During this challenging freight market making sure you are getting the most out of your money and cutting costs where you can becomes increasingly important. A few months ago we made a post about the true costs of driver turnover where we identified that advertising makes up a large portion of a recruiting team's budget. As we have continued to learn from our clients we have found that one major factor for success is managing their marketing expenses. Efficient management of advertising and marketing expenses is crucial for attracting top talent while maintaining a healthy budget, so we partnered with Bejay Lieber at Redbone Trucking (UT) to share a few best practices on this topic.

1. Understand Your Total Market Size: Before diving into advertising and marketing, it’s essential to have a clear grasp of your total market size. This involves identifying the number of potential truck drivers available in your target regions and understanding the competitive landscape. By defining your market size, you can tailor your marketing strategies to address the specific needs and preferences of your target audience. Many job boards and lead sources provide this information through databases such as the Hiring Insights portion of Indeed and the Strategize database by Randall Reilly. This foundational knowledge helps in allocating your budget more effectively, ensuring that you’re not overspending on channels that may not yield the desired results.

2. Adjust Spending Per Source Based on Market Size: Once you have a clear picture of your market size, you need to adjust your spending across various advertising and marketing channels. It's important to allocate your budget proportionately based on the potential reach and effectiveness of each channel. For instance, if a particular job board or social media platform offers high engagement within your market, it makes sense to invest more in that channel. Conversely, if a source shows limited impact, reducing or reallocating funds from that channel can prevent overspending and optimize your budget.

3. Track Productivity Per Lead Source: Tracking the productivity of each lead source is a critical aspect of managing your advertising expenses. Implement metrics to monitor how well each source is performing in terms of generating qualified leads and conversions. This could involve measuring click-through rates, cost per lead, and the quality of applicants generated from each source. By analyzing these metrics, you can identify which sources are providing the best ROI and make data-driven decisions to allocate resources more effectively.

4. Manage Marketing In-House When Possible: Working with an agency or a third party to handle your marketing efforts is a quick way to get up and running. You may also get access to a larger audience you may not have access to otherwise, but you lose some control regarding what your money is being spent on.   By managing as much of the marketing in-house as possible, you retain more control over your budget, allowing you to review and flex strategies on the go, adjust messaging & spend week by week based on performance and potentially reduce costs. In-house management allows for greater flexibility, direct oversight, and the ability to make swift adjustments based on performance data without the added layer of agency fees.

5. Testing, analyzing and adjusting: It’s crucial to recognize that past successes with your marketing strategies might not necessarily guarantee future results. As markets and regions experience fluctuations, some lead sources that once yielded great returns may become less effective, while new ones could emerge as valuable. Regularly testing and adjusting your marketing spend is essential to stay ahead of these shifts. Moreover, sharing data regarding your return on investment with your vendors can foster accountability and ensure that your resources are being allocated efficiently. By maintaining a dynamic approach, adjusting as changes happen and leveraging data-driven insights, you can better navigate the evolving landscape of driver recruitment and optimize your strategies for continued success.

Effective management of advertising and marketing expenses is key to successful truck driver recruiting. By understanding your market size, adjusting spending per source, tracking lead productivity, and managing marketing efforts in-house, you can maximize your ROI and attract top-notch drivers while keeping costs in check. Adopting these strategies will ensure that your recruitment campaigns are not only cost-effective but also yield the best results in a competitive industry.

How We Can Help

Double Nickel can further enhance these efforts by providing detailed insights into lead-to-application and lead-to-hire metrics, as well as contact rates per lead source. Our efficiency tools, such as our advanced dialer and automation for document handling, streamline your processes, allowing you to focus on crafting and executing in-house marketing strategies. Leveraging these resources ensures that you not only save time but also achieve the best possible return on your investment, making your recruitment campaigns both effective and budget-conscious.