Your campaigns are running, the database is full of contacts, but the responses keep coming. Recognisable? For many recruitment agencies and staffers, the crux is in conversion. Because reach is nice, but that doesn't fill vacancies. Fortunately, there are smart ways to get more candidates moving. In this blog, we will show you how to do this and what it does for your candidate conversion. Sometimes you will suddenly see it go up by 4!
Quick summary
Many recruitment agencies and staffers are still not getting enough return from their campaigns and database because conversion rates are lagging behind. Responses fail to materialise, candidates drop out or are snatched away by competitors. You can break through this with smart tactics such as low-threshold applications, automatic follow-up and personalised communication with your talent pool. Agencies that get this right see their conversion rates double or even quadruple. The tools and techniques are already there, it's up to you to use them smartly and get more candidates moving.
Conversion as a bottleneck
Many recruiters know exactly which channels to use to reach their target audience, but the next step (conversion optimisation) often remains a mystery. How do you get candidates to actually take action and respond to a vacancy or start the application process? That’s a different kettle of fish. For staffing and recruitment agencies, low candidate conversion rates are in fact the number one challenge, according to the MrWork RMA Trends Report 2025.
Fortunately, there are methods by which you can boost that conversion rate considerably. Sometimes even quadruple it! Based on client experiences and research results, we list the best conversion boosters for recruitment agencies and staffers.
1. Low-threshold application
Do you mandate uploading a CV when applying? Or ask you to write a cover letter? This may have worked fine years ago, but now these are elements that kill your conversion rate. In a job market where active applicants are scarce, one thing is crucial: responding should be quick and easy. This is why more and more employers and agencies are opting for soft conversions: a simple and quick action, think of a WhatsApp, a 'call me back button' or a lead form on socials, to start the conversation.
Harm van Wichen of Job Personeelsmakelaar sees the impact of easy-to-use response options every day: “Our target group (technical professionals in operational roles) is very active on WhatsApp and responds more quickly via that channel. It also saves a lot of back-and-forth phone calls, as people are less likely to answer the phone these days anyway. We see a much higher conversion rate via WhatsApp than via email.”
Other agencies are also seeing conversion rates rise rapidly by lowering the barrier to entry. For one MrWork client, the conversion rate on their careers site rose from 2% to 5%, simply by adding soft conversions. And that has a direct impact on the entire funnel: because more inbound leads are coming in, recruiters at this organisation are focusing on follow-up rather than cold outreach.
In short: the easier you make it to respond, the more candidates you will speak to. Rather, start with a low-key introduction and then see if it's a match.
"Thanks to our recruitment campaign with low-threshold responses, we receive dozens of responses a day. More than 80% of them fall within our target group. Thus, this campaign now provides us with by far the largest flow of candidates, more than other channels we have been using for some time."
– Max Sips, founder of Port of Opportunities
2. Minimise dropouts through speed
Responding quickly makes the difference between a successful placement and a missed opportunity. Does it take too long to arrange an interview? If so, you’ll have already lost 4 out of 10 candidates.
"In today's job market, it's all about speed, because if you respond too late, the candidate is already talking to someone else."
- Sura Baars, Triad Vitree
Achieving more placements is therefore inextricably linked to the speed of the process. How do you ensure you’re always on top of things? Even when recruiters are briefly offline? With automated follow-up and screening! By automatically asking candidates questions about their availability, work experience or qualifications, you can quickly identify the cream of the crop. Add AI to the mix, and your digital colleague will even answer candidates’ questions and take care of the follow-up actions after screening. It doesn’t get any faster than that!
An added benefit: it’s much more efficient for you as a recruiter. With automated qualification, you have less manual work to do and can focus on valuable interactions. One recruitment agency from MrWork’s client base even achieved a 90% time saving thanks to these automations.
3. Stay top-of-mind with your talent pool
Many agencies focus on attracting new candidates. Logical, because that's where you see a concrete result of your efforts. But in your own ATS usually lurks at least as valuable a goldmine of candidates. Candidates who once applied, were approached or showed interest, but then just didn't make it. The only challenge: you have no idea whether they are now open to something new, whether their details are still up to date and how to reconnect. They were 'warm contacts', but you let them cool down. A shame!
How do you avoid falling off these candidates’ radar? By staying in touch. Preferably without it requiring a lot of manual work. That’s where recruitment marketing automation comes in. As Harm van Wichen of Job Personeelsmakelaar says: “With RMA, you can send automated messages to your talent pools. If you ensure these messages contain relevant content – tailored to the needs of your target audience – you’ll build a talent pool of engaged candidates. And that’s worth its weight in gold, because those candidates haven’t yet been approached by your competitors.”
Reactivating your database won't get you 10 applications overnight, but it will make you much less dependent on expensive job boards and time-consuming sourcing. And if your ideal candidate then suddenly becomes open to the next step? Then you know how to introduce him to a client first, long before the competition knocks on the door.
Conversion is where you grab the profits
Recruitment has long since ceased to be just about reach. It's about what you do with that attention. If you focus on conversion now, with low-threshold reactions, lightning-fast follow-up and permanent contact with talent, tomorrow the best candidates will be sitting at your table. The great thing is: the tools and techniques are already there. All you have to do is use them intelligently.
