The advent of the internet has made executive recruitment globally competitive. In today’s society, corporations and leading executive recruitment companies do their recruiting online. Similarly job seekers also turn to the internet when looking for a job.

Below are some of the things to consider when weighing the pros and cons of executive firm recruitment online vs. offline:

Advantages of offline executive search:

• Newspapers and trade magazines are a lot cheaper than a desk top computer, or a laptop or even mobile phones and iPods; and
• Some people are still accustomed to looking for jobs in the wanted- ad section of a newspaper.

Disadvantages of offline executive search:

• Offline advertising is more costly than online ads;
• Newspapers and trade magazines have a limited circulation coverage or area of circulation; and
• A newspaper ad is usually paid for per issue. If you want your ad to appear in several issues and be made available for a longer period of time, then you pay extra for it.

Advantages of online executive recruitment:

• Online executive recruitment is cheaper than offline;
• Online recruitment will not require a cut-off date and is easy to add, change, or even cancel;
• Online advertising of executive recruitment search is usually more complete and detailed;
• It reaches a very wide audience – the whole world is your audience; and
• It provides easy access for qualified applicants to information about available positions. Companies can even send information through emails or other social networking sites

Disadvantages of online executive recruitment:

• The proliferation of so many websites on executive recruitment search makes it difficult to choose the best and most effective executive recruitment company; and
• There are still people out there – within the possible target market – who are not internet users.

Deciding between executive firm recruitment online vs. offline is about knowing where your jobs and job seekers are. Many executives, especially those under forty, are always online – through their laptops, iPads and mobile phones. So it makes sense for companies looking to hire the best executives to promote their executive positions online.

While there are still some industries where offline advertising, such as in newspapers or industry journals, may be the best way to go – or blend with online ads eg farming, engineering, finance, construction, transport, etc.  Ultimately, the target candidate’s level of internet knowledge and use is the most important factor to consider.