means you can identify and implement improvements. If you see something that could be done more efficiently, having an SOP gives you something to examine and modify. There’s something valuable about peace of mind that’s hard to quantify. When you’ve got systems in place, you can take time off without worrying that your marketing is falling apart. You can focus on strategy rather than constantly putting out fires. How To Create Your First Marketing SOP I’m going to share the simple process for creating a marketing SOP. Here’s something that’s not popular but necessary – you need to do it, not somebody else. You want the business done your way. Our team members have training videos and resources. I’m talking to people creating SOPs themselves. The important thing is you know what you want and how you want it delivered. When we had our bigger marketing agency writing content, I used to drive people mad because I wanted things delivered in a certain way. I wanted our clients to get a great experience, and I wanted the documents they received formatted the same way – same font, same point size. We used Calibri 11 point with subheadings at 16 points. I wanted consistency. I didn’t want it looking like what we call in the UK “a dog’s breakfast.” Creating that SOP fell to me. Yes, it’s time-consuming, but things get done your way. You can ask for feedback and adapt things – people might add something to the conversation. However, doing the SOP yourself works well. Here’s how I create an SOP using a simple three-step process: First, record yourself doing the task. A great way to do this is using Zoom. In Zoom, there’s a button you can click that will transcribe your audio from the video, which is brilliant. When you record doing the task, and this has to b

This week’s post and podcast is about building effective marketing systems for recruitment businesses. I’m continuing our series on systems because I believe it’s the perfect time of year to get everything in place and prepare ahead of time. Last week, I covered why systems are so important – their beauty and the key ones you need in your business. Today, I want to provide you with specific examples of setting up systems and outline some actions you can take now to get them in place. If you’re new here, welcome! It’s great to have you. If you have a recruiter friend or colleague who would appreciate listening to this podcast, please share the link with them. Please share it with them on iTunes or Spotify or give us a shoutout on LinkedIn. I appreciate it. This podcast isn’t sponsored. Nobody pays for this. We do it because we want to help people, and we’re doing what we teach others to do because it works. We’re providing value upfront. If you could give us a shout out, we would love it. Please consider giving us a review as well if you find it useful – that would be greatly appreciated. Start With One System and Build Momentum Here’s what I love about building marketing systems: you don’t need to do everything at once. When our clients start working with us as a Superfast Circle member, we provide them with a straightforward, step-by-step approach that outlines the initial steps they need to take. Over the years, many of you will know that we’ve been content marketers for approximately 18-19 years in the industry. We know what works and what yields the best return on investment the fastest. There’s a system around this, and that’s something I always want you to remember. When people often ask where to start, I advise them to start with one thing. It’s easy to get confused and think you’re being proactive by doing all these things. It’s much better to start with one thing – I like to call it the “pick one philosophy.” Pick one system, build it out properly, then you can move on to automation. However, I think it’s much better to get something working first. Let’s see how it performs, then we automate it. Let’s test it and work out all the glitches. Why pick just one system? Because if you don’t, you end up trying to implement everything simultaneously. This is literally where people get overwhelmed and end up implementing nothing at all. That isn’t necessary. Start with one system, build it from there, and your momentum will start to build. Which System Should You Pick First Now let’s talk about which one you should pick, and I’m going to say it depends. It depends on your biggest pain point at the moment. Most of the people we work with suggest that they start with building out their client attraction system, particularly in the current market. For the majority of recruiters we work with, LinkedIn is their primary platform for finding new clients. This is where their business contacts are now. Starting with your LinkedIn content system is the fastest way to demonstrate your expertise and attract client attention. Here’s a framework for working with LinkedIn effectively. The first thing is to have different types of posts. I’m going to give a shout-out to us at Superfast Circle because we provide you with all these tools you can utilise, saving you time. However, for those of you in larger companies who wish to initiate this effort independently, here are the key considerations to keep in mind. Creating Your LinkedIn Content Framework You want market insight