How to Start a Temp Staffing Agency

As we move more and more into business models and a labor market defined by independent contractors and the gig-economy, there is an increased necessity for structured staffing agencies to provide temporary labor for a variety of different services.The question, then, for for entrepreneurs is how to start a temporary employment agency that can capitalize on these market forces?In this article we will look, step by step, at what goes into starting a temp agency, from developing a brand and networking with businesses looking to hire, to attracting talent and potential temp hires.

Starting a Staffing Agency Business Plan

Define the Focus of Your Temp Agency

The first thing to check off your list when starting a temporary staffing agency is its focus. A wide variety of industries rely on temp workers to fill in the ranks, and specializing your agency will ensure the best chance for market penetration in whatever industry you choose to pursue.An additional aspect to consider is what level of expertise or education different industries require for hiring. Staffing out to finance or accounting firms may be more difficult for you than staffing service workers.

Identify Target Market to Serve

Whether you are starting a staffing agency in GA or NYC, understanding how to start a temporary staffing agency that will succeed starts with identifying your target market.These are some of the biggest industries/job types that temporary staffers are hired for:

• Office work/data entry
• QA testing/programming
• Seasonal retail
• Education
• Large-scale catering
• Factory and warehouses Work
• Performance, entertainment and talent management
• Nursing/healthcare
• Events/conventions/festivals

To create a temp agency that succeeds, think about how you can best serve the industries concentrated in your area or identify an area with a high concentration of the companies you want to work with. By focusing on your target market first, you can define the focus of your agency and build a company and brand that fit perfectly with this focus.

Create Your Brand

How to start a temporary staffing business that is set apart from other staffing agencies? Identifying and targeting specific markets will help your brand to stand out, but starting a staffing business can be highly competitive and you should develop a recognizable brand to give you an added edge.The first assets you need are your name, logo, and website, as these will be the first introduction to your company that most potential clients will see. Make sure your company’s name stands out (but is still recognizable and appropriate), that your logo is eye catching and professional, and that your website is intuitive and clean. Additionally, develop a brand-voice that is confident, dependable, and invites communication with clients.

Prepare for Starting a Staffing Agency

Now that you’ve identified your focus and started to build your brand, it’s time to get into the nitty gritty of starting a staffing agency requirements.

Form Your Business

Once you have the preliminary footwork of identifying target markets for your staffing agency, developing a brand, and designing a site, it’s time to start your business.

• Register your company’s name and apply for a business license with your state and your county/city if required.
• Apply for an FEIN.
• Open a bank account in your company’s name.
• Research the OSHA requirements for your staffing agency and acquire all required posters and other required employee resources.
• Trademark your company’s name and logo.
• Identify an office space that meets your needs.
• Make sure that you have filed all paperwork on a local, state and federal level.

If you have the resources, it may be a good idea to hire a core staff to help you with accounting and recruitment. If you are starting a staffing agency with no money, just be sure to check and double check that everything is above the board and following business guidelines in your area.

Find and Test Business and Recruiting Tools

To ensure your temp staffing agency is a success, you will need business and recruiting tools to manage client relationships and source the talented temps your agency depends on.Loxo is an all in one recruitment platform that combines your ATS and CRM, letting you manage client and candidate relationships in the same place. Using AI, Loxo automatically sources the best temp talent in your area of focus and region, then populates their profile and contact information in your ATS. Essentially, Loxo does your sourcing for you, leaving you free to get to the other million items on the to-do list of a business founder.

Identify and Attract Temp Talent

One of the most attractive aspects of starting a staffing business is that, in addition to a lucrative business plan, it offers opportunities to temp talent to make an impression on the companies they’re working for. When recruiting talent for your agency, try to frame your outreach as an offering of mutually beneficial opportunity.Good places to look for temp talent, outside of standard online listings, can include online groups for temp workers in your industry of focus, local college campuses, community resource centers, and a good old fashioned classified listing in your local paper.

Acquire Clientele

Acquiring the first clients of your temp agency should be done in tandem with your talent acquisition, to ensure that there is work to be done and people to do it when you launch. If you are starting local, the best way to go about acquiring new clients is researching companies in your area of focus that are likely to have need of your services and reaching out, or targeting them with advertising campaigns. Next, you should try searching local online and print listings for businesses with wanted ads and/or high turnover rates. Reach out to these businesses and ask whether they would be interested in contracting you to provide them with temporary staffing.Just be sure that you have the right temp talent for the companies you are pursuing. If you are contacting event production or catering companies it may be for extra hands on larger events, for office-jobs or retailers it may be for interim labor or seasonal overflow. No matter what, be sure that you are clear on your rates and what you are bringing to the table in terms of qualified and dependable labor before sitting down with a business owner to sell a contract.

Maintain Operations

Once you have clients and talent for their temp needs, successful business operations are just a matter of keeping the wheels turning as you expand your client base. Be sure to check in regularly with your clients to ensure they are satisfied with the temp-workers you’ve hired. Make sure work is being performed in a timely manner and up to a standard that represents your agency in a positive light.It can be difficult to start a temporary staffing agency, but if you make sure that you are prepared and ready to work hard to build up your business, it is an immensely lucrative pursuit and will provide a benefit to both businesses and workers in your community. Loxo is an all in one recruitment platform that helps you manage both the client and talent sides of your temp agency, combining your ATS and CRM to keep all of your business and talent relationships in one place. Powered by AI, Loxo’s sourcing automation finds the brightest temporary workers in your area and gathers their contact/profile info, leaving you free to run your business and find new clients.To see how Loxo can be the bedrock of your new temp agency’s success, just schedule a demo here.