Why You Should Respond to a Recruiter

You know the message: a recruiter's headshot shows up in your InMail. "Hi!," they say. "I'm filling a role at an exciting company, and your background looks perfect. Would you be able to hop on a call to chat more?" You think: "I'm happy in my current role, why would I respond to a recruiter?"After all, you like your job and feel happy, fulfilled, and compensated fairly. If you're part of this 51 percent of Americans, then you can chalk it up as a win. Still, even if you're part of this group and aren't interested in exploring new opportunities, there are plenty of reasons to respond to a recruiter. They could certainly benefit you in both the short and long term.

1. Recruiters offer valuable insight.

Career Group Companies President Susan Levine says, "A good candidate is educated about the job market." Educate yourself about the job market by building relationships with recruiters. Recruiter insight is valuable if you want to negotiate your salary, beef up your LinkedIn, or just learn more about the career marketplace. It's true that a recruiter's primary role is to help you find a job. But additionally, top recruiters know the most about the industry they recruit for and are eager to share their insight with candidates. Ultimately, for just this knowledge alone, it's worth your time to respond.

2. The best recruiters have connections with the best companies in the nation.

According to Senior Account Executive Zelda Ordulu, "Companies use recruiting firms to streamline their processes... everyone from large corporations to boutique firms." Whether it's a small tech firm just getting off the ground or a consulting firm with a global footprint, they probably utilize a recruiting firm in some capacity.Because they have relationships with decision-makers at these companies, recruiters know things not advertised in job postings - company organization, culture, and so on. With this knowledge in hand, recruiters can help you hone in on the interview style and application details you'll need to get ahead.

3. Your dream job could be open, and you might not know it.

As Susan puts it, "a candidate may be happy in their current role, until I call to talk to them about a life-changing opportunity." Your current role satisfies you, but that might be because you don't even know your dream job is open. In fact, many searches recruiters are working on aren't available to active job seekers - according to Forbes, "80 percent of open jobs are never advertised." These jobs might be confidential to everyone but key decision-makers. As a result, decision-makers use other means to fill them - networking, internal promotions, and - you guessed it - recruiters!

4. Responding to a recruiter = networking!

In today's job market, networking is key. Therefore, cultivating relationships with professionals in your city can only help as you climb up the professional ladder.Furthermore, the job a recruiter is sourcing for may not be the best fit now. They'll probably have something better in the future - a year, or even five years down the road. For some of her candidates Zelda says, "the search was slower because we took our time to find their PERFECT fit." Not every job is going to be perfect, but by keeping these professional relationships alive you ensure that when the recruiter does find your best fit, they're going to call.

5. You have nothing to lose by responding to a recruiter, and everything to gain.

At the end of the day, taking fifteen minutes to talk to a recruiter is well worth your time. Put simply, it could be the difference between career growth and staying where you are. You may end up passing on the role, or you may find your dream job. Either way, responding to a recruiter will gain you a career advisor. Additionally, you'll create a connection that will help propel you forward for years to come.

6. Looking to begin a relationship with the best recruiters?

If you’re looking to build a network with recruiters to take that next step, you’ve come to the right place. Career Group Companies has five recruiting brands placing individuals in exceptional opportunities within administrative, creative and marketing, fashion, C-level, and events. No matter what you’re looking for, we have the recruiter to help! To get started, apply for one of our open roles on our Job Seekers page.