posts – what you’re seeing in hiring trends. You want educational posts on how to solve common hiring problems. You want social proof-style posts, such as story posts about candidate journeys, what’s happened, how you’ve helped people, different clients, and successful placements. Then there are the classic question posts – the polls people use on LinkedIn to engage with their network. You write them, you batch them, you write them in advance. Let’s say in your industry that March is a key time for people recruiting or hiring, when decisions are being made. Then you can build your content around how that might work. The next step is to create a publishing system. Many people, when they first come to us, might post once a week if we’re lucky. Unfortunately, that won’t move the needle. You need to post multiple times a week, in fact, numerous times a day. But let’s start with something easy. These aren’t just job ads you’re posting, by the way. This is content to nurture people in your market, including those you’re already connected to, as well as those you will be connected to in the future. How about posting Monday, Wednesday, and Friday? LinkedIn has a scheduling tool that’s not hard to utilise. There are several marketing automation tools you can use. Some people use Buffer. A favourite of mine recently is SmarterQueue – go and check it out. You can start posting and engaging with your client’s content. Allocate 15 minutes a day in your diary. I remember years ago – probably ten years ago, before personal branding became a thing – we suggested everyone take 15 minutes a day. I ran a webinar on it back then, and it still works. Just allocate 15 minutes. Sometimes I even set a timer. I’m on LinkedIn, interacting and engaging with people I want to engage with. Our posts are scheduled ahead of time, so they’re all ready, and I know they’ll appear. Setting up that system alone will put you ahead of so many recruiters and make a massive difference. Building Your Connection and Outreach Process One area where there’s often a disconnect for many recruiters is that they publish content but fail to connect it by making more connections and engaging in outreach. Everyone has a set number of LinkedIn connection requests they can send out, and this is something to do daily. It’s just like any system you create – the more you can do daily, the better it gets. One of the girls was talking about her “dailies” – she had daily tasks to complete. This isn’t necessarily around KPIs, but her dailies were what she had to do every day. When she did this, she knew it made a difference. I encourage you to create your dailies – however many connection requests you send out. Remember that momentum builds, but you must start it by being consistent. You send out a connection request. Once that person has accepted, share a piece of valuable content or an insight – no sales pitch, just value. You’re doing that with your LinkedIn connections. When it comes to what to do after that, you rinse and repeat. You continue because this is about building a process and people seeing you everywhere. I know that sometimes, if I see an ad on TV, then hear a radio ad, and then pick up a magazine, I suddenly think I should take a look at it. When I’ve seen it two or three times, there must be something about it. This is where building that system works for you. You’ve created the content, you’re now a publishing machine, and you’re connecting and doing outreach with people. The next step is to get clients on your email database or encourage them to join it. Here’s a hint: when you’re publishing things and doing connections and outreach, you can say, “I’ve got some great content and ideas for you. Would you like to join our email system?” Most people will say yes, or you send a link where they put their name and email address. You can see how all these systems build on one another. Candidate Attraction Systems Work Similarly If you need more candidates, it’s a similar system. Consider the content – you want to create a similar process that shares valuable content with them. When we talked about the client acquisition system, we mentioned market insights. It’s the same thing, only it comes from a candidate’s lens. We’re examining market insights because candidates are intelligent individuals. They want to know what’s going on in the market. You want to tell them about not just hiring trends, but career trends and career progression – what they need to be thinking about. You want educational posts, story posts, and those question posts. Do a survey, ask a LinkedIn poll – all these things you can use. That’s the system you set up with candidates exactly the same. You’re reaching out to candidates. You could do a certain number of LinkedIn connection requests for clients and a certain number for candidates. Add these candidates to your email system as well. Straight away, you’ve got very simple, straightforward systems that work for client attraction and candidate attraction. You take those to the next level by getting these people on the phone. You send them more messages, leave them a voice note, send them a video – all different things that make a difference. Advanced Systems Using LinkedIn Sales Navigator On LinkedIn, there’s Sales Navigator – a great piece of software where you can build lists of clients and candidates. This can be a systematised process. We receive emails stating that there are X number of leads in your LinkedIn list, so you can log in because you’ve set up the criteria. You can incorporate those systems into your process. When conducting outreach within LinkedIn Sales Navigator, review all new connections and people who’ve appeared on your list that meet your criteria. Then set the process to start reaching out to them. Most problems that occur for recruiters around systems are that their systems are so sporadic. If you have a specific process that’s dialled in and you’re doing it regularly, it’s going to make a difference. We’ve all received random cold emails in our inbox that aren’t particularly relevant, and we end up blocking people. That’s where having your systems organised makes a difference. Think about your client system and your CRM. If that’s sorted by industry, sector, experience level, hiring history, or company size—whatever it is—you can compile lists of people you need to contact. Once you’ve done that, you can create that systematic approach with your touchpoin

Hi there, this is Denise. I hope you and yours are well. This week’s post and podcast are about systems—specifically, why marketing systems are essential for recruitment businesses and how they can transform your day-to-day operations. Many recruiters excel at having specific systems for working with candidates and managing placements. However, they’re not as strong in sales and marketing, particularly marketing. This is a significant gap that’s costing recruitment business owners dearly. Based on our conversation last week about what’s happening in the market, we know that over 20% of people plan to quit their jobs in 2025. That’s nearly 1 in 4 people actively planning to leave. If you’re thinking, “That’s great, more candidates for me to place,” hold on a second. The challenge is that while all these people are planning to quit, approaching 90% of companies are still experiencing skills gaps in specific areas. We have more people moving, but they’re not necessarily the right people for the roles that need filling. If you’re like most recruitment business owners I speak to, you’re caught in the middle of this chaos, fighting for both clients and candidates in this increasingly competitive market. Why Most Recruitment Businesses Struggle With Marketing Let me paint a picture for you. Names are changed, of course, but these are real scenarios from clients and people in the market. Let me tell you about Sarah, who’s been running her recruitment company for eight years. She’s a great saleswoman with no problem getting on the tools. She has a good reputation and solid relationships. Yet every month feels like Groundhog Day. She’s starting from scratch. One month, she has more clients than she can handle. The next, she’s scrambling to find work for her team. Then suddenly everything goes quiet, and there she is with no pipeline. Does this sound familiar? Talking to Sarah always breaks my heart because I know people like her who are excellent recruiters. But she feels like she’s running on a hamster wheel, working 70-hour weeks and constantly stressed about where the next placement is coming from. She can’t get ahead of the curve because she’s sporadic in everything she does and has no system in place to leverage how good she is. The Reactive Mode Problem The first major problem is getting stuck in reactive mode. Business owners in the recruitment sector are very much like firefighters. Someone calls with an urgent role, and you drop everything. You get the terms signed and start searching. Or a candidate walks through the door, and you start scrambling to find them something. You always respond to what’s happening instead of creating what should happen next. Again, Let me say that you’re responding to what’s happening right now rather than creating what you want. It’s Sunday night, and you’re lying in bed thinking about the week ahead. Where will Monday morning’s placement come from? You need to follow up with various people, wondering which clients have new roles this week. You’re hoping the candidates you’ve been chasing will finally return your calls and stop ghosting you. Your stomach’s in knots because your business success depends on things outside your control. This happens because you have no systems in place. The Relationship Building Challenge The second problem is not having a systematic approach to building relationships. In recruitment, relationships are everything. Yet it’s sad to see some companies in our space treat relationship building as something to do sometimes – more of a hobby or tick-box exercise rather than a honed business process. Your network is your net worth, particularly as a recruiter. You can’t just call candidates randomly when you have a job. You can’t expect to ring them up and have a good relationship with them when you only call when you need them. They smell it a mile off. Similarly, you can’t only reach out to clients when you want to sell them something. Clients know that too. But what do successful companies do? They have systems that nurture relationships constantly. Candidates hear from them regularly with