Industry Insights

If you’re looking to make a change in your career and you love helping people, but the thought of being in the medical or education field is not your style, consider becoming a digital recruiter.

Recruiters help companies find the best possible candidates for open positions. You’ll work to develop relationships and understand what your clients are looking for, earning their trust and building a reputation for being a professional career matchmaker at the same time. 

Curious? Here are some of the qualifications and skills you need to be a digital recruiter. 

1. A degree isn’t necessary. No higher education degree is required to get started as a recruiter; a high school education is usually enough as there’s plenty of on-the-job training, building your people skills and learning the software and digital tools that will best serve you and your future clients. This low barrier to entry makes it an exciting opportunity for young adults just starting out who would rather work than delay their careers by going to a four-year university, or those who worry that they’re at a disadvantage by not pursuing a higher degree. 
2. You enjoy the competition. Because of the low barriers to entry, the field can get filled quickly when other types of job positions are in lower demand. But if you’re dedicated, focused and ready to put in the hard work to build your reputation and help your clients succeed, while helping your candidates find the perfect fit for their open positions, you can be very successful. You have to be willing to do the work and continually learn and improve in order to stay ahead of the curve. 
3. You have the right skills. Being a recruiter is kind of like being in sales, but you need more than just good interpersonal skills in order to make this deal. The best recruiters are skilled and excellent communicators; they’ve developed finely tuned time management and problem solving skills. They’re friendly and enthusiastic networkers, enjoying the opportunity to meet people and learn about them, retaining that information and following up in later conversation to build and nurture a relationship. Recruiters also need to be comfortable talking about themselves, sharing their expertise and wins while making people feel both at ease and confident when speaking with you. Being able to build trust and relationships is key for recruiters. Digital recruiters also need excellent computer skills, including searching, data analytics, an understanding of SEO and keyword searchers and why they matter to companies and job candidates alike. 
4. You’re comfortable on the phone, even making cold calls. If you’re just starting out as a digital recruiter, you’re going to need to start by selling yourself, your skills and your abilities. This means picking up the phone and calling companies, introducing yourself and explaining why they need you. You need to craft and perfect the delivery of an elevator pitch about yourself: Why should they come to you to help fill open positions? What can you offer them that their current recruiter can’t, or doesn’t, or that they can’t do themselves? A lot of that will come down to time management: internal HR professionals are swamped as it is and needing to review resumes is time consuming. As an independent recruiter, you can dedicate your time to helping them find the best people, reviewing resumes and conducting initial interviews so that the candidates you bring to them are already suitable for consideration, all for a small fee. Being willing, ready, able and comfortable having those conversations, sometimes repeatedly with the same people, will help you develop the contacts and relationships you’ll need to be successful. 
5. You have some relevant work experience. Recruiters might not need special training to get their jobs, but most have the same kinds of working backgrounds that help them start off their new career on the right foot. Many recruiters who go out on their own have shared work experience, including jobs in sales, operations, administrative positions, support and research. These positions all require the kind of skills that will be needed as a recruiter, including the ability to work well with people in addition to independently, the ability to build relationships, problem solve and find creative solutions while connecting to and with people — all of those abilities will help you develop your business as a recruiter. 

Interested in becoming a digital recruiter? Call Method Recruiting today to get started. 

Digital recruiters have the option to work on their own or with a team, and for those just getting started in the industry, a little guidance from established professionals is a smart investment in yourself and your future. 

If recruiting sounds like the kind of career you might enjoy, contact Method Recruiting today. Our experts can help you understand the ins and outs of our work and can help you decide whether this is the right path to take. Contact Method Recruiting today and let’s get started!