Consider other firms as your farm teams and lure away their already trained productive people. Recruiting is just sales with a crummy budget. Then by focusing on the same media, websites, magazines, and other sources that your employees use you are likely to find great recruits in the same manner. Branding is another important area to focus on. First, it is essential that you know and manage what your employees say about you.
Top performers are in high demand, regardless of the economic situation.
The reverse is also true, in that if a candidate is easy to attract and sell, odds are they are not a top performer. When it comes to recruiting talent, the easiest ones to get are the ones you want least. Focus your efforts towards hiring away employed top performers rather than those who are actively looking for a job. The best are currently employed and have multiple offers, a counter offer and they expect more exciting jobs then those outlined in most traditional job descriptions. Send them to your competitors.