Making a candidate a job offer is a pivotal point

of the hiring process. A job offer is more than just

an offer of compensation to a prospective employee,
it is the culmination of weeks of work for employers
and candidates.

Here are the secrets to developing a consistent,

systematic approach that will boost your job offer
acceptance rates.

1. The Intake
As the first step in the recruiting process, take a systematic approach to gathering a couple of
must-have data points that constitute what we call an intake. An intake must include:

The candidate’s reason for looking. Their ideal position going forward.

The candidate’s expected future Their ability and willingness to

income. What are they going to take? commute to the office.

Relocation details (if appropriate). What is their desired start date?

Where are they in the job search process Their current base salary and any other
and when do they want to make a decision? compensations such as bonus, commissions,
equity, benefits, etc (total package).

Gather and document intelligence related to

your applicant and affirm the fit along the way.

2. The Pre-close
If you think closing a candidate happens only at the end of the recruiting process, your closing
percentage is likely pretty dismal. When pre-closing is done properly, you won’t even have to
close the candidate at the end.

An easy way to set up the pre-close is to formally deliver feedback to a candidate that has interviewed.
During these calls, you’ll be reconfirming the information that you previously documented such as:

Interest level Compensation Commute issues

How the job maps to Timing Desired start date

career aspirations

Remember, always be closing!

3. The Verbal Offer

Once you have internal buy in and specific figures, you must call the candidate to present the
offer. When presenting the offer, always have an agenda and a plan. Here is an example outline
for a verbal offer call.

Start out with the good news – “I have
good news. We’d like to formally extend
you an offer to work with us!”
Reiterate why your team has chosen the
candidate for the opportunity and align
this with candidate’s goals, which by now
you have already discussed in detail.
Be prepared to specifically address any
areas where the offer does not intersect
with the candidate’s requests discussed in
the pre-closing calls.
This is a better way to get the candidate
talking rather than asking them what they
think about the offer.

Describe what the candidate will be doing
at the company.
Take a second to describe why this is an
exciting time at the company.
Finally, ask your candidate when they can
start. This is such a key step. If the candidate
can’t see themselves starting or won’t
commit, you have more work to do.

Share the details of the job offer clearly

and concisely.

If the candidate isn’t ready to accept the verbal

offer, you have some work to do.

4. The Written Offer

Once your candidate has verbally accepted the offer, now you have to take this offer to the
finish line quickly.

Tell your candidate when and how the Follow up with the candidate to make sure
formal paperwork will be sent out, and they received the paperwork and
make sure they have it in their hands everything is in order.
within 24 hours.
Always require the offer letter to be signed
Get a Docusign or similar digital signature and returned by the specified date.
service to use for job offers. This will
expedite the process and you can track
when people view the offer.

Otherwise, email a PDF version of the

offer letter or overnight the offer packet to
the candidate.

Remember, time is the enemy of all deals.

Move with urgency.

5. The Offer Isn’t Closed Until

The Candidate Starts
This sounds skeptical, but until your candidate shows up for their first day of work, the offer is
not closed. Follow these steps to minimize the risk of a costly no-start.

Agree to a start date 2-3 weeks from the
date of the offer acceptance.
Prepare the candidate for a counter offer.
Walk them through how they will respond
to a counter offer from their present
employer. Start by reminding them why
they are leaving. It’s worth mentioning
that the loyalty of a candidate that accepts
a counteroffer will always be in question
going forward.
Find reason to contact the candidate weekly.
What do you want your business cards to
say? Do you want a Mac or a PC? What
email address do you prefer? Share news
or events related to the company.
Do something nice for the candidate.
Send flowers. Send a gift card. No budget?
Send a nice handwritten note.

Maintain contact with your candidate until

they start. Leave nothing to chance.

These tips are brought to you by the recruiting

experts at Newton. At Newton, we develop
simple, smart, safe applicant tracking software
for small and medium-size employers. Over
1000 employers rely on Newton’s cloud-based
hiring platform to help them hiring.

Learn more at www.newtonsoftware.com

Newton Software | 415-593-1190 | sales@newtonsoftware.com | www.newtonsoftware.com