You Are Uncommon
Standing Out in the Silicon Jungle
Why’s it so hard for a small company to bite off a piece of £141Bn UK recruitment industry pie?
There’s over 30,000 look-a-likes all promising the hottest talent competing for a slice. And if the competition wasn’t enough, every small agency is battling client’s universal scepticisms, questions over their transparency, the weight of huge price tags and a ‘product’ that reflects on brand reputation as cynically as the clients.
That’s the north face looming over You Are Uncommon, a specialised and boutique-sized technology recruitment agency with a passion for building culture-committed teams.
Hiring is like a constant feeding frenzy! Everyone's chasing down the same talent. The pressure to fill roles is insane. But rush in a bad hire, and it disrupts everything. Finding the right technical skills is a must-have, but they need to be collaborators too.
Between all the interviewing - a full-time job - and my actual full-time job, how am I supposed to invest time in assessing potential vendors too? There’s so many out there and they all sound and look the same.
The Project
We worked with You Are Uncommon to refine their brand into a sales & marketing strategy that makes big impressions and lasting connections.
Our strategy identifies and overcomes an industry trust deficit, shows the brand can focus on personalised problems and create bottom-line impact judged to the same standards as the client’s CFO, and demonstrates a passion for human-centric brand building that elevates client's reputations.
Our connection to our customers has never been stronger thanks to Mattermore.
Starting with Why
You Are Uncommon weren’t afraid to look different but they were still struggling to stand out in a silicon jungle where recruitment agencies blend together as greyed reflections of the industries they’re trying to fit in with.
The Bold Brand
The brand started in a great place, owning an electric high-contrast look that aligns with their mission: look Uncommon, find Uncommon talent create Uncommon recruitment experiences.
They had a clear target audience, their mission hinted at personalised service and deep industry knowledge and they’ve got existing social proof providing a foundation of trust.
How do the Industry’s Clients feel?
You sit down at your desk after accepting someone’s letter of resignation, you scratch your head for that recruiter you liked… oh but they were so expensive and that one time you weren’t totally happy they said you missed our rebate period. You call HR for the list of approved recruitment vendors. There’s seven names on there, where do you even begin?
The Price Pinches
Recruitment fees, value-or-not, are a hefty chunk of change. Companies question if the cost is justified, especially if they're unsure about the quality of service they'll receive.
ROI Question Marks
Will the cost be offset by a shorter time-to-hire, higher quality hires, or access to a wider talent pool? If the value proposition isn't crystal clear, companies might be hesitant to take the plunge.
Fragile Reputations
49% of candidates have ghosted offers because of bad experiences and missed expectations, and rubbing salt in, when that happens candidates will tell 70% of their personal network. With a great brand being the difference between organically sourcing great talent and regular recruitment spends, clients can’t afford to take risks on uncontrolled extension of their brand.
Control & Transparency
With money lost, both in fees and lost work, companies are desperate for clear communication that manages expectations. Instead, they feel left in the dark with massaged storylines that don't matching what their gut says.
They don’t ‘Get’ Us
Great business says culture is more than 50% of the hiring equation, and clients want to hire whole, authentic people that elevate their workforce as multipliers - breeding success in those around them and forging relationships than nurture long-term tenure.
Matchmaking Mishaps
Clients see an agency’s rush to fill seats as a conflicting motivation that leads to square pegs for round holes, important details missed in specifications and expect persuasive agents wanting quick decisions. All that is exacerbated by rebate periods that can be as little as a third of the comfort blanket employers build into their own probation.
We Can DIY it
Companies with a strong employer brand and a proactive HR team might believe they can source top talent in-house. They will be even more hesitant to outsource recruitment if they have a built-in network and the resources to handle it themselves. And it’s important to remember, you’re fighting ego and the in-house team’s hunger for recognition too.
So, What Does a Small Fish in a Big Pond Need to Do?
Agencies need to make it clear they solve the problems harming their clients, they need to show their focus can flex to dynamic demands and give clients what they need when and they need it - all painted objectively in ways that build genuine trust. And they’ve got to demonstrate they work through transparent and collaborative channels that add strategic value beyond candidate introductions.
This shift in focus is key. Instead of a generic list of services, clients want to see that You Are Uncommon truly understands their struggles and how they shape everything they do to delver personalised, targeted value.
The narrative needs to become a roadmap, showcasing a proven process that directly addresses client pain points. Demonstrating a data-driven methodology for leveraging channels that the clients can’t utilise, a commitment to transparent communication that keeps clients informed and involved, and a laser focus on creating a positive candidate experience that makes clients a prevailing magnet for top talent.
We Started with the Brand
You open LinkedIn to look at your InMails ‘who was that person who reached out a while ago who had some good profiles’ and you see 14 messages each with the same pitch and even same-ier headshots.
Beyond the "We Find the Best Talent" Cliché
A strong brand identity goes way deeper than a logo and tagline. It's about unveiling your "Why". Clients want to see an authentic narrative, woven with purpose and values. It resonates because when CEOs see their partner’s values demonstrated in how they operate, they know that partner will apply the same, vital, human nuance in building their team too.
When the Silicon Jungle Zigs, Zag
In a 30,000-strong sea of sameness, it’s vital for a small business to stand out. Recruitment is very-much-a buy when you need it industry, so on so many occasions the fees fall because someone pitched at just the right time. A brand needs their identity to stick so they’re always at the top of the call sheet.
Fixing the Broken Trust Equation
Opaque processes and a lack of control and communication leaves CEOs feeling like cogs in someone else’s machine. Brands need an objective, data-driven demonstration of how their process and the way they do things creates targeted value to establish themselves a trusted, impactful extension of their clients team.
