The first job of a good leader is to "get the right people on the bus before you figure out where to drive it" (Jim Collins, author of Good to Great). The same applies to recruitment when it comes to building your website.
Couchbase found that 90% of digital projects either failed to deliver as promised, failed to deliver beyond minor improvements, or flopped altogether. Eye-opening yet sobering, this alludes to the importance of having a technical support team. Support is essential throughout the website's build but also during its operation.
Having an agency partner with a dedicated support team is crucial within the fast-paced recruitment industry. Technical hiccups are guaranteed to happen throughout the lifespan of your site. More often than not, in-house teams do not have the time or resource to tackle them alone.
Whether it's fixing your precarious cookie banners or working on a line of code, these tasks take time. This is time that most recruitment companies can't afford to waste. Instead, you want to be, you know, recruiting.
With the help of some of our recruitment clients, we explore the benefits of partnering with an agency that has a dedicated support team.
1. Be proactive, not reactive
The recruitment market can change at the drop of a hat. Whether it be through new legislation, search engine updates or a global lockdown. Quick digital responses and website updates are often required to maintain the validity of your site.
"When we needed to do a GDPR update on the site, I called in a blind panic, and it was done within 10 minutes. Venn act upon things that change really quickly and get things done without much warning."
– Sasha Cooper, Head of Talent Acquisition at Optimus
Having a dedicated support team specialising within a given industry means you will always be kept informed of any developments and given advice on how to adapt. Subsequently, any necessary actions can be arranged in a rapid fashion.
"Everyone I speak to on the support desk always has some sort of knowledge about the site and about what our needs are.
Having a support desk from a medium-sized company is hugely advantageous. At large company's you are not a client, you are more of a customer. There is a big difference between a client and a customer."
– Ian Trevett, Head of Marketing at Harvey John
2. Maintenance
Websites are like cars; they break and need fixing. Instead of buying a new car, you would consult a mechanic to resolve any issues. By having a support team behind your website, your digital vehicle remains firing on all cylinders with minimal time spent off the road.
"Without a support mechanism in place, a new website very quickly becomes frustrating and not fit for purpose.
Websites are living organisms, they are constantly being updated, and people are using them all the time. As a result, things will inevitably crop up."
– Ian Trevett, Head of Marketing at Harvey john
All too often we speak to recruitment brands that are stuck with a site they cannot edit themselves. Choosing website providers that cannot offer quality ongoing service. The best partners will not only give you the tools and knowledge to fix an issue yourself, but they will also provide specialists to tackle those problems that you just cannot solve alone.
"I'd made loads of changes to the website and hadn't gone through the steps that Venn told me about. When I called Venn's Support Desk, they said 'I think maybe you've done this' and it was fixed within half an hour."
– Sasha Cooper, Head of Talent Acquisition at Optimus
Venn's Support Desk prioritise client tickets depending on the urgency of the problem. If something is broken and impacting the functionality of your site, we guarantee it will get looked at within 24hrs. Other tasks are resolved through our weekly burndown schedule. Here, we dedicate designer and developer time to our existing clients only.
"Venn were incredibly reassuring when it came to integrating our job search feature with our external CRM system. When the jobs were not pulling through to Paiger, Venn helped to fix this without hesitation."
- Ellie Walsh, Marketing Executive at Mane.
3. Efficiency
It is rare for a recruitment agency to have a developer tucked away in their office to deal with issues or updates on their website. COVID-19 has resulted in many companies having to recalibrate their organisational structure. This has led to a lack of resource, particularly within the marketing department. As a result, outsourcing certain tasks to digital agencies has become the desired solution, saving time and money.
"Without Venn, the site would be a mess really. If we were trying to self-manage it, I think it would be a nightmare.
With some support functions we have to wait hours for a response - with Venn, it is almost instantaneous."
– Sasha Cooper, Head of Talent Acquisition at Optimus
By assigning a status to the client request, our support team give complete transparency on the progress of the task. From start to finish, clients know who is looking into it, how long it will take to fix and when the issue has been resolved.
"Our site needs to be live 24 hours a day because people apply for jobs from dusk to dawn. Many people cannot apply for jobs during the daytime, meaning they will apply on the weekend or in the evenings.
So, in terms of efficiencies, having a site live and working all the time is not just a case of efficiency, it's more a case of necessity."
– Ian Trevett, Head of Marketing at Harvey John
4. Human touch
Sometimes it takes more than a Google search to fix a problem. Often, we just want to speak to a person on the end of the line who sympathises with our concerns. Someone that understands the priority of the issue, and provides a personable service.
Our support team offer their advice and expert opinion on any queries you may have. At Venn, we use a variety of support tools that all our Support Desk clients have access to. Not only are we on hand to receive calls, but we also offer support through our Help Docs, FAQs, and the ticketing system.
Having a slick onboarding process is another pivotal aspect of a support team when integrating new technologies. Ian Trevett from Harvey John, described it as "essential" as every backend of a website has "got its own differences and nuances." Having someone to turn to with the correct coaching in place is essential when getting your digital project up and running.
"Without Venn's initial CMS training, I wouldn't have had the confidence to jump in and change photos or change even the smallest things.
I know I can still call if I have further issues but that for me was extremely handy. I feel like I can now navigate my way around the backend a little bit better before I have to call you guys up."
– Sasha Cooper, Head of Talent Acquisition at Optimus
5. A jack of all trades is often a master of none
You cannot be all things to all people. There's a strange myth that Marketing Managers have the ability to complete all marketing tasks, whilst also maintaining a website. These unicorn employees simply do not exist, and even if they did, they certainly would not come cheap! Even the best marketers need a team behind them in order to work efficiently. Having a team of developers and designers behind you to power your website means your in-house marketers can focus on the bigger picture.
"Even if you have a marketing professional within the business, their time should not be spent checking the site is running smoothly. Unless you have a whole marketing department, they instead should be concentrating on content creation.
The key benefits to me are that if there's something I can't do you can either tell me how to do it, or you can dive in and complete it just as quickly."
– Sasha Cooper, Head of Talent Acquisition at Optimus
When launching a new site and adopting new technology, businesses often overlook the importance of ongoing support. A support desk enhances your digital asset by powering it with the technical expertise needed for its prosperity.
Such a facility saves time and resource, augmenting efficiencies within your business. Here at Venn, we aim to provide reassurance for our clients. Our forward-thinking team remain agile and reactive to ensure your site is offering the best experience for candidates and clients.
In short, plan ahead. It was not raining when Noah built the ark.
Get in touch with our team today to learn more about our Support Desk service or request our packages. We’re always here for a chat should you be interested in speaking to one of our recruitment specialists about how we could support your business.