valuable insights, not just job opportunities. Their clients receive market intelligence and industry trends, not just CVs when roles arise. Let me share an example. We have a great client – let’s call him Simon. Last year, before he started working with us and put a marketing system in place, their average fee was around 15%. After 18 months of consistently doing content marketing and client nurturing, the average fee is 22% in a difficult market. They rarely get pushback on pricing because they’ve become the obvious choice, not just another option. The Financial Cost Of No Systems Last year, we worked with a company with about £500K in annual revenue—a really good business. But the numbers were alarming. They lost nearly half that in potential revenue yearly because they had no predictable pipeline. They’d go a few weeks without a placement, panic, drop their fees, and try to close something quickly. Then they’d spend the next month working for margins so thin they barely covered costs. Meanwhile, the best candidates were being snapped up by competitors. The financial cost was excessive because they had no systems in place. They had a couple of key clients, but when those clients pulled back on recruitment, huge gaps appeared. Because they’d relied on these individuals, they hadn’t built a pipeline with others. We all know pipelines take time to build, particularly in the current market. The real cost isn’t just to the business—it’s to you personally. You’re working 70-hour weeks, missing family events and dinners, and cancelling holidays because you’re trapped in a reactive cycle. It’s like starting from scratch each time rather than having a system in place and giving it time to build. What Are Marketing Systems And Why They Work A system is simply a repeatable process that produces predictable results. It’s straightforward. In theory, anyone in the business can implement a system. You create a system, and people follow that process. Next week, I’m going to discuss creating SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures), which will make things much easier. Today, I worked with one of our team members, Logan, who helps with podcasting. I record the podcasts, and he edits them, creates images, and ensures they go out on social media and the blog. We have a whole systematic process around that, which I was teaching Logan this morning. Logan is a great administrator but not a marketer. However, he’s following the system. Systems are about consistently doing the right thing at the right time. When marketing your recruitment company, systems will solve many problems we’ve discussed. Content Marketing Systems That Position You As The Expert Content marketing helps you stand out. Only this week, one of our newer clients shared content we’d provided him. It was going out in front of his clients, and suddenly he noticed one of them had posted a job. Even though he was on holiday, he sent a note saying, “Hey, I noticed you posted this job. I wonder if I could have a crack at it?” The client said yes. You can see the difference this client got – he was on somebody’s radar because he was using content. Content systems position you as the expert in your sector or niche. When you consistently share insights about what’s happening in the market – salary benchmarks, hiring challenges, talent strategies – something powerful happens. Clients start seeing you as a strategic partner, not just a supplier. And I know that’s so important for many of you. Again, clients start seeing you as a strategic partner, not just a supplier. Email Systems That Keep You Top Of Mind Email nurture systems work brilliantly here. They keep you top of mind with prospects who aren’t ready to hire yet. Most clients only need recruitment help occasionally. When they do need it, who do you think they call? The recruiter who’s been sending them valuable insights every month, or the one they haven’t heard from since their last placement? We have a client, Karen, who sent me something a few weeks ago. She shared that one of her clients had said, “I like this content you’re sharing, Karen. I find it useful. Can we jump on a call? I want to talk to you about a couple of upcoming roles.” That’s the difference it makes. Social Media Systems That Amplify Your Expertise LinkedIn will have nearly a billion users by the end of this year. Less than 3-4% of people post regularly. Sharing content through your social media system will be an easy way to get in front of your market. It amplifies your expertise across the platform where your clients spend time. LinkedIn isn’t just about candidate sourcing – it’s the most powerful client acquisition tool in recruiting, but only if you use it systematically. Many recruiters do things wrong on LinkedIn: They only post when they remember to, share lots of other people’s content rather than creating their own, and reach out to people only when they want something. Systematic LinkedIn use looks different. You post valuable content on a schedule (LinkedIn even has its scheduling tool). You engage meaningfully with people and start engaging with your clients’ posts. You share original insights that show your market knowledge. You build relationships before you need them. Candidate Pipeline Systems That Create A Talent Magnet Let’s talk about candidate pipeline systems. Many people tell us, “If I had five Amandas, I could place them ten times over. It’s just getting them.” The best companies have candidates calling them, not the other way around. They’ve built what I like to call the candidate magnet system – a system that attracts talent continuously. Employer Branding That Attracts Candidates You talk to your companies about needing a good employer brand. You need to have a good employer brand as well. You can showcase why candidates should work with you. This isn’t just about having a nice web

