Relying on Indeed hiring campaigns or sponsorships as your primary (or only) source of applicants is a risky and often ineffective strategy, especially in hard-to-hire-for roles with limited applicant pools.
Here’s why, and what winning organizations are doing instead:
Why Over-Reliance on Indeed Is a Bad Strategy
- You’re Competing in the Same Pool as Everyone Else
Indeed is saturated. For niche, high-demand, or low-supply roles, every employer is bidding on the same small group of active job seekers. More spend ≠ more applicants when the pool itself is small. - You’re Only Reaching “Active” Job Seekers
Indeed only captures people actively applying today. The best candidates are often passive — employed, open to change, but not browsing job boards. They never even see your posting. - Costs Increase While Returns Decline
With competition and CPC models, you often end up:- Spending more each month for the same number of applicants
- Or spending more and getting fewer because of market saturation
This becomes a margin killer for roles with tight labor supply.
- Job Board Traffic Fluctuates Seasonally
Indeed’s cost and applicant volume swing drastically based on:- Time of year
- Unemployment rates
- Macro trends
Relying on one channel makes your applicant flow unpredictable and difficult to forecast.
- It Doesn’t Fix Conversion
Even if you buy more traffic, the true bottlenecks are often:- Slow response times
- Clunky application flows
- Inconsistent follow-up
- Poor candidate experience
No amount of budget can solve process gaps.
How Winning Companies Go Beyond Job Boards
To hire successfully in limited-talent and high-competition environments, organizations use a multi-channel, always-on sourcing strategy paired with automation to convert every lead. Here’s what works:
- Re-Engage Past Applicants Automatically
40–60% of hires in many industries come from past applicants when re-engaged via email, SMS, or conversational AI. This includes:- Silver medalists
- Unresponsive candidates
- Previous no-shows
- Partial applicants
This is one of the highest-ROI sources of talent.
- Tap Into Passive Talent Pools
Reach people who aren’t actively job searching through:- Local community groups
- Social recruiting (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok)
- Referral automation programs
- Alumni & boomerang outreach
- Hyperlocal digital ads
These channels attract candidates you’ll never get from Indeed.
- Optimize Your Career Site and Direct Apply Experience
High-performing organizations invest in:- SEO-optimized job pages
- Frictionless mobile apply
- Text-to-apply
- QR codes
- Conversion-friendly job descriptions
Improving conversion reduces the need for paid traffic.
- Use Conversational AI for Instant Engagement
Response time is one of the biggest differentiators in hiring. AI automation engages applicants instantly:- Answering questions
- Pre-screening
- Scheduling interviews
- Nudging no-shows
- Completing partial applications
Faster response = higher conversion.
- Strengthen Employer Brand & Reputation
Winning organizations invest in:- Local reputation building
- Employee testimonials
- Social proof
- Consistent messaging
- A strong “Why Work Here?” value proposition
Employer brand is a long-term advantage that job board spend can’t buy.
The Bottom Line
You can’t win by out-spending your competition on Indeed — you win by outperforming them across every part of the sourcing and conversion funnel.
High-performing companies treat Indeed as one channel, not the strategy. They combine multi-channel sourcing with automated conversion to reduce spend, increase applicant flow, and consistently hire in competitive markets.
Want help putting multi-channel sourcing and automated conversion into practice?
Christian Palombo works directly with franchise operators to build
high-performing hiring funnels that reduce spend and increase applicant flow.
Book time:
https://meetings.hubspot.com/palombo
Email:
christian@sprockets.ai