Finally you spot an advertised job that you feel is the one. It’s in your industry, it’s the company you have always admired and it’s describing the skills you already have. On top of that the pay and benefits mentioned sound fantastic. After a few hours tinkering with your resume and writing a knock-out cover letter you click “Apply Now” and send it through to the recruiter.

Now what? The excitement and energy you feel as you submit your application quickly turns to a nervy worriedness. What should you do next? Should you call the recruiter to try and make a great impression or should you wait to hear back from them?

My advice is that you should always call the recruiter, however you must thoroughly prepare yourself for the call. Here’s an example of how the majority of calls I receive go from candidates who haven’t prepared themselves:

Me: Welcome to SMAART, James speaking
Candidate: Oh hello, is that James?
Me: Yes, this is James speaking.
Candidate: Oh, ah, hi James…………….
Me: How can I help you?
Candidate: Oh I’ve just applied for your job I’ve seen online.
Me: That’s great. Which one?
Candidate: The sales job.
Me: Sure, I’ve got 8 different sales vacancies at the moment, can you be a bit more specific?
Candidate: Oh ummm… not really, I’ve applied for so many jobs I can’t quite remember which one was yours.
Me: Ok, so was there something you wanted to discuss?
Candidate: Well I was just wanting to tell you I’ve applied and find out more information.
Me: Sure, what would you like to know?
Candidate: Just a bit more about the role………
Me: Was there something specific you wanted to know more about?
Candidate: Ummm I just wanted to know more about the job.

I’m a good sales recruiter. When candidates call me up I try to get them to do most of the talking early on – I want to see if they can hold the conversation with someone they have never spoken to before. I deliberately give them enough rope to either succeed or fail. The above candidate was unprepared, didn’t introduce themselves and didn’t call with a real purpose. Candidates must approach a call to a recruiter as a serious and key part of the recruitment process. Here’s an example of it being done well:

Me: Welcome to SMAART, James speaking
Candidate: Hi James, my name is Angela, how are you today?
Me: Very well thank you.
Candidate: James I’ve applied for the Account Manager role you’ve advertised with a cloud based software company, and was hoping you had a few minutes to discuss a few questions I had?
Me: Certainly Angela, what would you like to know?
Candidate: Great, thanks James. Just to give you some background I am currently working at Company X in a very similar role. I’m keen to know a little bit more about how the sales channel works in this role, and whether Company X’s offers just one product, or a whole suite?

This candidate has impressed me already. They have prepared their questions in advance, they have used my name several times, they have established that they have seemingly relevant experience, and they are confident over the phone. I’m keen to learn more about Angela and I’ll definitely be keen to see her resume.

The great thing here is that every candidate can prepare and present themselves in the way Angela has. It takes courage to pick up the phone and call a recruiter, and we are often hard to reach. Spending 10 minutes preparing for that phone call can make all the difference. Here is your checklist for calling:

• Know the name of person you are wanting to speak to, and expect them to answer the phone (if there is no name on the ad ask the receptionist for the name of the person before being put through).
• Have the advertisement printed out and in front of you, and read it a number of times so it feels familiar to you.
• Research the company thoroughly and have notes in front of you (you should have done this when preparing your cover letter).
• Be clear with the recruiter about which role you are referring to.
• Have 2 or 3 prepared questions written down in front of you, and practice asking them before you call.
• Keep the call brief, but be prepared for a longer conversation if the recruiter keeps the conversation going.
• If you aren’t feeling confident then practice. Like with interviewing, practice makes perfect. Ask a friend to act the role of recruiter and pretend.

Of course though there are always going to be exceptions to the rules above. A candidate that does put the extra effort into their job searching activities is giving a good example of how they can apply themselves in the workplace.

Be best prepared by downloading How To Call A Recruiter About A Vacancy – Checklist.

James Witcombe
The Candidate Coach