If you’ve set up your own recruitment agency then the likelihood is that you’ve been itching to grow from day one. Perhaps you have a steady stream of revenue and are developing a team to work under you. Now’s the time to take it to the next level and scale your recruitment business.
When is it time to expand your recruitment agency?
How do you know the time is right to expand? And if you have decided on this route, how do you go about planning for growth? As a business owner it can be tricky to decide between concentrating on developing at your company’s current size, or focusing instead on expansion.
Here are a few pointers to help you determine if now’s the time:
- Has your business demonstrated success and good talent retention for at least a couple of years?
- Take a look at your workload. Are you turning opportunities away because you don’t have the capacity?
- Have you been working at the same rate for a while now and crave new clients and bigger challenges?
- Do you have the adequate cash flow for expansion? (Additional expenses will be required for onboarding new employees, and increasing your marketing budget etc.)
- Are you prepared and sufficiently equipped to have a larger workforce?
Whatever it is that is driving the need for expansion, you next need to figure out how to approach it. It’s worth firstly asking yourself how you want to expand.
There are various ways recruitment agencies aspire to expand. Some simply want to take on more business, whilst others want to grow their workforce, or introduce a new area of speciality. In the next part of this guide we’ll take you through a strategy for each area of growth.
Taking on more business
Do you want to take on more business because you’ve got a profit margin to hit, or simply want to continue the growth you’ve been enjoying so far? To get new clients on board, the first step is to think about where they’re going to come from. If clients have already been asking for more, or you’ve been regularly turning potential new clients away, then there is your answer. Follow these leads!
If this is not the case for you, then you’ll need to plan a strategy to attract new clients and candidates. LinkedIn can be an invaluable tool for recruiters, make sure you are using this to the best of your ability.
Your online presence should definitely receive your attention if you’re looking to grow your business. Recruitment professionals cited new business as their number one priority in 2023, with 39% of BullHorn’s study respondents expressing an increased commitment. However, getting found by enough clients and candidates is definitely a challenge, and improving your brand awareness can help here.
Improving your brand awareness
A crucial element to consider when looking to expand your client base is your marketing strategy. The recruitment industry is a crowded market but a robust marketing plan can set you apart and help you reach valuable candidates.
If you’ve been experiencing steady work for a while now, you may have let your marketing efforts go by the wayside or become outdated. Revisit, refresh and, if needed, relaunch these marketing materials. No one is going to trust in you or work with you if they don’t know you’re there and available.
SEO, Pay-Per-Click advertising and a strong social media presence can help you to consistently get found by more people. This will boost your visibility and drive website traffic, which are fundamental steps if you are looking to grow your business.
Increasing conversion rates
It’s all well and good getting more people to your site but in order to see business growth you need to convert them too. One example of a great strategy to increase conversions is building an email list. This will allow you to engage with clients and candidates over a long period of time. The trust and brand awareness these interactions build is especially critical for a recruitment firm. It helps to be at the front of people’s minds for when they come to need a recruiter’s services.
Another useful tip to help you increase conversions and grow is to get reviews. Encourage all your clients who have good experiences to leave reviews for you on third party online sites like TrustPilot or Google Reviews. This applies to your employees as well as your clients – a good Glassdoor rating can really help your hiring process if you’re hoping to expand your workforce.
Diversifying your agency’s offering
Are you looking to expand your recruitment business in a new direction, introducing a new area of speciality? Broadening your horizons is something we would always recommend when looking to grow. Expanding into new markets makes your business more secure, and increases its stability in the eyes of investors. It’s especially valuable to expand into a niche area as this reduces competition and makes it easier to establish your business as an authority.
Bear in mind that whilst diversifying your agency’s offering may be the right move for you, it will take a little more hard work. You might need to alter your current offering in accordance, and you’ll definitely want to update your website and marketing materials. Additionally, some new team members may be needed to facilitate the expansion.
Expanding your workforce
If taking on more employees is part of your growth strategy, we have a few tips for you to keep in mind. According to data from LinkedIn, the majority of recruitment agencies in the UK only have a headcount of between 1 and 10 members. However, scaling your team is a very effective way to increase revenue. Simply put, more recruiters will mean more deals. But don’t forget that hiring the wrong people can undermine growth – focus on quality over quantity.
If you’ve got an ambition to expand your team it’s also important to think about the funds needed for this growing workforce. You’ll need adequate cash flow to on-board these new members. Plus, you may need to look at finding a bigger office. Once new employees are hired, your job is not over as you now need to make sure they want to stay. Invest in your employees and help them grow too by offering training. This will help to ensure continued growth for your agency.
Growing your recruitment agency with New Millennia
If this guide has helped you realise it’s time to scale your business, we’d advise forming a partnership with industry professionals. Delegating obligations to experienced experts can take the pressure off your workload, allowing you to concentrate on a growth strategy.
New Millennia provides a funding and back office solution built exclusively for your business. We take care of the background hassle, whilst you get on with generating new business and fulfilling client requirements. We specialise in supporting recruitment SMEs, to find out more about our services drop an email to enq@nmgroup.co.uk, or call 0161 337 9882.
There’s a lot to think about when considering expansion, for some it almost comes naturally, but even then there is much that needs to be planned. Don’t get caught in the trap of expanding too early or too quickly without giving thought to the areas we have discussed here first.
