5 Strategies for Staffing Firm Growth In An Economic Downturn
As an industry partner since 2007, ClearlyRated has helped more than 300 staffing firms annually navigate growth through various economic conditions—from the downturns of 2008 and 2020 to the rapid expansions of 2021 and 2022. However, the sustained decline of the past 24 months presents an unprecedented challenge. While current conditions make growth challenging, it is not unattainable. Below are five proven strategies to help your firm gain market share and unlock growth in today’s market.
Our 5 Strategies for Staffing Firm Growth In An Economic Downturn
1. Make your firm the safe option for prospects and candidates
Most staffing firms focus their marketing and sales efforts on differentiating themselves from competitors, yet they often neglect to provide tangible proof of their claims. Today’s prospects and candidates expect evidence of quality. Ratings, reviews, testimonials, and referrals are significantly more trusted than traditional marketing and sales efforts. In times of economic uncertainty, risk aversion increases. It’s crucial not only to be the best firm to partner with, but also the least risky.
2. Double down on sales enablement resources
Many staffing firm leaders aim to increase their pipeline but often overlook the importance of equipping their sales teams with essential resources to help them both get meetings, and also turn those meetings into orders and revenue. Benchmarks, thought leadership, and industry-specific tools can be invaluable for prospective clients and job candidates. To see a rise in meetings and engagement, invest time in understanding how to add real value. Share industry-specific hiring trends, wage fluctuations, interview best practices, or other high-value content. This approach helps your account managers and recruiters demonstrate their expertise in a credible and differentiated manner.
3. Focus on the candidate experience to minimize churn
With volume down, many firms concentrate on securing new orders. While this focus is natural given the decline in order volume and revenue, it’s essential not to overlook the historically low unemployment rate. Talent remains hard to find, and in our industry, an unfilled order is worse than no order at all. Both scenarios have the same revenue implications, but an unfilled order also drains resources that could be better utilized elsewhere. Economic downturns demand diligence with clients, but not at the expense of your candidate experience.
4. Minimize unwanted turnover of internal staff
Here’s a quick calculation: Multiply the average weekly margin generated by a productive recruiter by the number of weeks it takes to fill a position and get the new hire up to speed. For most firms, this yields a loss of over $250k in margin for each productive recruiter or account manager who leaves. In 2024, ClearlyRated data shows that the typical firm lost more than 1 in 3 of their account managers and recruiters to churn. Although the market isn't as heated as it was two years ago, your best talent will still have other options. Ensure you have robust retention strategies in place to keep your top performers through challenging times.
5. Focus marketing and sales resources narrowly to win
Firms that successfully navigate economic uncertainty often resist the urge to broaden their focus. Instead, they concentrate their marketing and sales efforts on the two to three areas where they excel the most. This might be a specific type of placement, industry, or project type. Identify where you have a competitive advantage and target your efforts towards prospects that fit this profile.
Economic headwinds make growth challenging, but not impossible. By focusing on delivering exceptional experiences and honing in on areas of strength, your firm can not only weather a weak broader economy but also be well-positioned for accelerated growth when conditions improve.
