In recruiting, if you're doing things right, you're real darn likely to face Google as a competitor. Sometimes it will feel as if it's just you and a Google Recruiter thrown into a sweaty boxing ring, battling it out over a candidate, until, inevitably, Google throws cash at the problem*.
That's okay.
What Google doesn't have is your secret weapon: you. What is it about your story, your company, your project that makes you get up in the morning and do it all over again? Is it a pretty office, kombucha on tap, or maybe all the Lyft credits your heart desires? All these things are wonderful, but so often comically standard in the tech world (Hooli is real, guys). Let's unpack this a bit further.
PRODUCT
This one's obvious - but what product or service are you building? Is it consumer-facing, will Grandma have heard of it? Is it the coolest new developer tool? Is it going to change the world, or, at least, change the world of some specific community?
CAREER MOBILITY
With a smaller company, internal growth can be as simple as chatting the VP of Marketing and saying "Hey, mind if I take on some Employer Branding projects?" At a bigger company, an internal transfer can take forever and might require machete-ing your way through corporate red tape. Depending on what someone wants out of their career, the opportunity for internal growth could be a huge sell. (Do they want to change fields/roles? Are they interested in exploring a hybrid role?)
THAT MAGICAL IPO
Money is cool, but the promise of limitless money is even cooler. Sure, Google stock is likely to climb in value for, uh, forever. But let's remember Instagram, a company acquired for a literal billion dollars when they had just 17 employees. (Maybe it was 13? I'll feel better if it's 17). This is the dream; this is why people come to San Francisco. (There's gold in them hills, even if the hills are mostly just one down in Menlo Park).
WORK-LIFE BALANCE
The best perk a company can offer to someone with a family is a real 9 to 5 job - not one where optional weekend-long hackathons or 12hr days feel mandatory. There are always going to be delayed releases, angry customers, stressed PM's, and times when you have to stay late. That's fine. But what does day-to-day look like? Can working moms get home in time to have dinner with their kids? Can working dads WFH on days their kiddies catch the flu? (Bloomberg did a great article on this a couple of years ago, read here).
SPACE
I know I said space wasn't a valid answer, but some spaces are real damn cool. I walked into Airb'n'b and never wanted to walk out. Similarly, the Googleplex can be incredibly overwhelming for an introvert, and it can be hard to find a quiet space to concentrate. If you have something beautiful going for you, share it.
LOCATION
If your candidate lives in SF and is looking at Google Mountain View, map out their commute. Do the math on how many hours they'll save taking a job in the city, talk up all the cool places to grab lunch in the middle of the day, point out how easy it is to run errands on your company bicycle - you do have a branded bike or Vespa they can borrow, right? :)
PEOPLE
This deserves its own post! At a high level, Google is so big that it can't always guarantee what team you'll be on or who your manager will be, at least for new grads (who sign offers 9-12 months before their start date). Play that up - if you work for our company, John will be your boss, you'll work with Paul, George, and Ringo, and the first feature you'll build will be a collaged album cover for our latest psychadelic endeavor. Or whatever. Get specific, so the candidate can visualize their first day, week, and year.
*FINAL NOTE: $
If you have a candidate whose bottom line is a cash-heavy offer, and you don't have the funds to make them happy, that is okay. They might not be a great fit for the role or for your company, at least right at this moment. Be upfront with them about how much flexibility you have, and everyone will be happier in the end. (And to candidates: just because a company can't match your Google offer doesn't mean they don't love you. All companies have flexibility in comp, but it's important to keep salaries fair relative to existing employees, and to start you at a number it's possible to raise in coming years).
MOMENT OF ZEN
FWIW, I think Google can be an awesome place to work, and will always tell my candidates so. As a recruiter, it's your job to partner with your candidates, and help them sort out what's really driving their buying choices. A good recruiter will also gracefully acknowledge a hard truth: another company might be a good, or better, fit (and a lot of times it's Google).