Hi there, everyone. This is Denise. As we move through July, it’s the perfect time for a six-month review of your recruitment business. This year has been anything but predictable, and if you’re wondering what’s happened over the past six months, you’re in the right place. The landscape has been challenging. We’ve got new governments with different approaches, tariffs in the US creating global uncertainty, and constant changes to employee and employer costs in the UK. All of this is significantly impacting recruitment. What’s been labelled a “white-collar recession” is reshaping how we source talent. Clients are demanding more for less, and it’s been a tough six months. But here’s the thing about challenges – they create opportunities too. Today, we will examine the numbers, what’s worked in sales and marketing, face some hard truths, and give you actionable ideas. The Current Sales Performance Reality You’re correct if you feel like it’s been tougher than usual. I recently used AI research for a client, and the global trends show the UK market is more depressed than the US market. Australia is having an unusual time, but is predicted to bounce back next year. This “white-collar recession” is a strange phenomenon in which corporate profits remain strong but hiring has dipped. However, there are several interesting contradictions. Twenty-three per cent of UK workers are planning to quit their jobs in 2025—that’s higher than the US’s 19% and Australia’s 18%. There’s movement, just not the kind we’re used to. Meanwhile, over 80% of companies report skills gaps in specific areas. Nearly nine out of ten companies are struggling to find the right talent. The need is there – it’s about how you sell your service to these companies. The professional services sector is experiencing a staggering high turnover rate. This isn’t just churn – it’s opportunity knocking loudly on your door. You’re not alone if you’ve been struggling with new client acquisition. However, if you’ve positioned yourself as a solution to skills gaps rather than just another recruitment company, you’ve likely seen some wins. Your clients aren’t looking for bodies on seats. They’re looking for predictability and recruitment partners who can anticipate their needs. Finding the right skills is five times more predictive of job performance than traditional degree-based hiring. As a recruiter, this is where you excel. Marketing Creates Demand, Sales Converts It Marketing and sales are different functions. Marketing creates demand, and sales convert that demand. Are you reaching out to a wider audience, going deeper with your current audience, or focusing on a vertical? We often realise we’re not doing as much as possible during challenging times. I spoke with a client recently who’d been following our strategies. His LinkedIn connections had grown significantly, but he went quiet when I asked about his outreach messaging. He admitted he hadn’t been reaching out like he normally would. Remember, you must convert the demand you’re creating at some point. Don’t base expectations on what happened post-pandemic. The years 2021-2023 were exceptional. As a business owner, you must consistently market more because markets change. Then you convert that demand by selling and making offers. Content Marketing: The Game-Changer For Recruitment If you haven’t listened to my podcast about the lead generation triad, go to superfast.co.uk/LGT and watch the video. I discuss three key areas: leveraging your current database, content marketing, and cold outreach. Recruiters are doing well and utilising all these elements. Content is a huge win for recruitment business owners because it appeals to candidates and clients. It works ahead of time and continues working for you. B2B content marketing costs significantly less than traditional marketing methods and can generate up to three times the leads – check HubSpot’s research reports for verification. Very few people buy on a whim. They research, check people out, and determine if someone can help them. Content is your route to establishing this trust. The recruitment businesses that are winning are adapting, using content, understanding the market, and appreciating that hiring cycles are longer. They’re investing in educational and thought leadership content distributed through social media and email marketing. LinkedIn is a golden channel—nearly a billion people are on LinkedIn, but less than 4% post regularly. If you post twice daily on LinkedIn, you’ll stand out as someone who understands their market. You’ve likely seen increased views and interactions if you’ve been publishing thought leadership content, industry insights, and