Top matchAsk Haley BlogArticle
SMART IDEAS Summit 6 Preview: What 30 Years Taught Us About Building a Smarter Growth Engine
Aug 7, 2026
Staffing has changed dramatically over the past 30 years.
Register today for SMART IDEAS Summit 6 – and build a true Growth Engine for your staffing firm.
Technology has transformed how firms recruit, sell, market, and communicate. Buyers have become more informed. Candidates expect faster responses. New tools promise greater efficiency almost every day.
But one business challenge has remained remarkably consistent:
Growth gets harder when every department operates independently.
Sustainable Growth Starts with Better Connections
During the 9:00 am opening session of SMART IDEAS Summit 6, David Searns and Victoria Kenward will share lessons Haley Marketing has learned through three decades of serving the staffing and recruiting industry.
Their presentation, “What 30 Years Taught Us About Building a Smarter Growth Engine,” will explore why firms need more than isolated tactics, disconnected technology, and occasional marketing campaigns.
Reserve Your Seat
Attendees will learn why sustainable growth depends on connecting:
- Sales and marketing
- Recruiting and business development
- People and technology
- Strategy and execution
- Automation and human relationships
Stop Adding Tactics
Start Building a System
The firms positioned to win will not necessarily be the ones with the most tools or the largest teams.
They will be the firms that align their resources around a clear strategy and build repeatable processes for attracting, engaging, and converting prospects.
David and Victoria will help attendees see where their Growth Engine may be breaking down—and what they can do to strengthen it.
Reserve Your Seat
Read full article ↗
Also relevantSMART Ideas WeeklyArticle
SMART IDEA #126: The mindset for sales growth
David Searns · Mar 21, 2026
Email Address
View Past Issues
A growth engine is not a shortcut. The firms that win will think longer, teach more, and execute with discipline.
Weekly inspiration for the staffing industry
ISSUE #126 | March 21, 2026
New this Week:
• A Growth Engine is not a shortcut
• Meet RogIQ (Rogue IQ)
• SIA Executive Forum 2026 Recap (webinar)
SMART IDEAS #126:
A Growth Engine is Not a Shortcut
David Searns | Co-CEO
Quick Note:
This SMART IDEA is a follow-up to our Creating a Growth Engine series. Basically, someone said to me "Hey, for this to work, people have to have the right mindset...they have to be willing to change." I could not agree more, so today I present you...
The Mindset Staffing Leaders Need Now
In staffing right now, pressure is everywhere.
Demand is uneven. Margins are tight. Buyers are cautious. Sales teams are being asked to do more with less, while leadership is quietly wondering which lever to pull next.
More calls? More emails? Better reps? More LinkedIn? A new AI tool?
Fair questions. Wrong answer.
Because in today's staffing market, the biggest reason firms struggle to create sales opportunities is not weak effort, bad execution, or even a lack of leads.
It is leadership mindset.
If you want to build a real Staffing Growth Engine, you have to stop looking for a shortcut around sales and start building a system that makes sales more effective over time.
That means patience. Consistency. Trust in the process. A willingness to teach. A willingness to tell the truth. And the discipline to keep showing up long before the market shows obvious signs of readiness.
That is the work.
Where does your growth engine start?
Find out where your firm shows up today and what to fix first as AI changes how buyers search for staffing partners.
Read full article ↗
Staffing eBooks & GuidesBook
Creating a Staffing Growth Engine
Haley Marketing · Mar 11, 2026
CREATING A
STAFFING
GROWTH ENGINE
A modern approach to selling staffing services
CREATING A
STAFFING
GROWTH ENGINE
Once upon a time…
selling staffing was pretty easy.
Unemployment was below 3.5 percent.
Almost everyone was hiring. If you could
source talent, you could make placements.
Then the world changed.
COVID changed buying patterns. Demand
plummeted as companies chose FTEs
over temps. Competition soared with
nearshore alternatives, staffing platforms,
and now, AI.
To make matters worse, the staffing buying process became more complex.
