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Location is crucial in attracting new talent

The location of a business is crucial to its future success, not only in relation to customer base, but also in terms of recruiting the best job candidates.

A new survey has revealed the location of a business is one of the top four considerations for job seekers. The OnePoll survey, conducted by Laudale, asked 1,000 candidates what they looked for in a company.

Location polled the second highest number of votes, with 69.5% of respondents saying it was an important factor. It came second only to money (77.5%).

The importance of location

A business’s location can make or break it. In setting up a new business, it's important to consider whether the area offers a stable economic base, with a healthy environment where there’s guaranteed consumer spending power.

If the site is in a town where employment is mainly dependent on one industry, such as a steelworks or a car plant, think twice about setting up your business there. If the main industry collapsed, consumer spending power would decrease and people could start moving away from the area.

Workforce considerations

In recruitment terms, it’s important to consider whether employees with the best skills and talents are likely to be available within a reasonable radius. After all, however attractive the job package, not everyone wishes to commute a long distance each day, or relocate to find work.

If the community has sufficient local resources, such as schools, housing and recreational opportunities, it’s likely to contain suitable people who are seeking work.

Many business experts believe location is the most important factor to consider for any company, as the OnePoll survey seems to indicate. Many job seekers use location as criteria when carrying out job searches. Research shows that women attach more importance than men to location when looking for a new job.

Where’s the best location?

In fact, 33% of women surveyed said they wouldn’t travel any further to work than they did already, no matter how attractive a new job seemed to be. It’s important that your business is based in a location that’s easily accessible by car, bus or train, as this will be an important factor when looking for new staff. If your premises are off the beaten track, with no readily- available public transport links, this could be a negative factor in recruitment.

When your business is looking to recruit people with the right skills, some areas are more advantageous than others because of the number of similar industries, the unemployment rate and the number of competitors.

Let candidates know how great you are

If you’re looking to create a company with a high-class image and atmosphere, it needs to be in a suitable location, with the interior décor of an appropriate standard. When your business looks good, make sure everyone knows about it. Include plenty of photos on your website of the location and the office suites, so potential candidates and clients can see them.

When you place a recruitment advert, include photos and even a short video of your premises. If an advert is full of stock photos, it will be less interesting to potential candidates. Make sure your advert has the personal touch with unique photos displaying the character of your company.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Kat Kynes .