Not recruiting in December is a missed opportunity. Starting the upcoming year with a new job along with renewed energy and excitement about the future can be very tantalizing for sales reps. Yet, many companies choose to sit out this ideal time to recruit.
There may be many reasons why a company would choose to wait until January to recruit sales reps. One common reason is to reduce spending so they can close out the year with improved profitability. Another is that the holidays just get in the way of recruiting activities. People often feel overwhelmed during the holidays so pushing a non-urgent hiring initiative to January can ease stress on hiring managers.
Many companies slow down business activity during the holidays. And some companies, like manufacturing companies, might even shut down for 1-2 weeks during the holidays. Because of the slow down during the month of December, sales reps may have fewer customer or prospect meetings as they are pushed off until January. Consequently, sales reps will spend more time in the office which makes them more available to contact.
December is a time when sales reps evaluate their yearly performance and set new goals for the upcoming. If ever there is a time during the year when sales reps might question whether they are with the right company, December would be top on the list! And if ever there was a good time to recruit sales reps, it would be when sales reps are contemplating career options, which is most likely to happen at the end of the year. Reps look at their sales numbers, review their company’s growth potential, determine if their managers are supporting their efforts, and think about how they can be successful in the coming year.
When companies wait until January, it might be March or later before the right sales candidate is hired. Consequently, sales reps miss out on first quarter sales opportunities which is a prime time for prospects to spend their new annual budget dollars. Keep in mind that it could take six months or longer for a sales rep to ramp up, so you are at the end of the third quarter before the reps are running full throttle. And guess what? The holidays are now around the corner which could slow down sales activities for the fourth quarter.
Fourth quarter and particularly December is the ideal time to recruit sales reps. Sales reps are more open to considering opportunities and they have more time to interview. Don’t let your holidays get in the way of the most strategic time to recruit. Take advantage of this ideal time and get a jump start on your competitors, as they will most likely be pushing their recruiting efforts into the upcoming year.
If you find it difficult to schedule office interviews with your hiring managers during December, at least conduct your research, sourcing, and screening efforts before Christmas and then schedule office interviews in early January. If sales reps are entertaining new opportunities, they will be looking at multiple companies. Anything you can do to be the first interview will work in your favor. Get your new year off to a healthy start by recruiting strategically now.
To learn more about how to strategize your year-end recruiting efforts, give us a call at 317-578-1310.
