How do you treat those whom you didn't hire?

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People who are not hired receive either no reply to their application or just a terse form letter of rejection. Being rejected is a bitter experience. But job applicants liked your company enough to be willing to spend at least a few years of their lives with it. This makes them an untapped resource for your company.

They can enhance the reputation of your company, increase your sales and help you to develop a talent pool. How to achieve this? Eric Wentworth, author of A Plan for Life: The 21st Century Guide to Success, answered this question in a recent article published on LinkedIn.

1) Rewrite your rejection letter – you want it to be gracious and thank the applicant for their effort. Keep it friendly and respectful; say that you value their interest in the job vacancy.

2) Next, send the applicant the thank-you letter together with a small gift – a free sample or a discount coupon. Such a gift alone can replace the resentment with esteem towards your company. Your small gesture of appreciation may be shared with families and friends. In addition, people who have applied for a vacancy at your company probably like it and therefore are ideal target consumers.

3) Set up a page dedicated to job applicants. Include some tips from career advisors and access to materials on job searching ... often you can obtain such items for free in exchange for promoting the services of career management experts. Give job-seekers hope and offer them some assistance; show them that you care about people. You can also create an online community of people who want to work for you. Engage with them, communicate, ask about what you could improve concerning your products and hiring process.

4) Distinguish your company from its competitors. Only a few companies care about their job applicants, so you will be an exception. Don’t keep it to yourself and let the world know how you value effort.

-jk-

Article source LinkedIn Pulse - LinkedIn blogging platform
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