11 creative sourcing strategies for finding exceptional talent

Finding talent in today’s competitive job market is tough. Finding skilled talent? Even tougher. 

Many recruiters are frustrated from spending their time and energy only to mis-hire, face poor diversity outcomes, or lose top picks to competitors.

The problem? Everyone’s fishing in the same pond, chasing the same candidates in the same old places.

It’s exhausting, we know. But don’t worry – that’s where we come in. Below, we’ll share 11 creative sourcing strategies to help you uncover hidden talent, attract top-quality candidates – including passive folks, and stay ahead of the competition.

Key takeaways

• With more open positions in the market than candidates to fill them, creative sourcing strategies let you tap into hidden gems before your competitors.

• In addition to traditional recruitment methods, consider using skills-based job boards, which match you to vetted candidates skilled for your role. 

• Also, explore paid ad campaigns on social media, host career and networking events, and engage candidates you previously lost out on. 

• Finally, consider hiring gig and remote workers to expand your talent pool. Ask customers and employees to recommend skilled candidates who will mesh well with your culture.

What is creative sourcing?

Creative sourcing strategies are out-of-the-box methods to find and attract the right candidates. For instance, instead of relying on crowded job boards, you could consider niche job boards, social media, employee referral programs, and other unique ways to uncover hidden, passive, and skilled talent you may have missed with traditional sourcing.

11 creative sourcing strategies for recruiters and hiring managers 

Consider these 11 innovative strategies to find and hire the best candidates.

1. Use skills-based job boards 

Unlike traditional job boards, which focus on degrees, backgrounds, and years of experience,  skills-based job boards emphasize the specific skills needed for a job. 

The best boards are designed to match you to candidates who have the right skills, knowledge, and abilities by putting every applicant through your chosen pre-employment tests and showing you how they scored. 

Here's how they work: 

• Write skills-based job descriptions that outline skills, abilities, and traits needed for a role – ideally avoiding the need for degrees or qualifications. 

• Create a custom assessment for the role by combining job-specific tests, personality assessments, cognitive ability tests, and more. 

• List your open position on the skills-based job board and publish the job so it goes live.

• Candidates will apply and take the requested talent assessments. 

• Review scores and shortlist candidates who meet your criteria. 

This technique opens the doors to a broader talent pool, including STAR workers – those skilled through alternative routes such as online learning, in-person workshops, hands-on experience, etc. 

Additionally, it lets you reach diverse talent who may not have fancy degrees or access to the right networks but have what it takes to succeed in their jobs. 

2. Conduct paid advertising campaigns on social media

Employers often use social media to build a following, attract customers, and even post about their open roles, and rightfully so. There are about five billion social media users worldwide today. 

The problem with unpaid or organic social media marketing is that you can only reach those who follow you – most of whom are probably not looking for roles in your company. 

That's why it could help to run some paid advertising campaigns to target the right folks and boost your reach. Here are some platforms to consider:  

Facebook and Instagram advertising

Facebook or Instagram advertising is ideal for targeting passive applicants based on their location, interests, demographics, and more.

Meta's Ads Manager allows you to create engaging ads with details about the job and a clear call to action. Prices range between $0 and $5 per action.

LinkedIn advertising

With this creative sourcing approach, creating an ad is slightly more expensive – $0 to $8 per action. 

You can create an ad to reach potential candidates by following these steps:

1. Select either managed campaigns or self-service.

2. Use the campaign manager to manage your ad.

3. Choose between sponsored or text ads.

4. Create your ad and ensure it targets the right audience.

5. Select either a cost-per-click or cost-per-impression budget.

6. Review, optimize, and enhance your ad using the campaign manager metrics.

Ready to start LinkedIn advertising? Check out this article on how to hire a campaign manager – so you can find the perfect person to run your LinkedIn campaign.

Promote your company using an X (Twitter) business profile

An X (formerly Twitter) business profile is primarily a business marketing tool, making it an ideal creative sourcing strategy. 

Once your business has built up a following, you can instantly connect with potential candidates the moment you publish a tweet. You have a range of options, including promoting jobs on your page using the appropriate hashtags or using X's ad manager to create ad campaigns. X ads cost between $0.26 and $2 per action. 

3. Use niche platforms and job boards

Popular job boards like LinkedIn, Monster, and Indeed give you access to a wide range of job candidates. But this also means you likely have to sift through countless applications from unqualified candidates, including those just trying their luck by clicking "Easy Apply" for every role. 

Niche job boards or community platforms, on the other hand, typically attract candidates skilled or interested in a specific sector. While this shrinks the pool, you're more likely to find higher-quality active and passive candidates through these job boards. Here are some to consider: 

1. Use Stack Overflow, GitHub, Tech Talent, or Geeklist for tech roles.

2. While AngelList is also known for tech, it attracts a wide range of candidates generally interested in the start-up world. 

3. Consider Kaggle for data science and machine learning enthusiasts. 

4. Nonprofits can find great talent on the Idealist platform. 

5. Try JournalismJobs for journalism roles.

6. Explore Ladders for executive positions. 

4. Target gig workers and freelancers

Gig workers – commonly known as freelancers or contractors – work on a project basis rather than full-time. According to the Bank of America, the gig economy grew in 2024 and is expected to continue on an upward trend for the foreseeable future. Accepting – and getting ahead of this trend – can help you draw from a completely different talent pool. 

