Struggling to Hire? Here’s the fix

Have you ever been in a position (maybe you are right now) where you’re struggling to hire for a specific role and nothing’s landing? You’ve listed the job ads, you’ve “boosted” them on LinkedIn, but there’s no movement. Or worse, the applications do come in, but every CV misses the mark for the quality talent you actually need. If you’ve nodded along to any of that, here’s the good news: there is a solution.

Recruitment campaigns.

I know you might be thinking you don’t have the budget or time. But recruitment campaigns can transform your hiring outcomes, and once they’re live, all you’ve got to do is sit back and watch the quality applications roll in.

This really depends on where your company is right now and what your hiring priorities look like. If you’re limited on budget and only have enough to run one campaign, you can do that. But in the long term? It rarely pays off.

The smarter option is an always-on strategy as it’s a better value for money. An always-on approach means you’ve got a consistent presence in front of talent, so you’re always top-of-mind, even when you’re not actively hiring. Then, when a priority pops up (say, you’re marketing for your Apprenticeship Scheme), you’ve already done the bulk of the heavy lifting. All that’s left is tailoring the message for that audience.

Once the campaign wraps, you still maintain that brand presence for the next hiring push. With always-on campaigns, you build audiences that have been nurtured through the funnel and can be retargeted. Retargeting ads see 10x higher click-through rates and a 70% boost in conversion rates.

Candidates are bombarded with information, content, and opportunities, so a single job ad isn’t enough. You need a multi-touchpoint strategy that lets you engage talent on both a local and global scale. It takes candidates 25–35 touchpoints to make a decision or click on a job. That’s why recruitment campaigns matter.

They allow you to create those touchpoints and keep your brand visible, building familiarity so that when a candidate is ready to move, you’re already front-of-mind. Campaigns let you show up where your talent is, whether they’re actively job-hunting or just scrolling passively.

With an always-on approach, you can consistently build momentum, stay ahead of the competition, and position your brand as the one they think of (even if they didn’t know they wanted to work for you). And while 70% of advertising campaigns fail to generate meaningful ROI according to WARC, recruitment marketing is different. Here, you can track, measure, and prove success.

At Wiser, we’ve helped clients turn hiring pain points into proof points.

They’re the result of insight-led creative, precise targeting, and campaigns built with a recruitment-first mindset.

One of the biggest benefits? Optimisation. Recruitment campaigns aren’t static; you can tweak and refine them in real time. Ad optimisation means monitoring performance and adjusting to make sure you’re hitting your recruiting goals.

And “best” looks different depending on your priorities. Maybe it’s awareness (positioning your brand as an employer of choice) or maybe it’s volume, like John Lewis Partnership is hiring for 13,700 festive roles.

Either way, campaigns give you the flexibility to keep improving. And when you link this with an always-on strategy, that’s where the magic really happens. By optimising within an always-on framework, you’re building a smarter, more resilient strategy that keeps your employer brand top-of-mind and ensures your campaigns deliver better ROI the longer they run.

If you’re still struggling to hire, recruitment campaigns are your solution. They give you structure, reach, and measurable ROI. If you don’t want to do the heavy lifting, that’s what we’re here for.

At Wiser, we design campaigns that cut through the noise, connect with talent, and deliver results. It’s the smarter way to hire.

It’s the Wiser thing to do.