How to Use WhatsApp for High-Volume Hiring

Given the low barrier to entry in these roles, candidates are likely to accept the first offer they receive.

So how do you reach them before competition?

WhatsApp is already the go-to platform for quick communication, and powered with Conversational AI, it can help you fast track screening and engage candidates at scale.

The process runs automatically, and recruiters using AI this way report 3x more hires and a 60% shorter time to hire!

Sounds interesting? Here’s how it works.

How AI-based WhatsApp recruiting works

AI-powered WhatsApp recruiting uses chatbots to screen job seekers directly through the messaging platform.

However, unlike traditional chatbots, the ones we’re referring to here make use of Conversational AI - a type of artificial intelligence that enables machines to understand, process, and respond to human language in a natural way.

Conversational AI powers not only chatbots but also virtual assistants and in general any form of messaging automation, allowing for real-time interactions via text or voice.

In recruiting, this type of AI is used to engage candidates, answer questions, and pre-screen applicants through platforms like WhatsApp, SMS, and career sites. It can automate tasks such as “talking” to candidates to pre-screen them and collect information, schedule interviews, and even guide applicants through the recruitment process.

Because WhatsApp is so easy to use and well-adopted, it’s a great platform for fast, automated screening via AI. Candidates can apply anytime and the AI chatbot engages with them 24/7, keeping the recruitment process running without sacrificing quality or missing critical requirements.

Moreover, AI’s versatility makes hiring more accessible to those without a CV, non-native English speakers, or applicants facing other barriers.

Now that you know how the technology works, let’s walk through a real example using Carv’s Conversational AI.

Step 1: Application & contact capture

As any volume hiring process,  AI-driven WhatsApp recruitment starts with a vacancy. If using the Carv platform, this vacancy can be served to the AI chatbot as an URL, or can be pulled directly from the ATS, if the two systems - Carv and your ATS - are integrated.

From here on, the Conversational AI takes over the entire screening process. Instead of you having to set up conversation trees or flow charts, the AI chatbot looks at the context of the job opportunity and proposes a chat flow.

The chat flow will include the best qualification questions for the specific job requirements, and will be highly personalized, giving the candidate the impression of talking to a real recruiter. However, if you prefer, you can also use a pre-saved chat flow template.

Whichever option you choose, the setup will only take about 20 seconds.

You can advertise your job as usual, allowing candidates to apply through a career site or job board. But for volume hiring, you might want to simplify the process by skipping CV requirements.

All the chatbot needs is a phone number or email to reach applicants.

Step 2: WhatsApp outreach and pre-screening

Once a candidate submits their contact details, the WhatsApp AI bot takes over, initiating the pre-screening process. This requires no manual intervention on your part.

The chatbot will personalize the conversation, while going through all the knock-out and qualification questions.

You can always adjust these questions in Step 1, if you want the AI bot to ask something specific - for example, the bot can ask candidates about their eligibility or work authorization, job market knowledge, shift availability, and so on.

Let’s say your vacancy is for a driver and they need to be located near Paris for the role. The Conversational AI will check this requirement in the beginning, as it is a knock-out criterion.

Although AI is in the lead, you keep full control, as you can see the conversation happening in real time, and you can step in at any point. Also, you can take over at any point if the candidate asks to talk to a human or if there seems to be an issue.

Because candidates answer in real-time and the system filters out unqualified applicants based on knockout criteria, only the matching candidates remain in the process.

Step 3: Interview scheduling or rejection

Shortlisted candidates are invited to schedule interviews by the AI chatbot, with no manual outreach on your part. The Carv platform integrates with your calendar, giving the Conversational AI access to your availability.

All you need to do is select the time windows during which the chatbot can schedule interviews for you, and the scheduling process will run automatically. Additionally, you can add the availability of your hiring managers if recruiting for multiple locations or when location managers are acting as recruiters.

One more note before we move on: Since the pre-screening conversation takes place over WhatsApp messages, applicants might try to game the system. To minimize this risk, it’s a good idea to have the AI chatbot ask questions in different ways to catch any red flags.

How AI-based recruiting is different from regular text recruiting

You’ll know from experience if you ever tried text recruiting that it can be a bit ‘stop-start’.

