If your small business plans to expand its staff in 2025, check out this list of green flags — 5 signs your search for the right candidate is moving in the right direction.

Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of the small businesses surveyed said they plan to add personnel this year, according to the Wall Street Journal/Vistage Small Business CEO Confidence Index in November. 

Here are five actions that represent green flags waving you toward a successful search and hiring process in 2025.

Casting a wide net. You're off to a good start if your recruitment for job candidates is covering multiple sites and audiences.

HR and marketing specialists suggest small business owners go beyond the popular job boards like Indeed and LinkedIn and post their job openings on other social media platforms too, such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.

Doing so gives businesses an opportunity to create "table setting" brand impressions for potential candidates who may not even be on those job sites, says Neil Costa, founder and chief executive officer of the HireClix ad agency, in a company blog.

"Given how much time people are spending on social media sites, we want to get the brand and then particularly the jobs in front of them where they can have some brand recall," he writes.

Also, Costa notes that the Meta sites and YouTube will let you target specific audiences or geographical areas for your job ads. For example, he says, a small business recruiting mechanics could target car repair searches and related content.

Being transparent about expectations. Whether it's about the job requirements, responsibilities, or company culture, clear communication from the get-go is a critical factor in the hiring process.

For example, your job description should include realistic expectations of what you're looking for in a new employee — your accuracy will benefit the candidates who, like your business, are seeking a good match.

"You don't want to spend time reviewing resumes and interviewing candidates who lack a clear understanding of the role you want to fill," writes business.com managing editor Chad Brooks in a blog on the site.

Evaluating the fit. In addition to looking at specific job qualifications, consider a candidate's soft skills, such as adaptability, and other personal traits that would make them more successful within your company's culture.

"Employees with strong, soft skills are more likely to be productive, engaged and collaborative, leading to better overall organizational performance," says a post by Entrepreneur by Jiggar Thakkar, CEO of United Press, a London-based public relations and digital marketing agency.

Seeking candidates at job fairs. Job fairs present unique access to a wide range of job seekers and the opportunity to promote your company to potential candidates, as well as other organization and institution participants.

 "Small businesses are often not that well known which presents a challenge in hiring new employees," says a post by Smith.ai. "Participating in job fairs is a good way to attract fresh talent, especially from institutions of higher learning."

Also, unlike with online job boards and social media posts, a job fair offers a chance to meet potential candidates face-to-face.

"This reduces the time it may have taken the business to plan for interviews and engage in a lengthy recruitment process,” explains the blog by Smith.ai, which provides AI-driven call and chat answering to small businesses.

Creating a culture that attracts and retains employees. It's important that you create the kind of working environment that attracts and retains quality employees.

In addition to competitive wages, research suggests, employees want to work for a company that makes them feel appreciated and cared about, which can be demonstrated in several different ways, including attention to and benefits that support employee wellbeing.

For more tips on hiring at your small business, see Finding Staff for Your Small Business and

What You Should Look For In A Remote Hire.