Understanding Your Recruits
Written by Marcus Sheridan • Reviewed by Laura Meyer
June 17, 2022
One thing’s for sure: Today’s recruits and customers have changed. And if you want to engage with them, you’ve got to know the concept of 70% in Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT). What the heck does that mean? Marcus Sheridan, marketing expert and author of They Ask, You Answer, explains.
What is the zero moment of truth?
The zero moment of truth, or ZMOT, is when a recruit or customer contacts you. They may call, apply for a job, or walk into your building. Now you know they exist, and you have a chance to work with them.
What is the concept of 70% in ZMOT?
The average customer makes 70% of their buying decision before contacting you. So they’re almost done deciding if they want to work with you before you even know they exist.
Recruits are the same way. They’ve already vetted you before you’ve had a chance to vet them. And they know whether or not they want to work with you before you ask them to interview.
What does that mean for you?
The idea of 70% in ZMOT is one of the most important business trends of the last 20 years. And it has everything to do with how you market your company.
Marketing has the biggest impact on attracting potential customers and team members. It’s even more impactful than sales. Yet most businesses hire sales departments when they’re trying to grow. Why? They see sales as revenue and marketing as an expense.
But that logic is flawed. The mistake is thinking that customers are the same today as they were 20 years ago. Back then, people made 20–30% of their buying decisions before ZMOT. Sales teams had time to build relationships and convince people to work with a company.
But now, with that pre-made decision up to 70%, sales teams have a smaller window to change people’s minds. You have to win their trust during the 70% of buying decisions while they’re still vetting you. That’s where marketing comes in.
You also have to market your business to attract great recruits before they even apply. They'll go to somebody else if you don’t win their trust. Don’t let that happen.
Marketing before the ZMOT
You need to build brand trust to market your business before the ZMOT. Marcus fills you in on what that is and how it works in his next video.