You have to manually set up conversation flows and create the logic between each step on a messaging platform, and if the candidate says something off-script, it can all go awry - if you even get notifications, that is!

In AI-based WhatsApp recruiting, tech does the heavy lifting. Here’s how this technology differs from regular text-based hiring.

1. No need to think of a logical path ever again - Set up your vacancy and launch the AI chat flow generator. The AI will build a personalized conversation based on the job description to engage potential candidates with the right questions, ensuring only top talent gets shortlisted.
2. Customize each role’s knock-out questions - While choosing the type of knock-out questions asked does require manual input, how exactly the AI gets the answer from candidates it’s up to the chat bot. If you’re hiring for 10 locations, you don’t need to add 10 filters or keywords to scan for all locations - just tell the AI to ensure the candidate is available for the role’s location.
3. No CV required - In high-volume hiring, you don’t need to wait for CVs to start evaluating candidates. Instead, use a targeted knock-out questions to quickly filter out unqualified applicants. This approach helps you focus on a larger pool of relevant candidates without getting bogged down by paperwork.
4. Speak in their language. An AI chatbot can speak in the candidate’s preferred language, ensuring clear, effective communication from the start, and making the process less likely to lose potential talent due to language barriers. This is a major advantage of AI technology.
5. Identify drop-off points. With all conversations stored in the platform, you can easily identify the drop-off points, and ask the AI chatbot to adjust the conversations to reduce friction. While regular text-based platforms also store data, the analysis of all the collected data points will be on you.
6. No more manual follow-up. A follow-up is what every candidate deserves so they can move on with their job search. But in volume hiring, recruiters are often too busy to prioritize rejection emails. AI-based hiring streamlines the process, ensuring sensible real-time rejections as well as follow-up messages - for example, answering FAQs - for shortlisted candidates.

With these out of the way, let’s see why AI-driven WhatsApp recruiting is particularly well-suited for volume hiring.

Why WhatsApp is a game-changer for volume hiring

While traditional chatbots are suitable for basic automation, AI-powered chatbots enhance efficiency with smarter responses, and true conversational AI—when implemented well and with WhatsApp—can provide a near-human candidate experience.

Some of the key benefits:

• Faster response times – With WhatsApp, both candidates and AI assistants engage instantly, reducing the wait time between application and response. This leads to quicker interactions and keeps the hiring process moving.
• Higher completion rates – Unlike traditional email forms, WhatsApp conversations are easier to navigate and more engaging, leading to higher completion rates for your screening process.
• Better candidate experience – WhatsApp offers a conversational, mobile-friendly experience that candidates are familiar with. This makes the process feel more natural, improving overall satisfaction.
• Reduces recruiter workload – Automation through WhatsApp handles the initial screening, allowing recruiters to focus on the most qualified candidates, not the tedious administrative tasks. This is particularly important in volume hiring, where location managers often act as recruiters, although this isn’t their main responsibility.
• Zero-handling screening process: AI does all the pre-screening and scheduling. A human recruiter can take over at any point if the candidate asks to talk to a human.

Now, keep in mind that using WhatsApp may be a new process for some candidates, so start with some easy questions to get them familiar with how they respond. Continuously A/B test the messages you send, including tone, style, content and schedules to find what works best for your candidate pool.

Also, be aware that fake job offers can be presented on WhatsApp. Scammers reach out through WhatsApp, Meta, LinkedIn or text, claiming to offer well-paying remote jobs. Ensure you stand out from these job scams by sharing the legitimacy of the roles through chats with web links, additional information, and the option to engage with an actual human.

Over to you

AI and WhatsApp are a powerful combination for volume hiring. By automating the initial screening, Conversational AI reduces recruiter workload, allowing you to move fast while maintaining quality. This streamlined process means you can focus on interviews, not administrative tasks.

Whether you're hiring 100 or 1,000 frontline candidates, the ability to scale with speed is crucial. And with Carv, you don’t need an ATS integration—just select the roles you want to pre-screen with AI and start hiring.

Interested in Conversational AI for volume hiring? Book a demo here.