Reduce Candidate Ghosting with Automated Engagement Sequences

Before building sequences, list every stage in your recruiting workflow where candidate communication matters:

1. Post-screen (after initial phone screen)
2. Post-submittal (after sending candidate to client)
3. Interview confirmed (after scheduling a client interview)
4. Interview reminder (24 hours before the interview)
5. Pre-start (day before the candidate's first day)
6. Day-one check-in (end of day 1 on assignment)

Each stage needs a short, human-feeling touchpoint. Sense automates delivery — you write the messages once and they run indefinitely.

In Sense, navigate to Campaigns → New Campaign → Pipeline Engagement. Write one message per stage:

Stage 1 — Post-Screen (text, send same day): "Hi [First Name] — great talking today! Your profile has been submitted to [Client Company] for the [Role] position. You should hear back from me within [3] business days with an update. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions."

Stage 2 — Post-Submittal Follow-Up (email, send if no interview scheduled in 5 days): Subject: Update on [Role] opportunity "Hi [First Name], just checking in on the [Role] search. I'm following up with [Client Company] for feedback this week. I'll have an update for you by [specific day]. No action needed on your end — just wanted you to know where things stand."

Stage 3 — Interview Confirmation (text, send immediately after scheduling): "Hi [First Name] — your interview with [Client Company] is confirmed for [Date] at [Time]. I'll send the interview details and prep materials by email. Let me know if anything changes on your end!"

Stage 4 — Interview Reminder (text, send 24 hours before): "Quick reminder — your interview is tomorrow, [Date] at [Time]. I'll be available by phone if you have any last-minute questions. You're ready for this!"

Stage 5 — Pre-Start (text, send day before start date): "Hi [First Name], big day tomorrow! Report to [Location] at [Time] and ask for [Contact Name]. Excited for you — call me after your first day if you'd like to debrief."

Stage 6 — Day-One Check-In (text, send at 4pm on day 1): "Hi [First Name] — how did day one go? I'd love to hear. And I'll check in with your manager as well — just want to make sure you're off to a great start."

For each message, configure the trigger condition — what ATS status change or calendar event causes Sense to send the message:

• Post-screen: Triggered when ATS status changes to "Submitted"
• Post-submittal follow-up: Triggered 5 days after "Submitted" if status hasn't changed to "Interview Scheduled"
• Interview confirmation: Triggered when ATS status changes to "Interview Scheduled"
• Interview reminder: Triggered 24 hours before the interview date in your calendar
• Pre-start: Triggered 1 day before start date in ATS
• Day-one check-in: Triggered at 4pm on start date

What you should see: Each sequence rule showing trigger condition, delay, and message content. Review each before activating.

Before activating for your full pipeline, run a test. Find a current candidate in your ATS and manually trigger one sequence stage. Verify:

• Message content is correct (personalization tokens fill in properly)
• Delivery channel is correct (text vs. email)
• Your phone number appears as the sender (not a generic system number)
• The ATS record updates when the candidate responds

Troubleshooting: If personalization tokens don't fill correctly (you see "[First Name]" in the sent message instead of the actual name), check the field mapping in Sense settings → ATS integration → field mapping.

Once the test looks good, activate all sequence rules for your active pipeline. Sense will immediately evaluate all current candidates against the trigger conditions and send any messages that are overdue.

Monitor the first 48 hours: check Sense's response inbox for any replies, confirm messages are going out correctly, and review your ATS for any sync issues.