If you were in the market for a new car, would you purchase one without test driving it? Of course you wouldn’t! The same goes for purchasing recruitment software such as an applicant tracking system (ATS). Applicant tracking is a business software solution utilized by HR professionals to automate recruitment and hiring processes. It is estimated 75% of businesses currently use some form of applicant tracking software and spend thousands of dollars each year using it. That’s why it is so important the ATS vendor you are interested in offers a free trial allowing you to explore and review the system prior to making a financial commitment.
1. Free trials help determine ease of use: When buying a software product, one of the most important factors to consider is how easy it is to navigate the system. Often times, several team members of a company spanning from all technological capability levels will be utilizing the ATS for everyday tasks. If employees are frustrated or confused while using the system, they won’t use it, and money and time will be wasted! A free trial will allow employees to try out the ATS and determine if it is user friendly for all and a good fit considering company needs.
2. Test system functionality & capability: Speaking of company needs…what does your company need from an applicant tracking system? Are you a small to mid-size company that requires only simple automation and record keeping? Or do need more advanced recruitment and hiring tools? A free trial can help ensure that you are purchase an ATS that does everything you need it to but also doesn’t overwhelm you with modules you don’t need. Make sure that during the trial period you are granted full access to all of the essential tools expected and that all team members can participate in testing o each functionality for themselves. You don’t want a product that will add work and frustration to your team’s effort–make sure the system relieves the pressure!
3. Discover the candidate perspective: An important part of sourcing the best talent is building company reputation. One way to do that is to create a positive candidate experience that begins at the career page and continues beyond their hire date. Incoming job applicants who have negative experiences (i.e. the apply process is too long, they experience technical issues, they don’t receive confirmation emails, no follow ups etc) are not likely to apply again. In fact, according to this survey, 33% of candidates who had a bad experience share it with social media (NOT good for company brand)!! Other research suggests that 1 in 4 candidates will sever ties with the company altogether. During a free trial, you can explore the candidate perspective and apply as a test candidate to ensure the apply process is seamless and won’t frustrate candidates that can cause them to quit the application altogether. It is also super important that career sites and the apply process are mobile friendly. When one of the world’s largest career boards CareerBuilder cites one-third of their traffic as mobile users, you can’t leave that massive chunk of candidates out of the running!
4. Make sure your team is happy: Engage your team before, during, and after the applicant tracking system trial period. Ensure that the entire team agrees the ATS will be beneficial and provide value to their workflow in efforts to solve pain points. Otherwise, you might end up purchasing a software that no one can use; resulting in a massive loss of time and money. As Josh Bersin from SHRM states in his article:
“I talk with HR software buyers all the time, and more and more they ask, “How useful will this be for employees or managers to get their jobs done?” If the answer is “not very useful,” the chances are that the system won’t be utilized very much.”
An applicant tracking vendor willing to provide a free trial with full access is a great signal they are confident in their product. Take the Pereless Systems Challenge and test drive the ATS for 30 days absolutely free!
