Iggy, the Code name of one of our recruiting specialists, has put together a list of tips that are useful for the do-it-yourself recruiter. By following these tips, you increase your chances of finding that perfect candidate. If and when you feel you would like more hands on assistance with your staffing activities, PixelScout will be here to help.

1. Write a complete job description that prioritizes the skills and experiences needed.
2. Use as many search methods as possible. The internet, career advertisements, referrals and search firms.
3. Make sure your job posting or advertisement answers all the typical questions an applicant for that position would have. Pass the description by a person in that position already and see if they would have any further questions.
4. Keep in mind that in today's job market, regardless of how wonderful your opportunity or company is, you have to sell candidates on the position. Hit the hot buttons and main areas of interest for top applicants.
5. Remember that many of the best applicants are passive job seekers that are not aggressively looking. To cater to those who find out about your position, let people know that all applications are confidential.
6. Specify the location of the position in any advertisement.
7. Incorporate some method of tracking where responses originate so that you will be able to refine your search in the future.
8. Use non-traditional sources for referrals. Vendors, customer & neighbours may know someone who knows someone.
9. Make sure applicants get as much information as possible about your company. Postings and advertisements can steer people to your website or other sources for more company information.
10. Respond to all applications (use technology to facilitate this). This will make it more likely that applicants will call back for other positions you have and will prevent negative word of mouth on your company.

Internet Job Posting Tips

1. Job Titles. Make sure that the job title is as functional as possible. It should convey to applicants what the position is. If your internal title does not do this, change it for the job posting and give the official title to applicants during the interview.
2. Location. For national or international postings let people know the city and province/state. If it is in a smaller municipality, let them know the closest major centre they would have heard of and how close you are to it. For local postings let people know the closest major intersection.
3. Keywords. Many applicants do searches via keywords over the internet, so make sure you include all the skills and abilities you are looking for that would come up as keywords.
4. Salary. Studies on the net are starting to show that job postings that include salary information generate more and better qualified responses.
5. Website. All job postings should direct the applicant to the website for further information on the company and the position.
6. Selling the company. Make sure the posting has a section that talks about the company's features and how they benefit employees. Talk about the culture of the company, its achievements and its future.
7. Selling the carreer opportunity. Let applicants know why this is a great role. Give them information on the career path, individual growth potential, educational opportunities or anything else that you have to offer.
8. Traffic. If you have advertising going on in other mediums, have it direct people to the web posting. Web postings can give much more information and are very easy for most people to check.
9. Terms. Make sure to use the industry or job category jargon when writing the description. Your audience will be expecting these terms. If you are not technical and are writing a job description, get a technical person to help you with this aspect of the position.
10. Response. Make sure to have a mechanism in place to respond to all applicants. One of the biggest complaints applicants have is that companies don't get back to them. Remember that the person who didn't quite fit may be talking to your next hire.