information about skills-based hiring. We run personal branding challenges with our clients, and they all report significant differences in engagement levels. You can use reports, white papers, and case studies—all of which are proving particularly impactful. People go through a buying cycle, from unaware to aware to considering to deciding. Throughout this process, they look for information and check if you’re consistently present. Email Marketing Still Delivers Results Email marketing remains incredibly effective. Even in the UK, you can still send cold emails. Open rates are increasing in B2B because Google and Microsoft’s cleanup campaigns have removed inactive users. Open rates between 40-50% aren’t uncommon now, compared to much lower rates 4-5 years ago. Classic data shows that for every pound spent on email marketing, you get an ROI between £30 and £40. You leave money on the table if you’re not nurturing your database with valuable content. Companies getting results now are actively implementing solutions rather than focusing on problems. They’re not sitting in pity parties complaining about the terrible market. They say, “This is what’s happening globally – what solutions can I implement?” Going Back To Basics Works My strong recommendation is to go back to basics during challenging times. Ask yourself: Am I doing cold outreach? Am I picking up the phone? Am I sending direct messages? Am I making more offers? Am I listening to my market? Am I adapting what I’m offering? Consistent business development (bd) is key. Those who consistently do BD are successful and continue to be successful. Regular outreach, relationship building, and promoting your services make a significant difference. The most successful businesses combine the lead generation triad – content marketing with systematic outreach processes. If you haven’t checked our YouTube channel, there’s a video recording from one of our events where Sharon goes through the six-step process. Search for “Superfast Recruitment” on YouTube. AI is incredibly useful in recruitment for administration, sorting, and sifting work. Over 30% of recruiters now use AI tools for grunt work, freeing themselves for strategic work and business development. AI helps schedule appointments and screen CVs, but remember—educational content positions you as a strategic partner. Combine marketing with business development and use AI for productivity, and you position yourself as a business worth working with. You need all these elements to work together. What You Need To Do Next If you haven’t listened to Sharon’s belief podcast, please do. Our brains run riot with untrue thoughts, particularly in group situations with people having tough times. Our brains are wired for negativity to protect us, so remember that when planning forward. Be clear and data-driven. What were your numbers for the first half of the year? Be honest – don’t just say the market’s bad. How many outreaches have you made? No wonder you’re struggling if you’re doing the same things as 2019. Do you need to double your figures? Send more content? Set up a cold email marketing system? You’ll hear about being resilient and adaptable—these aren’t just advantages but essentials moving forward. Be resilient because there are challenging times, but also adaptable. Ask yourself: Am I open to this possibility? Could this work? It’s easy to dismiss ideas—”they won’t read that content” or “that won’t work in my sector.” Sometimes, it’s about dropping the ego and looking at what could work. A coach told me years ago to always think, “Am I open to the possibility that this might work for me?” When we started, we began with cold emailing and phone calls. I’d always worked in pharmaceuticals and had never done a cold email before. I was open to trying, and that’s how we got our first five clients. If you haven’t tried something, be open to the possibility that it might work in your sector. Marketing is about testing different things and looking at the results. There’s a saying that more millionaires are made in recessions than at any other time. Market challenges create opportunities for agile business owners. Content marketing and thought leadership help you stand out as a brand. The future belongs to recruiters who can balance AI tools and technology with human connection and understanding. I spoke with Cheryl Wang from GSR recently, and she said, “The market is changing. We need to do a bit more.” That’s exactly what’s happening. Think about what you’ll do differently. What were your main problems in the first half of the year? What are the solutions you could use moving forward? You might not like sending direct messages or setting a KPI of 20 LinkedIn invitation requests daily, but it works. It feeds your family and makes a difference as you move forward. Thanks Denise How We Can Help If you’re ready to implement these strategies and want guidance on where to start, we can help. Our Superfast Circle program provides recruitment business owners with the content, systems, and support required to build effective lead generation strategies. We help you combine content marketing with systems that work whilst developing your brand to stand out in today’s competitive market.     The post Your Mid-Year Recru