If you have been ghosted by a recruiter, you’re probably wondering why. Is it something you’ve done? Did you get the job that you spoke to the recruiter about? There are a lot of questions that are left hanging when you’ve been ghosted.
But the main thing people want to know is why they’ve been ghosted. Why would a recruiter simply ghost you?
Well, as someone who works on the other end of the line I’m here to answer your questions.
You Are Not Right For The Job
If a recruiter is ghosting you, it means you are not a good fit for any job that they have. It’s that simple. If you were someone that would make them money, they would call you back. Recruiters only want to spend time dealing with people who can make them money.
If the companies that the recruiters work with don’t want to hire you—for whatever reason—then the recruiter won’t want to deal with you because it’s a waste of time.
This doesn’t mean that they should ghost you. That’s a bit unprofessional. However, sometimes it does happen. Most recruiters who are professionals will always let you know the status of your interview as long as they know. If you don’t hear back from them, check in with them. In some cases the recruiter won’t have feedback on the interview and is waiting to tell you.
However, if you connect with a recruiter and never get an interview, it’s likely that they don’t have a job which you would be a good fit for. That’s the hard truth to accept, but it’s the truth. Most people think that they are great for any role, but hiring managers are the ones whose option matters. The hiring managers dictate what the recruiters are looking for and who ultimately gets the job.
You Mess Up In The Interview
This one’s a hard pill to swallow, but oftentimes it’s a case of you bombing the interview. Sometimes it might be a small thing like showing up late and making a bad impression. Other times it could be something as bad as getting caught in a lie about your resume.
Whatever it is, there are many reasons why bombing the interview could be a major issue.
If you did poorly during the interview with the hiring team—or with the recruiter—it could be the reason why you’re being ghosted.
It’s never nice to be ghosted after an interview, but the simple truth is that if you’ve done really bad on an interview then it’s not unusual for a recruiter to ghost you.
In most cases people don’t bomb interviews, the just aren’t the best selection for the job. But in the rare cases where you were so inappropriate during the interview and did cause some uncomfortable experience for the interviewer.
You Have Been Blacklisted By Recruiting Agencies
If you’ve been blacklisted by a recruiting agency, then that could be the reason you’re being ghosted. It’s very common for recruiting agencies to all know about bad candidates. This can happen because recruiters move from agency to agency, and also because big agencies buy up smaller agencies databases.
Why would someone be blacklisted? How do you know if your blacklisted? Good question. I’ve written a prior article that has a lot more detail before. In that article what I did was discuss the reasons why a person gets blacklisted and how to know if you are.
In most cases it all comes down to bad behavior. If you’ve ever walked off a job, been a no-show for an interview, or accepted a job offer only to turn it down the it is very likely that there is a notation on file about you.
Recruiters don’t act personally, they don’t blacklist people because they don’t like them. Recruiters don’t ghost people because they don’t have the right qualifications. They ghost them because they have acted improperly. These things include not showing up for an interview, not showing up for work, and causing a scene at work.
Most recruiters don’t even care about typos and lies on your resume. They just assume that most people lie on their resume. As long as the lies are not really outrageous. Fudging the dates you have worked by a few months isn’t a big thing. Lying about working for a company that you’ve never worked at, on the other hand, is something that would get you listed as a do not contact or on the blacklist.
You Took Too Long To Respond To Your Recruiter
This one’s on you. If you have taken to long to respond to your recruiter then it might be a case of them thinking that you’re not a serious candidate.
When a recruiter is trying to contact you and they can’t reach you in time for a job then they will often write you off. It can be one of the reaons your resume won’t get return calls.
Remember, recruiters tend to work with deadlines. They have a job order from a client and they have to fill it before another recruiter or another agency. If a recruiter reaches out to you about a job and you don’t respond quickly—then they will assume that you’re not really interested.
Worse, they might assume you are someone who is not competent and does not read their emails. If that’s the case, then the recruiter will think that you are not someone who can be trusted to perform basic responsibilities.
The length of time a recruiter expects you to respond from on the recruiter and also the job that you’re interested in. However, if you don’t respond to a recruiter in a few days, then odds are you will be listed as a non-responsive person. In many cases the recruiter might list you as unreliable and someone not to work with.
Hey I’m Chris . 20+ years in the industry. I’ve worked every role from Executive recrutier to Agency founder and consultant. If you want to learn more or reach me,vist the about page or use my contact form.