HOW TO CRAFT A WINNING JOB AD TO SUPPORT YOUR Q2 RECRUITMENT EFFORTS

April 8, 2022

While many employers are struggling to recruit and retain employees in the current job market – in part due to the impact of the pandemic and the Great Resignation – it’s also fair to say that companies are in trouble because of a recruitment issue that has always existed: repetitive Job Ads riddled with jargon and bias that fail to connect, enchant, and entice top talent to apply.

The problem lies in that most recruiters and TA folk are time-poor and therefore tend to stick to a tried and safe method of recycling Job Ads from the past (the average Job Ad is six years old.)

Here at Optimal HQ, we can understand their logic to a certain extent, but what direct employers and staffing agencies are failing to appreciate is this: Job Ads are their greatest opportunity to impress and attract talented job seekers in a challenging and fiercely competitive way hiring market.

Job Ads are supposed to be just that – an advertisement for your company or client and the role and workplace. Your Job Ad should ‘sell’ the vacancy and make candidates want to ‘hit’ apply.

A poorly crafted Job Ad full of jargon that hasn’t been optimised for DE&I and SEO isn’t going to help your organisation stand out in the current market where, let’s face it,  employees have all the power.

Make no mistake: your Job Ad is the most powerful weapon in your recruitment toolbox. A well-written Job Ad will help you attract a diverse pool of talented professionals and allow you to promote your brand and build a pool of excellent potential candidates for the future. 

It may be an old cliché, but first impressions do count for good reason. Without further ado, here are five areas to focus on when crafting your next Job Ad.


Words matter
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
Be clear that your organisation is inclusive and collaborative through the language you use in your Job Ad. We mean gender-neutral terms and words that show you welcome applications from people from all the protected characteristics and are a flexible employer who is open to remote working, flexible hours, hybrid work, etc.


Optimise, optimise, optimise 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
If you want your Job Ad to appear (and high up) in search engine results, it needs to be keyword rich. Be sure to integrate words or phrases commonly used by job seekers in your industry into the job title and description for best SEO practice. As our CEO and founder, Dan Fellows, always says: “A Job Ad is 90 percent science, 10 percent human intervention.”


Realism rules                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
Create reasonable candidate specifications –  Job Ads featuring an endless, exhaustive list of requirements put candidates, especially female applicants, off even applying. Make no mistake: men tend to apply for a job when they meet 60 percent of the requirements, whereas women only apply for a job if they meet 100 percent of the requirements. If necessary, ask current employees for input.


State the salary
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              If an applicant knows what the pay is from the outset, it saves everyone involved valuable time and energy. Pay is a critical factor in whether a candidate takes a job – or even applies in the first place.

Case in point? A LinkedIn survey showed that the overwhelming majority of respondents (61 percent) said compensation was the most critical part of the Job Ad. Elsewhere a Glassdoor study revealed that salary (67 per cent) is the top factor job seekers look for in Job Ads.


Ask for help
If your recruitment team is struggling to write an optimised, bias reduced Job  Ad, ask someone – such as yours truly – who can. After all, we’re recruitment content marketing specialists, and we’re here to help. Working and collaborating with Get-Optimal is about taking control, not giving up control. Make the change, and make the change today.


After all, we’re recruitment content marketing specialists, and we’re here to help. Working and collaborating with Get-Optimal is about taking control, not giving up control. Make the change, and make the change today.


Image courtesy of Unsplash

HOW TO CRAFT A WINNING JOB AD TO SUPPORT YOUR Q2 RECRUITMENT EFFORTS

April 8, 2022
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While many employers are struggling to recruit and retain employees in the current job market – in part due to the impact of the pandemic and the Great Resignation – it’s also fair to say that companies are in trouble because of a recruitment issue that has always existed: repetitive Job Ads riddled with jargon and bias that fail to connect, enchant, and entice top talent to apply.

The problem lies in that most recruiters and TA folk are time-poor and therefore tend to stick to a tried and safe method of recycling Job Ads from the past (the average Job Ad is six years old.)

Here at Optimal HQ, we can understand their logic to a certain extent, but what direct employers and staffing agencies are failing to appreciate is this: Job Ads are their greatest opportunity to impress and attract talented job seekers in a challenging and fiercely competitive way hiring market.

Job Ads are supposed to be just that – an advertisement for your company or client and the role and workplace. Your Job Ad should ‘sell’ the vacancy and make candidates want to ‘hit’ apply.

A poorly crafted Job Ad full of jargon that hasn’t been optimised for DE&I and SEO isn’t going to help your organisation stand out in the current market where, let’s face it,  employees have all the power.

Make no mistake: your Job Ad is the most powerful weapon in your recruitment toolbox. A well-written Job Ad will help you attract a diverse pool of talented professionals and allow you to promote your brand and build a pool of excellent potential candidates for the future. 

It may be an old cliché, but first impressions do count for good reason. Without further ado, here are five areas to focus on when crafting your next Job Ad.


Words matter
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
Be clear that your organisation is inclusive and collaborative through the language you use in your Job Ad. We mean gender-neutral terms and words that show you welcome applications from people from all the protected characteristics and are a flexible employer who is open to remote working, flexible hours, hybrid work, etc.


Optimise, optimise, optimise 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
If you want your Job Ad to appear (and high up) in search engine results, it needs to be keyword rich. Be sure to integrate words or phrases commonly used by job seekers in your industry into the job title and description for best SEO practice. As our CEO and founder, Dan Fellows, always says: “A Job Ad is 90 percent science, 10 percent human intervention.”


Realism rules                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
Create reasonable candidate specifications –  Job Ads featuring an endless, exhaustive list of requirements put candidates, especially female applicants, off even applying. Make no mistake: men tend to apply for a job when they meet 60 percent of the requirements, whereas women only apply for a job if they meet 100 percent of the requirements. If necessary, ask current employees for input.


State the salary
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              If an applicant knows what the pay is from the outset, it saves everyone involved valuable time and energy. Pay is a critical factor in whether a candidate takes a job – or even applies in the first place.

Case in point? A LinkedIn survey showed that the overwhelming majority of respondents (61 percent) said compensation was the most critical part of the Job Ad. Elsewhere a Glassdoor study revealed that salary (67 per cent) is the top factor job seekers look for in Job Ads.


Ask for help
If your recruitment team is struggling to write an optimised, bias reduced Job  Ad, ask someone – such as yours truly – who can. After all, we’re recruitment content marketing specialists, and we’re here to help. Working and collaborating with Get-Optimal is about taking control, not giving up control. Make the change, and make the change today.


After all, we’re recruitment content marketing specialists, and we’re here to help. Working and collaborating with Get-Optimal is about taking control, not giving up control. Make the change, and make the change today.


Image courtesy of Unsplash