{"id":1921,"date":"2026-09-12T17:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-12T15:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fosfor.nl\/?p=1921"},"modified":"2026-08-31T11:32:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T09:32:38","slug":"cost-effective-recruitment-marketing-versus-an-employment-agency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fosfor.nl\/en\/kostenefficient-personeel-werven-marketing-vs-uitzendbureau\/","title":{"rendered":"Cost-effective recruitment: marketing versus an employment agency"},"content":{"rendered":"

Recruitment marketing is often a more cost-effective way of recruiting staff than using a temp agency, as you make a one-off investment in your own reach and take candidates on as permanent employees, rather than paying a long-term hourly mark-up on top of their salary. For recurring vacancies, that margin adds up year after year.<\/p>\n

Does this sound familiar? Your vacancy has been open for weeks, the bill from the recruitment agency is piling up, and you\u2019re wondering if there isn\u2019t a smarter way. That feeling is often spot on. In this article, you\u2019ll work out the figures for yourself and see which approach yields the best results for you.<\/p>\n

How much does it actually cost to recruit staff through a temporary employment agency?<\/h2>\n

A temporary employment agency applies a conversion factor to the gross hourly wage, usually somewhere between 1.5 and 2.5 times the employee\u2019s hourly wage. This factor covers employers\u2019 contributions, insurance and the agency\u2019s margin. You pay this mark-up for as long as the employee works through the agency.<\/p>\n

If the need is long-term or permanent, it becomes expensive. If someone works 40 hours a week for a year, the supplement on top of the basic wage can run into thousands of euros a month. This is justifiable for temporary peaks in workload, but rarely for permanent roles.<\/p>\n

The labour market is making things even tougher: according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS), the number of unfilled vacancies in 2025 was still around 380,000, with persistent shortages in engineering and industry (CBS, 2025). This shortage is driving up agencies\u2019 rates even further.<\/p>\n

Why is recruitment marketing often more cost-effective?<\/h2>\n

Recruitment marketing is more cost-effective when you have recurring recruitment needs, as you pay for reach and candidate intake, rather than a margin on every hour worked. You build up your own visibility and the candidate joins your organisation without any ongoing commission.<\/p>\n\t\t

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