David Did It! – “Your Fees Are Stuck in 2012, Babe!”

Let’s talk money.
I was working with a brilliant candidate recently, the kind that makes you do a smug little desk dance when they accept the offer.

We’d done our due diligence: market mapping, salary research, and real conversations with real firms. We knew the candidate’s salary expectations were in line with the going rate. So, I was a bit surprised when one client I was chatting with, while discussing their team’s growth plans, visibly recoiled at the number.

“That’s way above what we pay!”

Oh? Tell me more.

Naturally, I did what any slightly panicked recruiter does, I questioned myself. Was I off? Had I misjudged the market?

So I did a mini investigation (because we love receipts):

• Reviewed live salary benchmarks
• Scanned competitor job adverts
• Looked at what our own candidates (placed and unplaced) were expecting
• Cross-checked what had recently been accepted in similar roles

Spoiler alert: the candidate was bang on the money.
The market had moved. Their expectations hadn’t come from thin air – they came from reality.

So I went back to the client with evidence. Not attitude. Not opinion. Evidence.
They were shocked. The numbers were above their salary bandings, and now it made sense why they’d been struggling to attract talent for months.

Let’s Break Down What Happened Next:

Instead of just shrugging it off, we had the conversation, the one most firms avoid like a 5pm call from a recruiter.

➡️ We looked at their salary structures
➡️ We compared competitor benefits
➡️ We tweaked their offering (spoiler: some of the biggest improvements cost nothing)
➡️ And then came the bombshell…

“We probably need to review our pricing. Our fees haven’t changed in years.”

Bingo.
Because if you’re still charging 2012 fees, you can’t afford 2025 salaries.

Here’s the thing: the cost of living has skyrocketed.
Recruitment isn’t just about matching skills to job specs anymore. It’s about closing the gap between what firms offer and what candidates expect – before the good ones disappear.

Moral of the story?

The market’s moved.
Your pricing and packages need to move with it.
Great people cost money, but losing them (or never attracting them) costs more.
A recruiter isn’t there to inflate salaries – we’re here to help you compete.

If you’re not getting the applications, it might not be your recruiter.
It might be that you’re shopping in 2025 with a 2012 budget.

Trust us, we’ve got the receipts. 😉