In such a tight talent market, it has become increasingly difficult for TA and HR professionals to find—let alone hire—qualified workers. Due to the enormous struggle that businesses currently face in connecting with employees who are willing to work, it’s not uncommon to find positions that have gone unfilled for months on end.

While aligning with a proven recruitment provider can connect your organization with an expansive talent pool, your talent partner can’t be considered a cure-all for your company’s hiring woes. Even the greatest of headhunters can struggle to mask your business’s shortcomings when talking to candidates on your behalf.

Ready for the secret to securing top talent? Compensating your employees fairly. Here’s why offering higher wages or annual salaries to candidates can accelerate hiring and improve the effectiveness of your recruiting strategies.

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Compensation weighs heavily on job search

When embarking on a new job search, there are few factors that weigh as heavily on the mind of a prospective employee as their potential wage or salary. In today’s recruitment market, candidates—particularly those that are being compensated hourly—are going to pursue higher-paying opportunities. That’s simply the cold, hard truth. If your organization is lagging behind your competition in terms of pay rate or annual salary, you’ll undoubtedly encounter hiring obstacles when looking for top talent.

Average wages are increasing

Over the past 40 years, wage growth for American workers has been sluggish. Studies show that today’s average wages are 3.6 percent higher than where they were one year ago. While some may claim that this trend is caused by an increase in inflation—which may cause these gains to appear larger—the fact of the matter is that workers have steadily increased their hourly earnings. Factor in the recent rises in state and local minimum wages, and it’s clear that employees have seen considerable wage growth over the last several months. Make no mistake about it: candidates are now more inclined than ever to pursue higher-paying opportunities.

Don’t forget about benefits

Many organizations have wisely included a 401(k) match into their benefits package for their employees. So what are some other perks that organizations can use to entice prospective candidates? In recent years, I’ve seen an abundance of creative benefits packages come to light. From companies offering stipends to cover the cost of daycare or childcare to businesses providing yearly health-related allowances for gym memberships or fitness equipment, there are plenty of benefits that you can provide to your employees. As the saying goes, the more you take care of your people, the more they’ll take care of your business—so don’t forget to care for your workers’ minds and bodies!

Want to discover more innovative benefits ideas? Check out this article on the 16 cool job perks that keep employees happy.

Salaries in job descriptions

In the recruiting world, there has been a considerable push for companies to begin listing annual salaries on job descriptions. While there are several pros and cons to this concept, companies—if offering an above-average salary—should feel comfortable putting this information in the description of the job as a means of attracting candidates. When job seekers are perusing through job boards or postings, they’ll be impressed with a salary that may meet—or even exceed—their initial expectations, thus boosting their odds of applying.

Why compensating employees works

Ready for the crux of my argument? By offering higher salaries, companies can better position themselves to appeal to a more expansive talent pool and conduct a thorough recruitment process to find the right worker for the job. By finding an exceptional candidate and compensating them accordingly, the individual has a lesser chance of leaving in pursuit of a new opportunity. And by effectively retaining these top-tier employees, the business will no longer suffer from the costs and impacts of high turnover. No, this idea isn’t rocket science—it’s really that simple!

Looking for tips on how your company can improve its job postings? Check out this blog for advice on how to gain greater traction on your internal positions.

For more in-depth insight to improve your recruiting processes, read more in the Recruiting section of our Acara blog.