Four Tips to Attract Top-rated Designers to Your Startup

David Torrealba・2022-07-08

A “We Are Hiring” red sign hung on a window. Despite the effects of the Great Resignation, hiring statistics for startups remain positive. Image from Unsplash

Despite the effects of the Great Resignation, hiring statistics for startups remain positive. Image from Unsplash

Editor's note: Although this series is written for startups, there are crucial points that designs should take care of when finding a job in startups. Let's learn how to research and make true success in your design career!

Startups are new projects that require trust and credibility to gain a place in the market. These businesses have a long way to go. They offer quality products, earn a reputation among consumers, and build a strong team. All startup goals start with investing and hiring top-notch employees, including designers.

This article is for you if you’re a startup owner or a human resource manager who wants to attract top-rated designers. In the paragraphs below, we’ll show you how to attract the best designers in the market, where to look, and how to offer a proposal in an effective manner.

Four Tips for Attracting and Hiring Designers

Hiring policies may vary per company. The collected tips below entail general guidelines that everyone can follow to hire good designers. These are popular and useful recruiting techniques. Take a look at the next points.

1. Know What You Want in a Designer

Hiring a designer for your startup is just as important as hiring any other staff member. Although designing may seem like a very creative field, it is still a business like any other.

Designers must be able to work well with others, must be able to communicate well, must be able to meet deadlines, and must be able to produce designs that the company approves of. In order to find the right designer for your company, you must first be aware of what you are looking for in a designer.

2. Write Clear Job Proposals

Ensure that your hiring process is clear and easy to follow so that designers know exactly what you want them to do and can quickly find out more information if they need it.

A clear job proposal should outline the exact tasks that the designer will be expected to perform during their time at the company. It should also include information about the team and culture, and the type of work that the designer will be expected to do.

Be clear with your intentions as an employer. The designer job advertisement should have the estimated salary, academic level, and work experience information available. This first interaction can be key in establishing a good relationship.

3. Become a Hiring Partner

Becoming a hiring partner is a well-known technique among tech startups this decade. This program involves a partnership between coding bootcamps, such as General Assembly, Coding Dojo, Thinkful, App Academy, and Springboard.

Being a partner can help you grow your company. Take a look at the bullet list below and see why being a bootcamp hiring partner is a smart investment when it comes to attracting top-rated designers:

  • All students need a minimum technical level to enter a bootcamp. This means that each graduate has previous experience before studying in these schools.
  • You can find professional designers.
  • Coding bootcamps teach job placement techniques to turn their students into strong candidates to be hired by any company. These resources include mock job interviews, portfolio development, CV writing, salary discussion, and teamwork.

4. Work on Branding and Better Working Conditions

The new labor market is more demanding than several decades ago. Companies are working to improve their brand and work environment. Brand perception is an important aspect when looking for new and qualified designers.

A startup needs to turn its name into a trustworthy brand. An image that conveys the company's values and is friendly to customers and employees. We recommend working with marketing experts who help bring the company's identity to all departments. Great companies have great brand positioning and credibility.

The work environment is also a key element in this process. If you want to attract top-rated designers you have to optimize your work tools, increase your investment in tech resources, and promote job benefits and optimistic goals.

How Much Do Startups Benefit the Job Market?

Although qualified designers prefer companies with more experience in the market, startups are a huge source of jobs in the US and many industrialized countries. This increases your chances of finding good designers.

A Statista report in 2020 shows the jobs created by startups in the US since 1994, the percentages have been on a constant rise for the last 12 years. The table below will show you the results from 2016 to 2020.

Year Number of jobs created by startups
2016 3,175,574
2017 3,117,255
2018 3,092,530
2019 3,120,486
2020 3,114,111

Conclusion

Job opportunities have many characteristics that companies are not yet aware of. There are many ways to get designers into your startup. However, the market can be competitive. Follow our tips and get ready to get the best designers for your business.

Next read: Top Talent Management Strategies for Startups to Retain Designers