Recruiting and Texting Guide: Best Practices & Compliance

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Text messaging reaches candidates faster than email, but speed alone does not fill roles. Recruiting texting works when you capture consent before the first message and log every conversation to the candidate's profile instead of a personal phone. This guide covers what text recruiting is, why recruiters use it, how to stay compliant, when to text versus email, and how to set up the workflow inside your ATS.

What is Text Recruiting?

Recruiting via texting is two-way candidate messaging over SMS, MMS, or platforms such as WhatsApp, managed through recruiting software rather than personal devices. The term "text analysis for talent acquisition" refers to reviewing engagement data from those conversations to improve outreach.

• Outreach, pre-screening, interview scheduling, reminders, status updates, and offer nudges all run through text.
• Common channels include SMS, MMS, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger.
• Text analysis involves tracking response rates, reply times, and opt-out rates to optimize your messaging cadence.

Efficiency and Engagement in Text Recruitment

Text compresses the response loop. Candidates reply within minutes rather than hours, which matters for high-volume and frontline hiring where roles close in days.

• According to the 2024 Candidate Experience Benchmark Research published on ERE, SMS deliverability consistently outpaces email, with text-prompted candidate engagement driving application satisfaction (NPS) from 13 to 63 due to faster, real-time communication loops.[1]
• Text messaging is uniquely tailored for high-volume and frontline hiring (retail, warehousing, hospitality), where replacing traditional email workflows with SMS screening allows employers to move candidates from application to job offer in under 24 hours.[2]

Legality: Consent and TCPA Compliance

Text is a permission channel. Automated recruiting texts, meaning any texts sent through a platform or autodialer, require prior express written consent, and you cannot cold-text passive candidates the way you can cold-email them.

• The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires prior express written consent before sending recruiting texts through an automated system
• Capture consent at the point of application. A checkbox on your career page or application form works, but the consent language should be conspicuous, standalone, and name the type of messages the candidate will receive rather than being bundled with other terms.
• Honor opt-outs promptly and make them easy to send. Keep an auditable consent record attached to each candidate's profile.
• State-level rules can add obligations. Confirm current requirements with legal counsel before launching a texting program.

For teams recruiting internationally, messaging apps like WhatsApp have their own consent and compliance requirements. See our guide to WhatsApp recruiting for that channel.

How to Set Up Text Recruiting and Send SMS in Your ATS

Running text recruiting requires an active subscription, user permissions, a registered phone number, and a sufficient account balance. Here is what you need to have in place before sending texts in Manatal:

• SMS Feature Access: An active Manatal paid subscription (not available during free trials) and an account verified by Manatal. Additionally, SMS capabilities are restricted to Admin users by default, though admins can grant access to non-admin users.
• Country and Compliance Requirements: A registered phone number in a supported country (currently Canada, the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom). For US messaging, compliance registration (A2P 10DLC) is mandatory.
• Account Balance: Sufficient SMS credits topped up via Manatal support.
• Pre-built Templates: Pre-configured SMS templates inside Manatal to streamline recruiter outreach (intro, scheduling, reminders, etc.).

Setting Up SMS

1. Enable the SMS Feature: Go to Administration > Features > SMS and turn on the SMS feature.
2. Top Up Your Balance: Select Account Balance and contact Manatal Support or via live chat to add SMS credits.
3. Generate a Phone Number: Click Phone Number > Generate Phone Number, name your number, and select your country. (Note: Sending/receiving SMS is restricted to candidates within the same country as your generated number, and US numbers require brand registration through support).
4. Assign User Access: Go to Users under the SMS settings menu to add non-admin recruiters who need sending privileges.

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How to Send SMS to Candidates

There are multiple ways users can send SMS from Manatal:

1. Send an SMS from the Inbox: Click Inbox on the side menu, toggle to the SMS view, click + Compose, select your sender number, choose the candidate, optional job link, and draft or insert an SMS template using the document icon.
2. Send an SMS from a Candidate Profile: Open the candidate profile, navigate to the Inbox tab, select SMS, choose your sending number, draft or load a template, and hit Send.
3. Send an SMS from a Job Pipeline: Find the candidate on the pipeline, click the 3-dots icon next to their name, select Send > SMS, choose your number, select the template or draft your text, and click Send.
4. Automatic Thread Logging: Every sent and received text automatically logs directly under the candidate's profile and communication history in Manatal instead of personal devices.

When to Use Text Messaging (and When to Use Email)

Match the channel to the moment. Text excels at quick, time-sensitive touches but loses to email and phone for detailed communication.

• Text wins for interview reminders, scheduling confirmations, quick pre-screen questions, status updates, and re-engaging warm talent pools.
• Email and phone win for detailed offer letters, documents, onboarding paperwork, and nuanced conversations.
• Keep messages short, send during business hours, and personalize where possible. Over-texting drives opt-outs.

For broader candidate engagement strategy beyond texting, see our candidate engagement guide.

Conclusion

Hiring teams move candidates through the pipeline in record time when they establish clear consent workflows, log every message directly inside their ATS, and reserve SMS for time-sensitive nudges. When paired with structured engagement analytics, messaging becomes a scalable system rather than a scattershot effort. Matching the right channel to the right moment ensures your outreach stays personal, professional, and efficient.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is a good response rate for recruiting texts compared to email?

A: There is no reliable universal benchmark, and figures like the widely cited 98% open rate are not independently verifiable. In one documented case, CDW reported an 87% response rate and a three-minute average response time with text recruiting, according to SHRM. Treat employer case studies as directional signals, not population-level benchmarks.

Q: What should text recruiting software include?

A: Essential capabilities include native ATS integration with automatic thread logging directly under candidate profiles, built-in consent and opt-out management, pre-built SMS templates, automation triggers, self-scheduling, and multichannel support (such as SMS and WhatsApp). Manatal provides these features through its native SMS feature, candidate inbox integration, and customizable SMS message templates.

Citations

1. ERE
2. INC