The more candidates we can build a relationship with and the wider we cast our net the more value we can add to our firm. Diversity builds innovation. The middleman lives. I don't advocate the removal of the recruiter from the recruiting process, as some do. But, I do believe that the role of the recruiter should change to be more of a marketer, relationship developer, and candidate searcher.
Buyers are king.
As I said before, the candidate is king. The candidate controls the entire relationship and can at any time decide to move on to another recruiter or another firm. Know the markets you are recruiting from and adjust your recruiting practices to them. There are no groups of people anymore. The recruiter has to understand these individual differences and work with the human resources people to adapt policies and compensation to each person.