Whether the weather
Don't rain on your own parade
I review a lot of recruiter pitches, and there’s one phrase I see that undermines everything else you’ve done to position yourself as an expert in your niche.
Positioning your value is more show than tell, and this one phrase shows your clients that you’re not as specialist as you say you are. Lose that trust, and you lose the chance of winning retainers and charging the premium price that you’re worth.
The simple, but killer, phrase starts like this: “Whether…”
Most recruitment leaders I work with describe themselves as specialists, not generalists. But I see so many of them using this killer word in their pitches, which shows potential clients that you’re casting your net wide in the hope of catching any business… rather than being laser-focused on your actual niche.
Let me explain the three ways this one word can lose you business and drop your fees.
1. The every-skill specialist
“Whether you’re looking for field engineers, sales people or product developers…”
You could argue that focusing on a sector is niche, but these days you’re going to get out-niche’d by someone who specialises in a specific skill within a specific sector.
Clients are savvy enough to know that engineers and sales people, for example, have very different personalities, interests and motivations… not to mention different technical jargon in how they describe their work.
If you suggest you can appeal to all those different types, you’re going to lose credibility with the client - and probably lose good business to a more specialist competitor.
2. The all-levels specialist
“Whether you’re looking for managers, C-suite execs or entry-level staff…”
Clients value different levels of hires very differently. That’s not to say there isn’t good business to be done on the shop floor, but you’ll struggle to convincingly position yourself as a specialist if you’re trying to win the CEO role and ten grad vacancies at the same time.
Good recruiters know this, of course, but when it comes to writing a pitch or some website copy they fall into the trap of trying to win every role they can… which leads to winning less business, not more.
3. The all-types-of-recruitment offer
“Whether you’re looking for perm, temp or contract…”
You’re trying to showcase your range of solutions, but this phrase sounds like you’re fishing for anything you can catch rather than the specialist expert you want to position yourself as.
The problem here is that you’re suggesting your potential client knows what they are looking for. What’s worse, you’re sitting back and taking their suggestions on how they think they should do it.
You are the expert, you call the shots. Your client has the problem, and once you partner with them you can tell them the best way to solve it. That might be perm, temp or contract (or any other recruitment jargon you want to throw in the mix), but in your pitch you should be focused on the client’s problem and your unique ability to solve it.
It may seem extreme to suggest that one phrase is losing you business and slashing your fees, but first impressions matter… and you need to make sure your clients see you as a specialist expert worth paying for.
Get your pitch right, and you’ll be in a better place to grow your business with high-value work from clients who see you as the best in your field.
If you want an external review of how you could win more high quality business, just reply with your pitch deck attached - I'll analyse your language and send you a personalised Value Review video (from me, not AI).
Jon
P.S. The ultimate sin in my mind is the following phrase: “Whether you’re looking for contingent or retained recruitment…”
[I’ll take a minute to compose myself, then continue]
Where to start? You’re advertising contingent, even though you want to win retained work. You’re using the worst of recruitment jargon (most people think a retainer fixes your teeth). You’re asking what your client wants, not telling them what they need. And you’re opening your pitch doc or website by talking about payment models, not value.
But here’s the good news: if you’re open to changing your language, you’ll find yourself winning more, better business from clients who value your expertise. It’s a change worth making.
If you want an external review of how you could win more high quality business, just reply with your pitch deck attached - I'll analyse your language and send you a personalised Value Review video (from me, not AI).