Quantify your impact
Saying it fades, showing it sticks. We developed a series of real-world success stories with quantifiable results, communicated in the metrics that matter most to CFOs & CEOs to demonstrate that You Are Uncommon understands and creates business-defining impact.
Humanise Social Proof and Building Client Reputations
The Content Strategy included testimonials from satisfied candidates who have landed their dream jobs and unsuccessful candidates who enjoyed great processes. This humanises the brand and resonates with job seekers, but importantly, it also shows clients you can help them build a lasting fan base which improves their talent model long-term.
Content that Captivates
The brand now offers regular insights on high-performing teams and navigating the recruitment process which is building trust and cementing the agency as a thought leader. And one that can add value to their client long-after the recruitment fees have been exchanged, leaving a painless memory of that price tag when it comes to buy again.
Frictionless Experiences Lead to Collaborative Journeys
You pick two Recruiter InMail Messages at random and visit their websites, you quickly scan both but the experience is dominated by ‘best places to work for’ badges and you can’t tell how you actually speak to a person about a specific skill area.
Simple, clear and transparent interactions are the foundations of building trust and demonstrating care. So sales experiences need to demonstrate the relationship will feel seamless and respectful.
Clear Value Proposition
We optimised the articulation of the value proposition with concise and benefit-oriented language, clients see the brand understands their problems and delivers solutions, painting a picture of a tailored service and efficacious interactions.
Seamless Navigation
We created interactive sales materials, allowing clients to dictate their own journey, they feel in control, they’re getting what they’re looking for and the brand demonstrates that they really care about saving their clients time and energy.
Demonstrating Value not Cost
You’ve just spent 15 minutes getting to know a few crackly voices on a boardroom speakerphone, they seemed ok but you’ve got that QBR meeting and then it’s all hands on deck 'til god knows. So you decide just to give them a shot - but first you open the terms sheet “A 20% FEE?!” How are you going to convince HR they’re going to be worth the money?
While the above strategies focus on attracting clients and talent, a well-defined pricing strategy is crucial for turning leads into paying customers that keep coming back.
Value-Based Pricing
We shifted the focus from the cost of services to the value delivered - in the terms business owners use, and made it easy to compare against alternative hiring options.
Package-Based Solutions
We simplified decision-making, tailoring packages to suite types of buyers and clearly communicated why - showing the brand understands different pain points and contexts.
Psychology of Payments
We minimised the pain of payments through psychological principles and displayed optional pay schedules that suit the purse holders to make business interactions smoother and make clients feel valued, not charged.
Our pricing strategy reduced the perceived pain of payment by as much as 15% in panel testing.
The Assets that Built the New Identity
You’ve just finished the third of three final interviews but they’re not creating the feeling they can manage contention and solve problems in the way your team does. So what now? Your team keep telling you they can’t cover that empty seat and their own work and you've just lost three weeks on one recruitment partner who isn't getting it, how do you make sure the next one is going to care about the things that you do and can fit into your recruitment process, and quickly?
The Pitch Deck: A Map to Value
A well-crafted pitch deck can become a personalised compass for clients.
We delivered a deck that delves deep into common challenges and varied buyer profiles, guiding them thoughtfully through the options best suited to them and signposting their path to creating value with their new partner.
Resources & recall > 90-10 Timing
In the context of forgettable direct outbound strategies, if you can't predict when clients are ready to buy, a pitch deck can keep you on top of the call sheet.
It presents tailored solutions from an expert collaborator, intentionally matched to that client's situation and showcases a bold identity in ways an InMail never could. It maximises recall when it becomes time for a new partner, but importantly, it also stands out when a client rifles through their correspondence.
Animated Case Studies: Communicating Stand Out Impact
You Are Uncommon needed a way to stand out from the crowd and showcase the tangible value they delivered, and do so in the terms that their buyers measure value in. We delivered a tested and researched-backed strategy, one with an unrivalled ability to convey character and create human connection.
Clear Data Builds Trust
The right numbers can be undeniable. Our animated case study series showcases You Are Uncommon's success stories in metrics that can't be ignored, transforming complex data into clear, digestible visuals that paint the picture of the impact the agency added to their client's bottom lines, their attention to detail and how you can expect them to operate.
Client-Centric Focus
We shaped a collection of stories intentionally to address specific client problems and their tailored resolutions, showcasing the brand's Uncommon ability to understand and solve myriad challenges quickly.
.gif)
%20(3).gif)
Building Credibility
Data-driven case studies show You Are Uncommon are objective, detail-oriented and laser-focused on results which directly address and resolve the market’s prevailing concerns in not just what the brand will deliver, but how they will deliver it.
The Uncommon Outcome
You receive a pitch deck that immediately helps you find a slide dedicated to the paint points you’re feeling and generous payment and rebate terms for people like you. The link to their LinkedIn profile is filled with videos of candidates exclaiming trust and respect for how this recruitment agency made them feel.
The design-driven assets we’ve created not only help this bold brand captivate attention but ensure that clients remember You Are Uncommon for what makes them different, not their colours, but their obsession with the meaningful and measurable results their clients are focused on, the value-driven human-context of the service they deliver and a desire to build exceptional teams through a genuine passion for process and continuous improvement through detail.
This intention, transparency and data-driven detail approach is building trust and positioning You Are Uncommon not just as another recruitment agency, but a long-term partner that impacts the bottom line, builds reputations and elevates client’s cultures.
.gif)
.png)
