Benefits of Chatbots for Recruiters

It’s a known fact that the lifeblood of a company is its employees.  Recruiters in the HR department have a large responsibility to bring in the best people to make the business run smoothly.  Job postings can vary from high volume needs (customer service) to high profile C-Level vacancies (CEO).  Typically, the hiring manager will give a recruiter a job post filled with requirements ranging from years of experience to certain skill proficiencies.  

And, off the recruiter goes to find that perfect unicorn. 

Fortunately, it’s 2021 and as part of the digital era, recruiters have many powerful tools at their disposal to streamline the recruitment process. Today, we explore a recruiter’s best friend, the chatbot. 

Chatbots are super-powered virtual assistants who simulate human conversations. These conversational agents engage with prospective candidates and follow them through the onboarding phase of a typical job hiring process. 

In the beginning there was one 

The Recruitment process can often become a feast or a famine. And, both cases have their pros and cons. When you get many applicants vying for a single position, you have the power to pick and choose the best fit that closely matches the job requirements. But the number of applications you must sort through can be overwhelming. 

“For an average online job posting, if about 1000 individuals see the job post, 200 will begin the application process, 100 will complete the application, 75 of those 100 resumes will be screened out by either the ATS or a recruiter, 25 resumes will be seen by the hiring manager, 4 to 6 will be invited for an interview, 1 to 3 of them will be invited back for final interview, 1 will be offered that job and 80 percent of those receiving an offer will accept it.” (Talent Function Group LLC). 

Furthermore, 52% of job hunters say a lack of response from employers is their biggest frustration. Given the tremendous volume of applicants, chatbots can be setup to filter through the noise and help engage individuals to follow-through with their applications. 

Let’s paint a picture of what that conversation might look like. Say a prospective candidate arrives on your website. They COULD browse through each page and eventually end up on the careers section. Or they could be greeted with a chatbot that immediately engages. 

Chatbot: Hi, what can I help you with? 

Candidate: I’m looking for a customer service role. 

Chatbot: And what location  are you looking to work out of? 

Candidate: New Jersey. 

Chatbot: Great. I’ve got some customer service roles in New Jersey for you. Click one to apply. 

First contact has been made. Now the candidate has opened a conversation with your company and the chatbot is facilitating the role of a recruiter on behalf of the HR team. But we can take this entry one step further. 

Open the floodgates 

It is possible prospective candidates might discover job openings on your website, but it’s more likely they are doing their job search on third-party websites. Third-party websites such as job boards like Indeed or social channels like LinkedIn. 

84% of companies use social media for recruiting (SHRM, 2017). And 60% of people look for jobs using social professional networks (56%) and word of mouth (50%) (LinkedIn). Recruiters know this and they are actively sourcing candidates on their own turf.  Chatbots are also assisting as omnichannel tools in the digital landscape of social media. Consider your Facebook company page as an example where candidates can discover employment opportunities.  This might be in tandem with marketing ads and partnerships to spread the word about lucrative jobs. 

One important communication channel chatbots engage in with candidates is through SMS.  Connecting with candidate smartphones once the initial application process has been completed, chatbots can push people to follow through with their job interviews.  Did I forget to mention that chatbots can schedule job interviews for QUALIFIED candidates directly with the recruiter’s calendar? 

Chatbot: Thanks for applying for the customer service role in New Jersey.  Based on your responses, you qualify!  I’d love to schedule you for an interview with our recruiter for a more in depth understanding. 

Chatbot: You are scheduled for an interview with X person at Y time.  You’ll receive a confirmation email.  If you need to reschedule or cancel, just let me know and I’ll make that adjustment! 

Integration is a key component of chatbot technology and as candidates come in, they’ll be organized in your ATS system.  The most relevant candidates can be connected with your calendar system.  And with the click of a button, the recruiter can automate text alerts to whichever segment is at their disposal. 

Of the organizations top recruiting priorities, building talent pools of the future is at 65.7% And about 77% of recruiters go back and hire candidates who didn’t appear to be a fit. When a candidate signs up through the chatbot, it’s a lead that may not be a good fit NOW but could be a good fit LATER.  The collection of information is a super important component of any company. A chatbot makes sense of all the information and puts it to good use. 

Use a Helping Hand 
More and more companies are recruiting chatbots to work in their businesses. They are proven allies that provide many benefits including 24/7 coverage, omnichannel reach, and instant feedback to candidate engagements. At the end of the day, they are saving recruiters time to focus their efforts on other more complex tasks. 

vChat is a popular chatbot-making platform that enables candidates to apply for jobs, setup interviews with hiring managers, and onboard new employees once a decision has been made. If you’d like to trial your own chatbot, give us a call and we will set you up to begin your recruitment chatbot journey today.