5 Sure Shot Ways Of Increasing Participation In Your Referral Program

By Author: Savio Vadakkan
Total Articles: 58
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Every corporate business is on the lookout for professionals and uncharted talent that could help drive their company to the top. The challenge of recruiting lies in locating and hiring the best candidates in the face of the rising competition in the market for which employee referrals is seen as a solution.

For organizations wanting to focus their limited time and resources on programs with the highest impact, the lowest cost and little chance of failure, Employee Referral Programs tower above other recruitment Methods.

Employee Referral programs are now an integral part of the recruiting strategy of all organizations, irrespective of the nature and size of business, due to the overwhelming advantages it offers both in terms of cost and quality of hire.

It is easy to design a good employee referral program; however running it successfully requires attention to a whole lot of details, failing which a well-designed referral program is also likely to fail.

Increasing employee participation can be the most effective way to ensure the success of your referral program.

Here are 5 ways which will ...
... help boost your employee referral program participation:

1) Promote your employee referral program

Communication is essential to build a proper understanding with employees. This would help them understand the key features of the employee referral program. Companies must also return to employees immediately with information on the resumes. An immediate response encourages interest and drives the employees to make more referrals in the future.

The lack of communication might result in the employees losing interest in the employee referral program and can also hurt their morale.

2) Monetary Benefits can help your referral program

Offering monetary benefits in return for employee referrals seems to be the most preferred strategy. Most companies offer cash rewards after the new hire completes a set duration of time. Some employees may also prefer receiving holidays and free time in lieu of this assistance. Hence, it is important to communicate the program clearly in advance.

Reward your ERP’s early participants and champions right away. You’d be amazed how something as simple as movie tickets or a $10 gift card can boost a referral program.

Get regular updates on how to use monetary rewards effectively www.facebook.com/zalp03

3) Using social media for employee referrals

Social recruiting is an efficient and cost-effective way to find qualified candidates.
Social networks are free, practically everyone uses them already, and they’re a good means to showcase your brand.

Encourage your employees to take open jobs in front of a large pool of qualified candidates within their social networks using social media integrated employee referral tools available today like ZALP. Employee referrals using social media is an effective social recruiting strategy used by most organizations today.

4) Awards and Recognition increase employee motivation

The use of recognition to ensure employee referral engagement is also very effective. The use of cash benefits is not mandatory for a referral program to be successful. Recognition can offer employees a competitive environment and bragging rights to boot.
Depending on the lure of the cash award might not always result in quality hire. The use of small gifts, badges and contests create a healthy interest in the program and will prove encouraging.

Don’t forget, many employee referrals are made because your employees are anxious to help a friend get a job. Try to focus on what would appeal to your employees to ensure high motivation levels.

5) Have a responsive employee referral program

If your employees are working hard to give solid referrals, those referrals should be processed in a timely manner since it speaks volumes to employees about how serious you are.

It is also important to acknowledge every referral received and is more important to keep the employees’ updated on the status of their referrals

Frequent reminders like company emails and status notifications are great. If the terms of the program change, communicate it to your employees and keep them updated. Make sure the referral program stays fresh in the minds of your employees.

Transparency and efficient communication is the key to boosting participation in an employee referral program.

Author Bio

Savio Vadakkan is the Marketing Professional at ZALP, a unique employee referrals booster. ZALP helps organizations tap the full potential of their Employee Referral programs using advanced Increasing employee participation, Employee Referrals and interesting features like gamification.