How to write effective job ads:
Writing an effective job ad takes time. You want to introduce people to your business, let them know what it is like working for your company, and why they should apply. As with all advertising principles, you need to apply AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.
Think about the amount of information people have to consume daily, and what you need to do to get them to stop scrolling long enough to take action and apply for your job, or share it with someone else.
Let’s get right down to it, with tips on creating a job ad that gets noticed on job boards and by the right people.
1. Use an effective job title
This is the most important part of your job ad. When you write your title, it has to be a term that will be searched by applicants. Writing things like “Sales Guru” may seem like a cool way to attract people, but it really isn’t. If your company uses in-house job titles, it would be best to use the industry standard when adertising.
2. Add an emotive introduction
This is a single paragraph that gives three to five details about the company and role that will excite applicants. If you offer benefits that are not the norm, or work on exciting projects, this is where to list these. You have only a few seconds to get the reader’s attention. Use them wisely.
3. Tell your company story
Information about your company that applicants want to know. How many years you’ve been in business, how long and why employees stay, interesting clients or projects, equipment that applicants will be excited about, awards, accolades, and work culture facts that will interest them. This paragraph should flow on from the first.
4. Really sell the position
Rather than a typical laundry list of bullet points of things you want, only include requirements that are essential to this job. Try to limit yourself to three to five things. Then provide information on work hours, pay, interesting coworkers, education opportunities, benefits or perks, and anything else applicants will find interesting.
5. Push your location
Moving is an obstacle to anyone considering your job that doesn’t live in your region. If you want to attract people from other places, sell applicants on the location. Give them details about schools, activities, crime rates, things to do, etc. If your location is an easy commute from many key hiring areas then make sure to spell out the actual commute time. A candidate will always be keen on a role that can cut their commute time. A frequent search term used by applicants is to use either km or travel time from their home to find jobs within specific parameters.
6. Repeat why they should apply
This section is a quick bullet-pointed recap of the top three to five reasons someone should apply to your job. If you have a long job post this will make sure that your key points are front-of-mind when the candidate is hovering over the apply button.
7. Spell out the application process
Detail everything from when they first apply to when they get hired. Applicants don’t want to be left in the dark about “what happens next.” This is especially important if you have a role that is a one interview hire. Candidates that are immediately available will jump on roles like this as they can get a job in days vs weeks. If you require specific skills testing, tell them how the testing will be done, and how long it takes on average to complete the testing. Remember, this: Time kills all deals. It is the same for applicants. The longer you take to process their application, to interview, and offer them the job, the more interest they will lose.
8. Have other people read it
Treat this job post writing exercise with the same level of importance you would any other important piece of company marketing. Get multiple people to read it and provide you with honest feedback. Make sure you have fixed any errors before you post the job to hundreds of job boards.
9. Improve your email responses
Look at all the emails that you send to applicants at each step of the hiring process. Pick them apart and ensure they are clear, personal, and continue to sell the applicant on the role at every step. A poor first response to an application will undo all the good work you did in the job post getting them to apply.
Job Descriptions Are Not Job Ads!
Many people still confuse job ads with job descriptions. A job description is a detailed description of the responsibilities and expectations for a job that a company uses internally. A job ad is meant to sell applicants on your company, team, location, and all the things that make working for you great. That’s what you should be posting to job boards. You can always attach the job description, or email it to the relevant applicants. Never use it as a job ad though.
Talent attraction and hiring trends in a post C-19 world
2020 brought the world many challenges that were never faced in the digital age.
The one constant that remained was the war on talent. Despite an influx of people being available to work, as is clearly seen in the 300% to 1000% increase in job applications for specific roles, the fact remains that there is still a huge skills gap and lack of experienced and qualified talent.
A few of the key differences noted between pre-covid and post-covid recruitment and hiring has been the mindset shift nearly every business had to adopt from office-based to remote workforces.
This came with its own challenges, how to keep teams and staff engaged, and continue collaboration at the same time. Enter technology.