How to Find Reliable Marketing Staff in This Day and Age
Businesses spend most of their total budgets on salary, but the single biggest challenge of finding good staff is the human element. Personalities gel, or don’t, and skills might not be as advertised. In establishing an ideal person, consider that at the foundation they must have good communication skills. I would go as far as talking about these things in the job description.
Lots of people looking for jobs don’t want the whole legal rundown. If you want a real person, you’ve got to set the tempo and be a real person yourself. It’s ok to say in your job listing that the single most important tool of a good marketer is the ability to communicate effortlessly. It is.
As with any job, some people camouflage, or altogether mask the truth. Tell them that you care deeply about an honest self-assessment of their skills, and that reliability is expected in your office culture. Atypical language in job postings gets people’s attention and makes them understand your values directly and up front. The logistical challenges associated with an interview process on top of scheduling a search committee require valuable time. Delaying momentum in the hiring process might be the least of your worries if you’re process is lengthy and cumbersome.
You have a gap in your marketing staff that needs to be filled, so here are a couple of options to streamline. Speak to that person over the phone one on one. Ask questions that underscore your needs as a business. You have an idea of who you’re looking for, and phone calls can be a way of getting a fundamental understanding. LinkedIn is a space that job candidates, and the businesses looking for staff should take full advantage of when looking for marketing staff. It’s a place where people have control over their personal brand.
Well-constructed LinkedIn pages will go beyond accomplishments and include skills, professional affiliations, and testimonials. Taking the time to put together a good LinkedIn profile is the sign of a person who pays attention to detail, and is committed to an excellent work product.
Once you’ve chosen a candidate, outline the next steps clearly so that there is no confusion. Ask them if they’re willing to work with you for a week, obviously with pay. You may also consider giving them a task, instructions, a short deadline, and a flat rate to see what they can do. In each of these cases, you establish a place where they can prove their skills without a full commitment on either of your parts. Be certain to say that it’s also a chance for them to freelance your organization and see if they like it. A successful initial transaction can lead to a month-long contract.
Now you have a broader space of time to really get to know one another, and their ability to do the job. At the end of that time, you both have the freedom to decide how you will proceed. A successful candidate may have cause to ask about the higher range of the posted salary. I use the words salary range because you should offer a range unless your organization only allows a specific salary.
If you have the freedom to provide a range, be ready to pay the highest range if the candidate rates it. It’s deeply frustrating to inform a candidate that budget constraints allow for only the bottom of a posted salary range. A company that says honesty is important must back their words up with action. Every person that works for you has the potential to be great, and an honest discussion sets the tone for your entire working relationship.
Another important piece is how that potential marketing staff member perceives you as an individual and your organization. Why should you care about this? www.glassdoor.com is a place where job seekers go to find information about prospective employers. They can learn about salary ranges based on job titles, and what others, past or present, have said about you.
Establishing and maintaining consistency in your work products, and interactions with clients and colleagues are a daily test to maintain the reputation of your brand. A great work environment will yield great candidates.
