With smartphones taking over the world, SMSes always have a high opening rate compared to emails – is what statistics say. No wonder, it is growing as the go-to method for contacting candidates.

Applicants have access to career portals, applications, etc. through their phones. Hence, compared to calls or emails, it might be the go-to strategy for a lot of organizations as they think it might get them faster responses from candidates. If you are not planning to provide a full end-to-end recruitment experience through phones, then you might lose out on possible candidates.

Today, when quick and convenient are words of the game, recruiters are increasingly making use of messaging platforms to reach out to many candidates in one go. It could also be a very simple tool for recruiters to use to keep candidates “on the go” and up to date on their applications. This helps in going a long way in terms of candidate experience. Even though mass messaging might have its downfalls, the story of one on one messaging is altogether different.

Imagine if you were a recruiter, and you have to schedule the interview loop of a senior candidate for a high-priority role. The candidate is in back-to-back meetings with minute breaks in between, which does not allow for him/her to answer a phone call. The candidate tells you that you can reach him on message if he might not be able to answer calls. What would you do then? You would drop a text message asking to connect so that you can get the interview loop scheduled as soon as possible, and the person might respond back on the text when he has the break between meetings. Otherwise, you would have to wait till the end of the day or till the meetings get over for the candidate and then get it set up. It is a delay that can be avoided if the recruiter can start text messaging when required.

Text messages make the process a lot more personal and approachable to the candidate. A candidate keeps his/her phone close to their person and checks the phone many times a day. This allows the recruiter to know that the message they send will be read. It is also a medium that the talent market would prefer, as it allows them to access a lot of job-related material at their fingertips, in a more fluid model. It is also immediate and reduces the need for multiple emails or phone calls. With the talent market becoming more competitive, the hunt for candidates has intensified. As this hunt gets fierce, should recruiters use text messaging as a method of recruitment?

Prof.Radha Pavitra
Assistant Professor
DSCE-MBA