Once you’ve interviewed your top sales candidates and compared notes with the rest of the hiring team, chances are good that you’ve found the candidate you’re looking for. Chances are also good that you’ve found one or two “runners-up” as well: Candidates who are good, but who didn’t land the top spot on your list.

What do you say to these excellent candidates to encourage them to keep your company in mind for future job openings? Here’s how to handle the “thanks, but not this time” conversation:

Be prepared to answer “Can you tell me why I didn’t get the job?”

Any highly motivated candidate will ask for constructive feedback, so be ready to offer some. If the candidate impressed you in a certain area, be sure to mention it. Then, provide one or two concrete, straightforward examples. If you have specific advice on how the candidate can improve, offer it.

Responding promptly and honestly shows the candidate that you took their application seriously and that you would do so again if they apply to an opening with your company in the future. You maintain a positive reputation with the candidate, even as you’re saying “no.”

Use critical selection criteria as your guide.

List the five experiences, skills, or accomplishments that are absolutely critical to the position and rank them in order of importance. Use this “mini-outline” as a guide when preparing your communication with the candidates you’re rejecting. For instance, a candidate who lacks experience with the number-one criterion on the list is a clear “no,” but a candidate who is weak in the last of the criteria can justifiably lose out to a candidate who is stellar in all five.

If you’re not sure how the candidate ranks in any category, it’s possible the candidate didn’t give you enough detail in the interview. You may wish to tell the candidate that while the interview went well, you simply didn’t get enough information to reassure you that the candidate could do the job.

Encourage the candidate to re-apply by staying in touch.

If you want the candidate to apply again in the future, say so – but only say it if you mean it. Then, demonstrate you’re serious by connecting with the candidate on LinkedIn or inviting him or her to a future networking event. You’ll keep the lines of communication open and establish a relationship that will make the next round of hiring simpler.

At SMR Group, our recruiters specialize in matching qualified sales and marketing candidates to companies in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industries. Contact us today to learn more.