January is an incredibly busy time for recruitment. There are more candidates looking for jobs than at any other time of year, but that doesn’t mean you should be lax when it comes to your job adverts. If anything, you should be more meticulous than ever to ensure you attract the cream of the talent out there.
Creating a job advertisement that attracts the right candidates
What you don’t want is multiple job applications from candidates that aren’t suitable for the role. That’s just going to make your job more time-consuming as you try to separate the chaff from the wheat. The key to avoiding that is to always perform a job analysis before you advertise a job. A robust job analysis will provide the basis of a great job description which, in turn, will form the beginnings of an effective job advertisement. This means carrying out a thorough analysis of the tasks and responsibilities required for the role, either with an incumbent or the manager. During this process, you may even discover new ways to improve the effectiveness of the role, especially if the job’s function or structure of the company/department has changed recently.
Once you know what the role needs to achieve, you can create a defined list of the duties involved to meet those objectives. After that, it’s much easier to brainstorm the skills, experience, knowledge and other personal attributes needed to best fulfil the needs of the position. Researching similar jobs with other companies can help. While you’re at it, it can be useful to look at how they advertise jobs in order to see what you can do differently or better.
Successful job advertising
Now it’s time to create your job advertisement. Separate the ‘must-haves’ from ‘desirables’. Highlight or bullet point the ‘must-haves’ for the role. These need to be the first things that stand out for candidates.
Of course, you’ll want to introduce the company early on, with a short ‘about us’, organisational goals (perhaps with details on why the vacancy has arisen) and details of the environment in which they will be working. For instance, you don’t want candidates applying for a role in a big department if they’d be more suited in working on their own, or a small team.
Obviously, at the top of your advert, you’ll have the job title, location and employment type (whether full-time, part-time, contract or freelance). Creative job titles can make your advert stand out, but try to avoid cliché buzzwords and phrases.
Make it easy for candidates to apply
Job seekers don’t spend a lot of time scanning job adverts, so make sure the language is natural and easy to understand. The more concise, the better.
Some hirers tend to post job adverts without a salary range or those that refer to the salary as ‘competitive’. This means little to candidates and can put some off applying altogether, especially if they’ve spent a lot of time applying for jobs only to discover later in the recruitment process that their salary expectations weren’t met. If you don’t want to waste your time and theirs, be sure to include a salary range. Perhaps more importantly, focus on benefits. Surveys show that in 2020, more candidates will be more interested in flexible working options, a better work-life blend and a great work environment. If you’re got a great company culture, this is where you let them know.
For more ways on how to improve your employer brand and the quality of candidates you attract, check out some of the other hirer blogs on Zoek.