Why Candidate Experience Matters for Hiring Success

Candidate experience impacts how candidates feel about a hiring process and company. These impressions affect hiring success.

Many candidates receive multiple job offers at once. Therefore, standing out as an employer of choice encourages candidates to choose a company over its competition.

Most candidates use word of mouth, social media, and employer review sites to share their experiences interacting with a company. As a result, providing a positive candidate experience is in an employer’s best interest.

Discover why candidate experience matters for hiring success.

Impact of a Positive Experience on Employer Brand

According to CareerPlug’s 2024 Candidate Experience Report, 76% of candidates said a positive experience influenced their decision to accept an offer. Also, 60% of candidates left a positive review online after having a positive experience. These factors impact the company’s reputation as a great place to work.

Many candidates use employer review sites such as Glassdoor to determine which companies interest them. Therefore, reading mostly positive reviews encourages candidates to apply for roles with an organization. These factors improve a company’s offer acceptance rates, quality of hire, and referral rates.

Impact of a Negative Experience on the Hiring Process

According to the report, 52% of candidates declined a job offer due to poor experience. As a result, companies that invested significant time and money in the hiring process but provided a poor candidate experience lost out on more than half of their top candidates. Therefore, these employers had to settle for their second or third choices for roles.

Even worse, the report found that 35% of candidates left a negative review online after having a negative experience. Job seekers considering working for these companies are likely to read the reviews and decide to apply for roles elsewhere. As a result, employers lose out on top talent. These factors increase the time to hire, elevate the cost per hire, and lower the quality of hire.

Tips to Elevate the Candidate Experience

Employers can take the following steps to elevate the candidate experience:

Increase transparency about income and benefits

Candidates desire information about income and benefits in job postings. Providing these details helps candidates make informed decisions to apply for roles that fit their goals and needs.

Clarify the job duties and responsibilities

Ensure job postings include accurate information about the job duties and responsibilities. Candidates use these details to visualize working for your company.

Strengthen candidate and interviewer communication

Encourage interviewers to promptly respond to candidates’ questions and concerns. Examples include:

  • Using email templates to automate replies.
  • Detailing the hiring process steps and timeline during the initial interview.
  • Regularly updating candidates on their status in the hiring process.

Would You Like Help to Elevate the Candidate Experience?

HireCall can help improve the hiring process and elevate the candidate experience for your Oklahoma business. Reach out to learn more or request an employee directly today.