Episode 237 - Attracting Passive Veterinary Professional Job Seekers

Julie South [00:00:04]: What if the perfect veterinary professional for your clinic is happily working somewhere else right now? They're not desperately job hunting. They're not scrolling through endless job boards or Facebook groups or LinkedIn groups every single night. But they're genuinely content where they are.

Here's the thing, even though they're happily employed, you can still have them sit up and take notice of your vacancy. Stay tuned.

Welcome to Veterinary Voices, the podcast that celebrates and showcases employer of choice veterinary clinics. I'm Julie South and this is episode 237. Veterinary Voices is brought to you by VetClinicJobs, the job board direct hiring reimagined, no recruitment agency involved.

Julie South [00:00:59]: You owe it to your team to be able to make job offers from your job ads. And let's face it, success when it comes to job ads should lead to your new hire starting within a few months. If that's not happening for you right now, then head on over to vetclinicjobs.com because the average there is seven weeks from go to whoa.

Today we're going to be talking about attracting passive job seekers. Those veterinary professionals who aren't actively looking but could maybe, just maybe be interested if the right opportunity crossed their paths. Stay tuned because we're going to go through three key strategies and you'll also get an action plan for you to incorporate passive jobseeker attraction into your clinic's recruitment marketing this coming week.

Let's be honest about the veterinary job market right now. If you're only attracting job seekers who are desperately looking to leave their current role, you might be missing out on some of the best potential team members. The veterinary professionals who are reasonably happy where they are.

Julie South [00:02:20]: They're not stressed, they're not burned out, they're not fleeing a toxic workplace. These people often make exceptional long term hires because they're choosing their next place, which could be your clinic, for positive reasons rather than running from negative ones.

But here's the challenge. Passive job seekers don't respond to the same messaging as active job hunters. They're not motivated by desperation or immediate need. They have the luxury of being selective, which means that your clinic needs to present something genuinely compelling. Not just salary and benefits, though those do matter, but opportunity and alignment with their values and career goals, not just a paycheck.

Most clinics write their job ads like they're talking to someone who's already decided they need a new job.

Julie South [00:03:18]: The language is all about requirements, about duties and what the clinic needs from them. But passive jobseekers aren't thinking, what can I do for this clinic, they're thinking, what could this clinic do for my career, my work life balance, my professional growth?

The other mistake is trying to create dissatisfaction with their current role. I see some recruitment approaches that essentially try to convince happy people that they should be unhappy. That's not what we're about here. We're not headhunters trying to poach people from good situations. That just moves the same people around and it doesn't solve anyone's staffing challenges long term.

Here are your three key strategies. Strategy number one: Lead with the opportunity, not a list of requirements.

Julie South [00:04:18]: Instead of opening your job ad with a list of what you need, start with what you're offering. Not just salary and benefits, though those do matter, but opportunity, professional development, career progression, interesting caseload, supportive team culture, work life integration. I'm sure you get the message here.

For example, instead of something like we're seeking a veterinary nurse with two plus years experience, try something along the lines of are you a veterinary nurse ready to expand your skills in emergency medicine while working with a team that actually has your back? What you're doing here is painting a picture of growth and support that makes someone think, that sounds better than what I have right now. So you're planting the seed.

Strategy number two is tell your clinic's real story, not just the job description. Passive job seekers need to see your clinic as a place they genuinely want to be part of. If you were at the Vet Expo conference in Melbourne this year, you would have heard me talk about employer brand recruitment marketing.

Julie South [00:05:30]: And this is exactly what employer brand recruitment marketing is designed for. About showcasing who you are as an employer, not just what you need from an employee. Share what makes your clinic different? Maybe it's your commitment to work life balance, your investment in continuing education, your collaborative approach, perhaps to patient care, or your genuine team culture.

Passive job seekers are looking for alignment with their values and career goals, not just a paycheck because they're already getting the paycheck.

And then strategy number three is make it easy for them to take the next step. Passive job seekers won't jump through hoops or complete lengthy applications for a job they're only idly curious about. Your application needs to respect that they're doing you a favour by considering you make the initial step a low commitment one. Maybe it's a simple phone conversation, a chat to explore a mutual fit, or if they're up for it, a coffee meeting to discuss the opportunity before deciding whether to proceed and be responsive.

Julie South [00:06:50]: If someone who isn't actively job hunting takes the time to reach out, then respond quickly and professionally. Their interest might be fleeting because they're not desperate for a change, and they'll quickly recognise whether you're genuinely interested in them or whether you're just going through the motions.

A bit of a shameless plug here, but VetClinicJobs really shines for reaching passive job seekers. They don't just post your job ad and hope the right person finds it. They actively share clinic opportunities through their networks and through their social media channels. Which means that your job ad could pop up in someone's feed even when they're not actively looking.

Think about it. A veterinary professional might be scrolling through LinkedIn or Facebook and see your clinic's story appear in their feed.

Julie South [00:07:47]: They weren't job hunting, but something about your authentic presentation of your clinic culture makes them think, whoa, that sounds like somewhere I'd like to work.

Here's something unique. As far as I'm aware, Vet Clinic Jobs is the only job board worldwide that allows job seekers to search different quality of life fields. Fields like everyone earns above the living wage. If you're using their premium features, make sure you're taking advantage of all of the quality of life features filters available to you. Because passive job seekers often care more about these factors than just basic job requirements.

Vet Clinic Jobs also gives you the flexibility to tell your real story properly. No character limits forcing you into boring bullet points, no extra charges for showcasing your clinic personality. You can present an opportunity that genuinely appeals to someone who has options.

Julie South [00:08:54]: Let me quickly recap those three strategies for you. First, lead with the opportunity rather than requirements. Show them what you're offering for their career, not just what you need from them. Second, tell your clinic story to help them see themselves as part of your team and culture. And then thirdly, make it easy for them to take that next step. First step towards a conversation with you.

Remember, attracting passive job seekers isn't about convincing happy people to be unhappy where they are. It's about being ready when exceptional veterinary professionals recognise an exceptional opportunity.

Julie South [00:09:41]: Your action plan for this week, review your current job ad and ask yourself, would this appeal to someone who's reasonably content where they are, or does it only speak to people who are desperate to leave?

For insights into what the data is showing in relation to veterinary job advertisements in Australia and New Zealand, email tania@vetclinicjobs.com for your copy of our monthly Veterinary Employment Job Advertisement Market Intelligence Report and mention you heard it here first.

Next week in episode 238, we're going to be talking about writing job ads that protect your team from poachers, from headhunters. Because while we want to attract great people, ethically, we also want to protect the great team that you've already built.

Thank you to vetclinicjobs.com for making this episode possible. Until next time, this is Julie South signing off and inviting you to go out there and be your most fantabulous self by recognising that sometimes the best opportunities come to those who aren't desperately seeking them. Just like the best team members might not be desperately seeking you because you work with a team that lifts you up every single day.