Most reps and recruiters skill-market candidates by rattling off the candidate’s skills, work experience, and certifications hoping something sticks. 

There are two problems with this approach.

Hiring managers don’t want skills—they want outcomes. 

When reps rattle off skills and certifications, they’re hoping the hiring manager will do the hard work of connecting the dots between the candidate’s capabilities and the problems they're trying to solve.

That is your job, not your customer’s.

Today I’m going to show you how to skill-market candidates by positioning them as the solution to a business problem.

Why does this matter?

By reframing your approach to present candidates as solutions to business problems, you do three powerful things:

1. You reduce friction by showing direct alignment with the manager’s goals.
2. You elevate your role from résumé-pusher to problem-solver.
3. You create urgency because problems demand solutions—résumés don’t

Here’s what you’ll take away from this post:

• You’re not selling a resume—you’re presenting a solution to a business problem
  
  
• How to shift the conversation from resume to business results
  
  
• 4-step framework for problem-centered candidate skill-marketing
  
  
• Real-world examples you can use today

Skill-marketing candidates is one of the oldest sales prospecting strategies in staffing and recruiting. It predates my entry into the industry and will likely outlive my time in it.

For those unfamiliar, skill-marketing is when a seller or recruiter presents a candidate to a hiring manager—via phone, video, or face-to-face—without an active job order. Instead of waiting for the client to release a job order, the salesperson proactively promotes high-potential candidates in hopes of generating interest.

While the intent is proactive, the execution often misses the mark.

For most, the mental model is to pitch the resume.Most reps approach it like this:

“Hi, I’ve got a great candidate I think you’ll want to meet…”

Then they launch into a broadcast-style pitch, rattling off the candidate’s technical skills, experience, and certifications. The hope is something sticks.

But this approach is flawed—and here’s why:

1. It Starts with a Pitch, Not a Problem

The conversation focuses on what the candidate can do, not the problem the customer needs to solve.

2. One-Size-Fits-All Message

Rarely is the conversation properly contextualized to the client’s current situation, strategic goals, or current challenges. It’s just a pitch and a hope.

3. It Feels Pushy and Self-Serving

Buyers quickly tune out and label the rep as “just another vendor pushing bodies.”

4. It’s Highly Transactional

The rep delivers a monologue and leaves it up to the customer to “connect the dots.”

This forces the customer to figure out whether the candidate can solve their problems and deliver their desired business results.

That is not their job. That is your job.

Follow this 4 step framework

Step 1: Talk to Your Candidate 

Customers don’t sit around thinking “boy, I sure could use a data engineer with SQL, ETL, Python, and data modeling skills.” 

What they think about is keeping their boss and their customers happy.  They think about the problems they need to solve in order to achieve their desired business results. 

Your job is to understand how your candidate creates business value. 

Talk to your candidate and ask them:

• What are the 3 most common problems you solve?
• Who [buyer persona/job title] struggles with these problems and is responsible for solving them (this is who you will skill market your candidate to)?
• How do you solve these problems? Explain it to me like I’m a 5th grader and include tools and methods you use.
• What specific business results do you deliver when solving for this?
  • Can you quantify those results into metrics or statistics?
    
    

This first step is key, without it, you can’t create context and frame the conversation in a way that is relevant and of high value to your customer.

Step 2: Frame the Conversation 

Here are two frameworks for framing the conversation.

This first example is with a warm prospect, someone you (the salesperson or recruiter) have spoken with previously.

“[First name], based on our last discussion you shared with me that [challenge(s)] is creating a lot of frustration around achieving your objective of [goals]. What's making it difficult is [pain, inefficiency, constraint]. Is this still the case?” (check for agreement).

This next example is with a cold prospect, someone you have never spoken with before. With a cold prospect, you likely won’t know what their top priorities are, or the problems they’re trying to solve.  

In this case, you apply what you learned from speaking with your candidate + your industry knowledge, buyer persona knowledge, past customer patterns, and business context to hypothesize your prospect’s goals or challenges. 

“In my work with other [buyer persona], I hear [insert challenges]. What is making it difficult is [pain, inefficiency, constraint]. Most are trying to achieve [goal/desired future state].  Curious—does that sound similar to what you’re experiencing?” (checking for agreement)

Here is what it might look and sound like with a leader of data management.

“In my work with other data leaders, I hear [insert challenges] a lot of frustration around data quality, dashboard adoption, and real-time availability. What’s making it tough is [insert the pain, inefficiency, or constraint] lack of real-time visibility and the effort it takes to sync and cleanse data across teams and tools. Most are trying to get to a place [desired future state] where data flows cleanly and consistently, teams can self-serve insights, and reporting drives faster decisions with fewer headaches. Curious—does that sound similar to what you’re experiencing?” (checking for agreement)

Step 3: Tell the Candidate’s Story

Now that you've framed the conversation around the customer’s challenges and goals, bridge the gap with a story—not the resume.

Focus on how your candidate solved similar problems, delivered business results, and made life easier for someone just like your prospect.

Example:

“At [Previous Company], [Candidate Name] helped [Target Persona, e.g., Head of Data] overcome [Specific Problem, e.g., fragmented reporting systems] by [Action Taken], e.g., designing an integrated data pipeline using XYZ tools. This resulted in [Measurable Result], e.g., a 40% reduction in reporting time and a 25% increase in dashboard usage across teams.”

Keep it light. Keep it tight. 

Make it relevant. 

Show your candidate through the lens of impact, not inventory.

Step 4: Check for Feedback

Don’t assume your prospect will take the next step—ask for it.

Too many reps make the pitch, then go silent. Big mistake.

Instead, check for agreement. Confirm that what you shared aligns with their needs, gauge their level of interest, and invite them to the next step.

For example, you might say, 

• “how do these results compare to what you’re seeing so far?”
• “Does [candidate name] sound like someone who could add value to your team?”
• Would you like to schedule a brief call with [Candidate Name] so they can share more context and walk you through how they’ve solved similar challenges?”

Summary

Skill marketing isn’t the problem. The way we do it is.

You’re not selling a resume—you’re presenting a solution to a business problem.

Customers don’t want to buy or acquire skills, they want outcomes. They want relief from their headaches, progress toward their goals, and results that make them look good to their boss.

It is a lot easier for them to hire your candidate when it is positioned in a way that helps them solve a problem or achieve a goal they're already commited to.  When you position your candidate in the context of the customer’s goals and challenges, you create real demand—with or without a job order in hand. 

To learn additional sales prospecting tips and strategies, check our article, top sales prospecting tips that book more meetings.