How to create Job Ads that attract the right candidates?

You create a bunch of, seemingly clear, Job advertisements for your company but get flooded with so many Junk profiles or no CVs at all.

There is engagement on the post, but perhaps not from your targeted talent pool. You know why?

Let me walk you through how you create Job Ads that help convert visitors to applicants by huge no’s within a month!

Let’s first set clear the real purpose of creating an attractive job Advertisement.

• Your job must attract, ?gain interest, and communicate effectively to the right candidates
• Discourage candidates unsuitable for the role
• Portray the culture of your organization in a positive, compelling way
• Adhere to legislation surrounding discrimination focusing on DEI
• Communicate to a candidate about the next steps

Different scenarios require you to maneuver your strategy differently, here are a few situations that will commonly occur:

Hiring in an industry with a high turnover rate?

Hiring for blue collar roles in industries like hospitality and customer service are a never-ending battle of recruiting and re-recruiting.

Well, you can’t fully cut down on the turnover but certainly see a drop in the rate by hiring employees who fit the role.

Firstly fish out people who look for a career- not a part time role. Similarly, advertise your Job by making it clear that there are career growth opportunities for the role in the company.

Here’s an example of how you advertise such a role:

“Statik is the fastest growing and most successful brand in the country. We have won awards for being a great place to work two years running, something none of our competitors can say! We focus on career development and promotion-people are at the core of everything we do. If you are looking for a career and not just a job, you’re in the right place!

This is a classic example of how you discourage people you don’t see staying in the long run, i.e. people looking for a temporary role for a side hustle.

Hiring tech candidates for a non tech company

Nowadays attracting expert tech workers is becoming a nightmare for staffing pros, recruiters and companies alike. More so, for companies who don’t create software’s or work on breakthrough technologies.

Naturally, a developer would be more inclined to work for a tech giant/ software house that will enhance their learning curve.

?Here’s the catch on how you engage a techy guy to your organization.

Speak their language, avoid using unnecessary buzzwords/jargons.

Giving a holistic picture of the softwares your organization is using and the frameworks, tools, languages the candidate will be expected to work on will interest a technically equipped guy.

This not only helps them picture themselves clearly in the role but they also get a feel of how technically advanced your organization is.

If you’re hiring remote candidates

While hiring remotely can open many resource options for companies, don’t forget you are competing for talent from all across the world.

To top it off, many non-local candidates don’t even know your company. Your Job Ad must be compelling enough to have them review your company page and probably hit the ‘apply’ button.

Mention clearly on your page which role is remote and who you look for to apply. National/resident/native/non-native?

Leadfeeder’s job postings are a good example to consider:

Be transparent in your Ad by telling where you are based, what the job role entails, the career opportunities this role provides.

By doing so, you help people consider you even if they haven’t t known you previously.??

Remote jobs are most popular on social media, and to really stand out use an infographic to share your job across social media profiles. These could be liked and shared to reach a wider audience. The simple images get all the important information over quickly and effectively.??

Hiring for interns

For hiring of interns your job Ad must be able to establish that it’s a real time job opportunity that will help them gain knowledge in the field they aspire to pursue.

Here’s a sample Job Advert:

While clear and concise job Ads produce great wins, Non-traditional job adverts are also a fantastic way to capture the attention, go viral and generate lots of views in a matter of hours. Whether it’s a funny billboard or a viral social campaign it will help you stand out.

Here is an example of MC Donald’s candidate hunt for freshers:?

McDonalds – No experience needed

?X DON’T DO THIS IN YOUR JOB AD!?

1.?????Don’t rush it

Writing a job advert requires time and consideration. Do not make it live in a haste, proof read before posting it online.

2.?????Don’t say you offer competitive compensation

Did you know 85% of Gen Z workers reported they are less likely to apply for a job that does not list the salary range. With 50% of people viewing jobs on their mobile, they don’t want to keep guessing. Decisions are made in milli seconds, therefore be transparent and set real expectations from the very start.

3.?????Remove bias from your Ad

Are you in any way using discriminatory language be it related to gender, ethnicity. For eg, words like no older than 28, men only!

While conscious bias is picked up by readers immediately, un conscious bias can also turn off some men or women. ?

For example:

The below job listing could have used chair person instead of chairman to include both genders. These little words alone can show your company’s inclination towards DEI that eventually resonates with your company’s culture.

??4. Avoid Buzzwords and Cliches

?Words like dynamic, self-starter don’t entice candidates to apply, use a natural and honest tone in the body of your Job Advert?

5. Avoid using ‘the candidate’

???Language that is more direct and addresses the candidate in second person (you/your) will interest the candidate more. Using words like ‘the candidate should be able to’ loses the personal touch and disengages a reader.

Here's Sneaky tip

To reduce the influx of applications from non-qualified candidates include a simple instruction in the Job post for eg, mention ‘I read the job?description in the subject line of the email’. Now you will immediately know who read the advert carefully.

A more tech Savvy advice

You write a fantastic job advert, yet you don’t show up to the job searchers easily. You missed your target already.

Optimize the job title- Find the right keyword and use it in multiple places throughout the post.

Other SEO techniques that make your job search friendly are a great idea to look into too.

Be creative- Be different but not just for the sake of being creative. The most successful advertisement effectively juggle the responsibility of announcing an opportunity with that of sharing a company’s culture in fun and compelling way...

Hook in candidates with your uniqueness and then give them reason to apply the ‘hit’ button.

An HR partner can help you through the process of writing a great job post, that adheres to the legalities of the area. Once done, you can leverage their network to float your resource requirement and get applicants pouring in from all over the world.

Visit www.hrbs.com.pk to help solve your recruitment troubles.

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