Now it’s not just HR or a hiring manager; you have to be prepared to sell to
HR, operations, finance, and more.
And that’s if you can even reach them. Today’s staffing buyers are harder to
reach, more skeptical than ever, and more resistant to sales. According to
several staffing industry sales trainers, it can take as many as 70 TOUCHES
to get a prospect to respond.
In the past, if you wanted to sell more, the solution was simple:
“Make more calls!”
Today, that’s not enough…
2
Selling beyond
cold calls
To win in today’s market, you need to
capture attention, make your company
stand out, and win over those
skeptical buyers.
You need a
Staffing
Growth
Engine.
Today, you need
more than
“better sales. ”
You need a system that
attracts employers…
Delivers the right message
to the right audience…
Allows your sales team to
break through the clutter…
Empowers staffing buyers—
before the first call…
Ensures no sales lead
ever gets lost…
And keeps you
top-of-mind…
3
Creating Your Staffing
Growth Engine
A step-by-step guide to driving more sales
4
Read full article ↗
Building a Buyer-Based Sales and Marketing Strategy for Staffing Firms
Jul 14, 2026
content, proof-based content, decision-stage content, onboarding content, account expansion content, and client retention content that supports the full buyer journey.
Trust-Building Assets
Case studies, testimonials, success stories, client-focused resources, and industry-specific proof points can help buyers see why your firm is the right partner.
The objective is not simply to create more marketing.
The objective is to create a smarter system – one that helps staffing firms communicate with more relevance, support stronger sales conversations, and move the right people toward the right next step.
Final Thought
The next time you evaluate your marketing strategy, do not start by asking whether you need more content.
Start by asking who you are trying to influence.
Are you trying to win new prospects? Convert hesitant buyers? Replace an underperforming vendor? Onboard new clients? Expand current accounts? Strengthen loyal relationships? Save at-risk business?
Each goal requires a different message.
Each audience needs different support.
And each sales conversation should be backed by marketing tools designed for that specific situation.
When staffing firms build their strategy around the buyer, marketing becomes more relevant, sales conversations become more productive, and growth efforts become more intentional.
That is when marketing stops functioning as a collection of activities and starts operating as a true sales and growth engine.
Read full article ↗
SMART Ideas WeeklyArticle
SMART IDEA #117: Creating your growth engine - part 1 of 6
David Searns · Feb 19, 2026
Email Address
View Past Issues
Weekly inspiration for the staffing industry
ISSUE #117 | January 17 2026
New this Week:
• Creating your growth engine (part 1)
• SEO/AIO: Want to ensure you get found?
• New AI tools and services
• Product spotlight: Modern websites
• Fix Your Sales Funnel for 2026 (webinar)
• Don't miss a SMART IDEAS
SMART IDEAS #117:
Creating your growth engine (part 1)
David Searns | Co-CEO
If you build it, they will come!
Yup, this is the Field of Dreams coming to life in your business.
Last week, I introduced the concept of building a staffing growth engine.
As you may recall: A growth engine is a system that produces more predictable leads and sales (and yes, recruiting too) — without relying on luck, referrals, or that one magic producer who always seems to “make it happen.”
Missed the issue? Read SMART IDEAS 116 here.
Today, and over the next several weeks, I’d like to add depth to each of the six components and show you step-by-step how to create your growth engine.
Ready to get started? (And apologies…this is a long SMART IDEA!)
Staffing Growth Engine:
Part 1: Creating Your Foundation
The foundation of your sales (and marketing) boils down to four things:
- Positioning
- Key differentiators
- Value proposition
- Core Story
Let’s dig in to each one of these.
Positioning: “What game are we playing—and for whom?”
What positioning is (in plain English)
Positioning is the decision you make that tells the market:
- Who you serve: Specific buyer + environment
- What you’re “the best at”: Category you want to own
- What you’re NOT: Trade-offs that make you believable
When I’m teaching people about positioning, I use two analogies: a Thanksgiving pumpkin pie and a box of Cheerios.
Let me explain…
Read full article ↗
