Employers buy access to candidates, which means the candidate side of the site is what the employer is actually purchasing. Most agency sites are written entirely for employers and neglect the supply that makes the service possible.

The structural point

An agency sells employers access to people. If candidates do not register, there is nothing to sell.

Which means the candidate experience is not a secondary audience. It is the product being manufactured, and a site that treats it as an afterthought is undermining what it sells.

Most agency sites are written for the employer, with a job listing page attached, and that is the wrong proportion.

The candidate side

What determines whether people register with you rather than a competitor.

Jobs that are real and current. Nothing damages a candidate relationship faster than applying for positions that were filled months ago, and it is common enough that candidates assume it.

Actual pay ranges. A listing without one gets fewer and worse applications, because experienced candidates will not invest time in a conversation that may end at the number. In some jurisdictions pay transparency in postings is now required, and requirements differ and are changing.

What the process involves. How long registration takes, what documents are needed, whether there is an interview, and how quickly they might hear about work.

Whether it costs them anything. It should not, and saying so plainly matters, because candidates have encountered arrangements where it did.

How they are paid, for temporary work: how often, by whom, and how hours are submitted.

That last one is the practical question temporary workers care about most and it is almost never answered.

The employer side

Different information, and it should sit in its own section.

What roles you fill and in what sectors, since agencies specialise and employers need to know whether you cover their category.

How you charge: a percentage of salary for permanent placement, an hourly markup for temporary, or a fixed fee. Whether the percentage varies by salary band. Employers comparing agencies cannot do so without this.

The guarantee period, which is the term that matters most for permanent placement. What happens if somebody leaves within a stated period, and whether that is a replacement, a partial refund, or nothing.

Screening process, meaning what you actually verify: references, qualifications, work eligibility, and any checks relevant to the sector.

Time to first candidates, which is what an employer with a vacancy is actually asking.

The regulatory position

Worth stating carefully because it varies and matters.

Employment and staffing agencies are licensed in several provinces, with requirements differing by jurisdiction and by the type of placement. Some categories, such as agencies placing temporary foreign workers or those in particular sectors, carry additional obligations.

There are also rules in many provinces about what an agency may charge a worker, which in general is nothing for finding them employment.

Stating your licensing plainly, with the issuing authority named, is both a compliance matter and a credibility one, since candidates and employers can verify it.

Requirements change, so the durable approach is naming the authority rather than restating the rules.

Job listings that work

Listings must not screen on protected grounds, and wording implying an age preference, an unnecessary physical requirement, or a cultural fit is a human rights issue regardless of intent.

What builds trust with both sides

The agency category has a credibility problem, and specificity is the answer.

For employers: how long you have operated, the sectors you actually work in, and your fill rate or time to fill if you are willing to state them.

For candidates: naming your recruiters with photographs, since a candidate wants to know who they will be dealing with, and being clear about what happens if a placement does not work out.

What undermines both: posting jobs that do not exist to collect resumes, which candidates recognise and which shapes how the entire category is regarded.

The rest

A registration route that works on a phone, since candidates in shift work are not sitting at a desk. Privacy information about what happens to submitted resumes, which is a genuine concern and a compliance matter. And a response commitment to both sides, since an employer with a vacancy and a candidate needing work are both deciding on who replies, which follows the same recruiting-signal logic as in social media as a recruiting tool.

Frequently asked questions

Which audience matters more?

The candidate side is what the employer is actually buying. Without registrations there is nothing to sell, so treating candidates as secondary undermines the service.

What damages candidate trust fastest?

Listings for positions filled months ago, which is common enough that candidates assume it, and posting jobs that do not exist to collect resumes.

Should pay ranges be posted?

Yes. Listings without one get fewer and worse applications, and pay transparency in postings is now required in some jurisdictions, with requirements differing and changing.

What do employers most need to see?

How you charge, the guarantee period if somebody leaves early, what you actually verify in screening, and time to first candidates.

What licensing applies?

Employment and staffing agencies are licensed in several provinces with differing requirements, and rules generally prohibit charging workers for finding them employment.

What question do temporary workers care about most?

How they get paid: how often, by whom, and how hours are submitted. It is almost never answered on agency sites.

West Coast Media Solutions Inc. provides web design, web development, hosting, digital marketing, and business consulting to organisations across Canada, drawing on more than twenty-five years in the field.

Employers asking for candidates you do not have registered?

We build the candidate side properly, since that is the supply the employer side is selling.

Start a Conversation