When hiring, carefully consider whether the role would be suitable for a gig worker instead of a full-time employee. If the role is task or project-based, part-time, covers an employee on leave, or has flexible schedules, you could probably hire a freelancer. You can do this by posting the open role as a gig position on traditional job boards or, even better, using gig-specific job boards like Upwork, Fiverr, etc. 

5. Tap into the global workforce

If you’re struggling with talent shortages in your country, then expanding your search to other locations can give you access to a huge pool of talented candidates with diverse perspectives, transferable skills, and plenty of relevant experience. 

Consider if the position you're hiring for can be filled by remote employees or other international candidates willing to relocate. Once you've decided to hire globally, post your job to a remote-specific job board like TestGorilla's, which lets you test applicants' skills and abilities right off the bat. 

Put shortlisted candidates through behavioral interviews to double-check they align with your soft skills, personality, and cultural requirements. 

Pro tip: You can even consider a one-way video interview that candidates can take online in their own time to accommodate different time zones. 

6. Host careers events

Form new connections and promote your brand by attending or hosting career networking conferences, such as college job fairs, seminars, and open houses. To reach a wider audience, plan virtual events, such as webinars and online networking. 

These creative sourcing opportunities bring networking into the real world. They allow you to meet prospective talent in person, let candidates ask questions, and give them a glimpse into your team and culture.

7. Creative networking 

Networking helps you connect with talented individuals from your industry through trusted relationships and industry-specific events, increasing the chances of finding someone who's not only skilled in your sector but could also fit into your team and culture. 

But what's so creative about networking, right? While most employers network through events, alumni connections, etc., here are some unique networking strategies to discover hidden gems others are missing: 

• Sponsor specialized training and workshops to meet enthusiastic talent in your field. 

• Build relationships with people in your coworking space or host events in coworking spaces to access skilled candidates. 

• Host hackathons and other contests to engage highly skilled individuals and watch them work in real time. 

8. Engage previous candidates 

You can save a ton of time and effort in sourcing candidates if you just look at those who got away. 

You've probably had to let go of high-quality candidates in the later stages of your selection process. In some cases, you may have lost perfect applicants to competitors. Additionally, you might have come across a very impressive candidate profile but just didn't have the right role for them at the time. 

Engaging these prior candidates, who've already proven their skills and cultural contributions, is an excellent way to source talent. Maintain a database or talent pipeline,  look at your applicant tracking system for insights and notes, and reach out with a personalized email whenever a suitable role opens up. 

9. Use employee referral programs or bonuses

Run an employee referral program to boost your chances of attracting candidates to your company. Referral programs let you tap into your employees' personal networks, including colleagues from prior jobs and other professional connections. This approach can help you find qualified leads likely to align with the company's culture. 

To set up a referral program, outline the process, give employees access to the list of open roles, and let them know what's in it for them. Here are some ideas: 

• Financial rewards, such as cash bonuses or gift cards 

• Vacation days

• Recognition, such as a shout-out in the next newsletter

10. Ask your clients or your customers

Your customers – especially long-time clients – already know your brand well. They're also well-versed with your products or services and could have skilled talent within their own networks who would be a great fit for your company.

Customer referrals have an even stronger case in B2B companies because clients are from the same or related industries as your company, so they will likely have access to lots of experienced individuals. 

Similar to employee referrals, set up a customer referral program by giving them access to open roles, outlining the process, and offering rewards such as discounts, gift cards, etc. 

11. Build an irresistible employer brand

A strong employer brand can help you attract candidates without the need for an active sourcing strategy. When you're well-reputed, job candidates often hear about you through word-of-mouth, websites like Glassdoor, and social media platforms like LinkedIn. This increases the likelihood that they'll apply for open positions in your company.  

Here's how you can build a powerful employer brand:

• Showcase your company's culture and values on social media and your website. 

• Share written or video employee testimonials on your careers page. 

• Get involved in community events.

Next steps: Assessing and hiring candidates

Creative sourcing can help you spot and attract tons of great talent. But you must find a way to quickly sort through the applications and shortlist your top choices before you lose them to the competition. 

TestGorilla's talent assessments can help with this. Our library of 400+” science-backed online tests can offer quick and accurate insights into candidates' technical skills, soft skills, cognitive abilities, personality traits, and even cultural contributions, so you can make informed decisions and select ace candidates for your roles. 

Find exceptional talent using creative sourcing and skills tests

In today's highly competitive job market, finding skilled candidates is no easy feat. And when you do find them, you're competing with thousands of other employers to snag them. 

To get ahead of the curve, combine your traditional recruitment strategies with a few creative methods. For example, skills-based job boards, paid ads on social media, employee or customer referrals, and gig or remote roles are clever ways to widen the talent pool and access skilled, diverse, and passive candidates. 

Finally, sourcing is just the start of your journey to hiring great people. Using talent assessments with platforms like TestGorilla can help you thoroughly evaluate your applicants and hire better and faster. 

Create a free TestGorilla account or schedule a live demo today.