Everything around us is evolving and so is recruitment. In fact, Recruitment seems to be a really hard nut to crack. Inbound and outbound recruiting strategies are two major recruiting methods used in Talent Acquisition. When it comes to recruiting, some may argue that it doesn’t matter whether it’s inbound or outbound – as long as the end result is the same.

Inbound recruiting is a recruiting strategy where you proactively and continually attract candidates with the goal to make them choose you as their next employer. Your goal in inbound recruiting is to lead the candidates through the first 3 stages of candidates’ journey: Awareness, Consideration, and Interest.

Outbound recruiting is a recruiting strategy where you search for and contact candidates when a certain new position that you need to fill opens. Your goal in outbound recruiting is to jump right to the application stage and offer your job opening.

Advantages of Inbound Recruiting

1. A Bigger Pool of Applicants- People everywhere are going to see your campaign efforts and be invited to apply.
2. Less Effort Up Front- You’ll need to set up an application platform, write and place your advertisements, and work on your brand messaging.
3. Lasting Power- You can have a rotating pool of applicants who are ready for any of your open positions, and you won’t need to start from scratch every time you have a new opening.

Advantages of Outbound Recruiting

1. More Specific Targets- For positions that require very specific skill sets or demand a high level of talent, this is a huge advantage. You’ll see better results looking for one specific person than you would be sorting through thousands of potential fits.
2. Less Effort in Vetting- In outbound recruiting, the vetting process happens at the top, so you’ll spend less overall time sorting through candidates.
3. Personal Touch- Not only will this make your brand seem friendlier and more approachable to your targets, but it may also help your employment relationship start off on the right foot.

The majority of innovative companies today use both inbound recruitment and outbound recruitment methods. However, the latter method is gradually becoming a plan B method for recruitment. That is to say, outbound recruiting only applies when you do not successfully attain enough high-quality candidates from the current inbound recruiting strategy.