If you’re starting a new recruitment agency, you know that there are a lot of ways to invest your money. Hiring staff, finding an office space, and kitting it out is obvious, but that’s just the start. 

New recruitment companies are often encouraged to set up a CRM from day one. But is that a good idea? Today we’re going to explain the benefits of a CRM system, and when is the best time to invest.  

 

What is a CRM?  

A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system manages the interactions between your current and potential customers. By streamlining the process, they help you to build better relationships with customers, improving your reputation as your business grows and, in many cases, boosting profitability.  

CRM software can include sales and marketing tools that help with communication or can be more focussed on improving workflow and output. Most are aimed at customer service and can collect valuable data for your business. CRMs are often flexible with their features, with multiple packages available so you can find one that suits you. 

Some of the more advanced CRM systems are now incorporating AI with the intent of speeding up processes even further. This is still relatively new but will become much more popular as the technology develops.  

 

Benefits of a CRM for Recruitment Agencies  

As a new recruitment agency, your main priority is to find a wide range of skilled candidates that fill your customers’ vacancies.  

As CVs come in, your CRM can help you organise them, sorting them into relevant categories and filtering the most appropriate, saving your team a lot of admin time. Your database can be updated automatically, making it much easier for you to provide the best applicants at the right time.  

One of the most important benefits is how CRMs track the progress of applications, and how the candidate is doing once they’re settled in. Your candidates are the heart of your business, building a trusting relationship with them is key to your success.  

If you mainly want your CRM to track your applicants, ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) are tailor-made CRM systems perfect for the job.  

Communication can be improved internally too, keeping your team on track and ensuring everything running smoothly.  

Now, all that sounds great, and there’s no denying that CRMs can be incredibly beneficial for a recruitment agency, but does this mean you should use a CRM from day one?  

 

When to Invest in a Recruitment CRM 

A new temporary recruitment agency needs to choose the right systems to invest in early and understand which will only be worth it later on. A CRM can give you a boost, but the overheads can be a big risk if you’re only just establishing yourselves. 

Most recruitment companies look into CRMs when the workload is becoming too much for their team to handle. This is usually after years of experience, when the demand has outgrown the supply, or customers and candidates are becoming frustrated.  

In the early days, it’s more important to focus on building your brand, finding your niche if you haven’t already, and ensuring plenty of candidates are choosing you over your rivals.  

Setting up a recruitment agency is a lot cheaper than you may realise. With fewer overheads, you can focus on investments that support you in both the long and short term. 

 

Choosing Recruitment Finance over a CRM 

Naturally, as a recruitment finance provider, we can’t say it’s a better investment without sounding biased. However, we’re more than capable of putting our money where our mouth is. 

We understand the world of recruitment better than any of our rivals. With multiple ex-recruiters on our team, we know what it’s like to run a recruitment company and understand how they’ve changed over the years. This is why so many of our clients are new start-ups looking to invest their money wisely.  

Our recruitment finance solution includes the following:  

It’s possible to find all of these services from different providers, which can cause more problems than it solves. With our all-in-one service you can rest easy knowing everything is being handled properly.  

Clear communication means everything to us. When you first get in touch with us, we take the time to establish your exact needs and explain everything that we can help you with.  

Then, once you sign up, we handle the correspondence between you, your clients, and your candidates on top of our other services – taking the pressure off you and your team. No emails will be missed, and everyone will be kept informed of any changes, developments, and will receive regular updates too.  

This is all handled by your dedicated payroll manager and credit controller. These will be the only points of contact you need throughout your time with us. They’ll understand your business almost as well as you do, becoming part of the family after only a short while. This builds trust, and thanks to their faultless accuracy, that will never waver. If you ever have any questions, concerns, or just want a chat, they’ll always be a phone call or email away.  

Recruitment finance can do more to boost profitability than a CRM. When so many of your admin tasks are being handled by us, and you aren’t relying on a third-party system, you are freed up to focus on running your business. This means you can provide higher quality candidates to your growing client base, helping you to soar past your competitors.  

Further down the line, investing in a CRM will make a lot more sense, and you’ll have the experience needed to choose one that works for you. But in the meantime, prioritise recruitment finance if you want to succeed from day one.