Would you sell your house using multiple Estate Agents?

Adam Dolman

What comes to mind when you see multiple “For Sale” signs outside a house?

Is there something wrong with the property? Are they desperate to sell it? Is this house less desirable? Which Agent should I even contact?

It’s exactly the same when using multiple recruiters to find your staff. Generally, we only sell our houses with one Agent and I’d recommend employers do the same. I understand the frustrations- having the right staff in your business is, and should remain, your top priority. A vacancy appears and you believe that the best way to solve this problem is to contact every Recruiter you can think of; cover all your bases, leave no stone unturned, many hands make light work…

However, the reality of that approach is a bit more complicated- candidates will be contacted by multiple Agencies who will often fight over who contacted whom first. Agencies may have taken the brief to different standards; they may leave slightly different messages or details on the role. Does the role pay £35k like Agency A says or is it actually £45k OTE? Has the role become available because someone’s left or is It through growth? You do not want your potential candidates getting mixed messages in a competitive employment market like the one we are currently facing.

Estate Agents themselves will generally charge more and spend less time and resources trying to sell your house if you are using every man and his dog. The same applies with Recruiters. You give the assignment to Recruiter A, B, C, D and E- why would they put all their time into a recruitment campaign where the odds of being paid are 1 in 5? It’s a rat race to the finish and agencies will throw CVs at the wall and hope their lottery ticket sticks.

We won’t work with clients when we’re up against 2,3 or 4 other agencies as it’s against our best practise and way of working. Although generally we do fill exclusive roles faster due to fully committing to clients who fully commit to us, we will tell you when we feel candidates aren’t right, we will only put committed candidates in and if it means waiting a few more weeks to get the right person that’s fine by us. We pride ourselves on working in partnership with you, rather than just trying to squeeze the first candidate we can through your door. We’re here for the long term and do our utmost to make sure our candidates are too. Let our experienced team cover all your bases, we will leave no stone unturned and you can rest assured if you commit to using our business our consultants will work together and make sure that many hands make light work for you.

With over 100 placements since we started trading in 2017, only 3 are no longer with the businesses we placed them in. I’d say our approach really works, as would our clients. The key is really getting to know both parties; transparency with candidates and clients and telling both about the good, the bad and the ugly as opposed to selling a dream. Everyone knows what they’re in for.

To find out more about how we can help you recruit and retain great people within your business call the team on 01509 32 35 32