Reaching candidates, especially passive candidates, is not easy at the moment. We’re in the midst of a candidate-driven market the likes of which we may have never seen before. (According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate was 3.6% in June.) So what can recruitment email do?
A lot, actually, more than you might think. Sure, texting candidates is all the rage now. So is reaching out to them through LinkedIn. But the fact of the matter is that email is still an effective tool for engaging candidates. This is especially the case if you send a regular email newsletter that contains your agency’s latest hot jobs.
That’s because even if candidates are passive, they might still passively look at your jobs if you deliver them to their email inbox. They won’t go out of their way to search for jobs on the Internet. There’s so much polarizing news to read instead. But if you send the jobs to them, especially in a mobile-friendly way, they don’t mind browsing through the listings while they’re waiting in line at Starbucks. Or wherever they might be at the time.
However, this still begs the question: “What’s the best time to send recruiting emails?”
WHO is sending the recruitment email?
Before we answer this question, let’s clarify our audience. While this blog post is primarily for professional recruiters and search consultants, it also applies to corporate recruiters, internal recruiters, and Human Resources personnel. That’s because the laws of human nature apply to both agency recruiters and every other type of recruiter.
In other words, people are more prone to open and read emails related to their professional life at pretty much the same time. This is regardless of who sends the recruitment email. More than likely, candidates will not even know initially if the email came from an agency recruiter or a corporate recruiter. To them, what is consequential are the jobs, the opportunities, and the possibilities for their career.
That’s because what will get the attention of a passive top candidate is an employment opportunity that is clearly better than their current job. Not a job that’s the same or even slightly better. Only a job that is clearly better than their current position will pique their interest. It would be nice if all clients, hiring managers, and employers understood that reality of the marketplace, but that is a blog post for another place and time.
Recruiter email progress, not perfection
It’s a problem many recruiters face when sending emails. Should you send your email at the beginning, middle, or end of the week? No matter which one you choose, it’s tough to know for sure what the best day and best time of day is to send email blasts.
Here at Top Echelon, we’ve learned from contract staffing professionals and members of our split fee recruiting network that candidates, HR professionals, and hiring managers are flooded with more emails than ever before. As a result of this sea of emails, it’s important to identify when is the best time to get the attention of these busy people.
There isn’t a perfect answer for which day is the best for sending. If that was the case, everybody would be sending on that day, which would then make it the worst day. Believe it or not, there are pros and cons for just about every day of the week. However, it still appears that there are some days that are better than others.
The bottom line, though, is that you have to decide on the best day to send recruitment email for your audience. That starts with figuring out which day gets you the better response rate. This may take A/B testing and evaluation, but if you’re able to track response rates, that will help you determine which days works the best for those who you want to reach.
Recruitment email day by day
If you’re looking to increase open rate and engagement with your emails, below are the pros and cons of each day of the week:
Monday
Monday is overwhelming for everyone. Not only is there always a stack of work to get to from Friday, but inboxes are usually overflowing with unopened emails from the weekend. With that in mind, if you are going to send out recruitment email on this day, it should be around lunchtime. This will make it as easy as possible to reach your audience on a busy day.
Tuesday
Generally, Tuesday is viewed as the best day to send an email because it has the highest open rate. In theory, people have slugged their way through the build-up of email from over the weekend, and their inbox has been trimmed down. As a result, your email has a better chance of standing out. However, the news about this popular day for sending emails is getting out; there are more emails sent on Tuesday than any other day.
Wednesday and Thursday
These days are slightly behind Tuesday as far as popularity goes (especially Thursday). People are already beginning to think of the weekend (humans are predictable). You might want to think about using emails that have a leisure theme, instead of reminding them of how you can help them do their work. After all, chances are that your recipients are already thinking about how much fun the weekend is going to be. Catch them in the moment.
Friday
If people are thinking about the weekend on Wednesday and Thursday, just wait until Friday. Not only are ready to mentally check out of work, but many people use Friday as an extension of the weekend and take time off. As such, you should treat this as a weekend day. However, there’s one bright spot here. If you choose to send an email out on Friday, you’re up against less competition. Those who still understand that Friday is a part of the work week are more likely to see your email.
Saturday/Sunday
Okay, it’s true that more people check their email on the weekend because they have smartphones. (Ten-year olds have smartphones now.) However, it’s still the weekend, and many people are busy doing other things—like not working. As you might imagine, if you’re dead-set on sending recruitment email over the weekend, focus on Saturday as opposed to Sunday. Avoid sending on Sunday, unless you cannot wait for Monday. On average, the open rate on Sunday falls more than 50 percent, in comparison to those sent Monday through Thursday.
The best recruiting email and your ATS
Remember, it’s up to you which day to send out your emails. Your online recruiting software may even help you analyze this type of data if it integrates with email. The key is to find a system that works the best for you and your audience.
The good news is that Top Echelon’s recruiting software includes a robust email system for both search consultants and internal recruiters. Top Echelon’s ATS and CRM offers Microsoft integration for Outlook 365 users. As part of that integration, you can sync your Top Echelon Planner with your Outlook calendar. And yes, before you ask, Top Echelon also has integration with Gmail.
Recruitment email integration
However, that’s not all. In addition, Top Echelon’s applicant tracking software also boasts a brand-new email template interface for greater engagement and better results. With our advanced features and functionality, including Merge Fields to save time, we offer various ways for our users to deliver information quickly to candidates and clients. Top Echelon’s applicant tracking system also offers mass emailing capabilities and compliance with both General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
Success in recruiting is all about time: the right timing, saving time, being on time. It’s also about information, getting the right information in front of the right people . . . and doing it before somebody else does. That’s what Top Echelon’s recruiting software does. It helps search consultants and corporate recruiters save time during the recruiting and hiring process and makes sure that the right people get the right information when they need to get it.
So how does all of this work? What can you do? Excellent questions, and we have excellent answers! We invite you to request a recruiting software demo of Top Echelon’s applicant tracking system. OR if you want to jump right into the “deep end of the pool,” you can get free recruitment software for 15 days as part of your Top Echelon Software trial.
Not only is Top Echelon one of the most flexible, powerful, and versatile software recruiting packages on the market, it’s also one of the most affordable. We offer both an annual pricing plan and a monthly one. Visit our recruitment software pricing page for more details.
We hope to speak with you soon about your recruitment email and your recruiting software needs!
