Sit down with any recruiter and they’ll be able to tell you a story of a high-quality candidate dropping out of the recruitment process unexpectedly. If this happens too often, it’s the responsibility of the recruiter to rectify the problem. There’s no way to completely eliminate candidate dropouts, recruiters have learned it’s less likely to happen if the candidate experience is positive.

 

One thing recruiters have been experimenting with is modern recruitment software. Providers have long been saying this software can help improve your candidate experience. While that is true, recruiters need to do more than just add technology to their hiring process to get an ideal candidate experience.

 

There is a lot of artificial intelligence in these systems and it isn’t hard for a candidate to figure out they aren’t communicating directly with a person. For some candidates, this isn’t a problem, but for others, especially older generations, it could cause them to refuse to continue on with their application.

 

4 Ways to Make Recruitment Technology More ‘Human’

 

Recruiters shouldn’t try to trick applicants into thinking your hiring system is run by a recruiter rather than being automated, but it does help if you but a bit of effort in to make the process seem more personable. Here are some tips on how you can do just that:

 

Don’t Use the Email Template Unedited

 

Most recruitment software providers will give you email templates to use as responses once an applicant completes a certain stage of the process. The system will automatically send that email out with the template. The problem is these templates aren’t usually written by recruiters and it definitely isn’t written for a particular job. These templates can read as incredibly robotic, tipping off the candidate they aren’t communicating with a person directly.

 

By changing the template to have a few personal touches, your candidates will connect more to the process. You can also add some information to the templates such as when you’ll be following up next, that alone can help greatly improve the candidate experience.

 

Also read: How To Use Content Marketing As A Recruiting Tool

 

Add Your Own Branding to the System

 

One of the worst things that can happen from a candidate’s perspective is apply for a job with a company online only to be redirected to another website which has no reference of the job or organization. They could think they were redirected to the wrong place and decide not to apply or waste valuable time trying to confirm they were supposed to be redirected.

 

Instead, companies should make sure they’re using a application system which allows them to customize the candidate-facing side with their own branding. Doing this will help eliminate confusion and reduce the number of people who drop off before even applying to the position.

 

Introduce Yourself Through Video

 

The traditional recruitment process would usually call for screening interviews to be done via phone call. When using a modern hiring process, though, the trend is to replace phone interviews with pre-recorded video interview.

 

Video interviews can cause some nerves in a candidate, especially if this is their first time doing one. It can be helpful to see someone go through the process as an introduction first. By taking the time to record a video introducing yourself and explaining the interview, you’ll make applicants comfortable with the process and more likely to complete it.

 

Ask Video Questions Instead of Text

 

When it comes to pre-recorded interviews, many recruiters have a text-version of the question show up on the screen before the candidate records their answer. While this is an easy option, there’s a better way which takes a little more effort, but improves the candidate experience.

 

You can make the technology seem more human by actually putting a person on the screen. By recording a recruiter or hiring manager asking the questions instead of just having using text, you’ll show the candidates you’ve put time into this and they should do the same.

 

Keep Candidate Experience at the Forefront of your Process

 

Technology can help make recruitment easier and more efficient for both recruiters and job seekers, but it can also push candidates away. You can’t assume your candidate experience issues will be resolved by just adding technology to the process. Savvy recruiters will be continuously working to provide a better experience, and the tips above are a good place to start.

 

Also read: Recruiting Top Talent — A Daunting Challenge for HR Practitioners