Are Your Job Descriptions [JDs] Effective For Attracting Talent?

Did you know that almost 75% of recruiters feel that job descriptions they write are 100% fine, but not even 33% of candidates find the JDs they read to be attractive? That's a huge difference, isn't it? Why is it so? One of the biggest problems for recruiters is presenting the most important information in the most appealing way - and today’s talent [especially tech] has very high expectations!

Also, did you know that today’s candidates take barely 15 seconds to decide if they will continue reading your JD beyond the opening, or scroll past your monumental effort to the next option in their overflowing inbox? How do you grab their attention ahead of your competitors and make them interested in the position you’re hiring for? More importantly, can you entice them to apply?

You can do this by focusing on the most important sections of the JD that they look at in those precious 15 seconds to form their first impression about the position you are hiring for. Now your question will be, “How do I write the ideal JD to attract top talent like big companies in the world?” Let’s answer that Q!

Problems faced by recruiters - and the SOLUTION!

We suggest that you go through real-life examples of awesome JDs from the world’s best companies in your domain / industry. Collect excellent examples to show you how they presented information for each critical section of the JD, so that you can start wowing candidates with these practical tips right away!

In an ideal JD, how a company pitches itself is highly important. For example, you can highlight the new tech your company is developing in the job description. You can highlight the scale of the problem your company is solving. You can highlight how many people across the world are using your product. You can highlight growth opportunities & you can highlight company culture.?

First up is the job title. Use just a few powerful words to give insights into what the job will involve - editing media, or gathering insights, or developing sales strategies. You too should keep the title concise , using words in a way that they showcase the culture of your company while also helping your JD appear not only at the top of Google results , but also on all the job sites on which you post.

Next is the role description. Note how saying “YOU” - talking directly to the candidate - builds a bridge. You should use first-person to engage the candidate from the beginning of the hiring process by writing JDs in a conversational tone.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The role description is followed by the ideal candidate profile for filling the role. This is deliberately written in the third person, using “they” so that it is gender inclusive, which is very important if you need to do diversity hiring for any role, either now or in the future. Remember that most successful companies in the world are very diverse. Check out Instahyre Academy's course on getting the perfect tone to dig deeper into writing the best job descriptions for diversity.

Role Responsibilities?

Then come the responsibilities the ideal candidate will have to fulfill. This is important , because senior and junior positions require very different job descriptions, and you need applicants to understand and be able to carry out the duties of the job - else, it will be a bad hire! For example , the JD for a mid- to senior-level position needs experienced candidates who should know all about the responsibilities they will have to take care of if they join the company. That’s why your JD should have in-depth explanations of the many facets of the job.

On the other hand, if you are hiring for fresher or junior level roles, you can make the descriptions broad enough so that you attract a lot of candidates from whom you can select the best ones to progress further into the hiring process, and then make offers to those at the top.

A good JD uses broad sentences for an entry-level position. It covers all the tasks that juniors at that level in the organization are expected to know , so that you get a large quantity plus quality of young people in your candidate pool from which to select the best talent. Now you know how to create good JDs!?

Quick recap: JDs for senior roles need very well-defined responsibilities, while junior role JDs should cover many areas to attract talented young people.

Qualifications: must-haves?

(and a few nice-to-haves)

Finally, list out the must-haves (and a few nice-to-haves), so that you don’t end up screening candidates who don’t even meet the basic qualifications. Of course, tech roles have much more specific skills and qualifications that need to be presented clearly, so that applicants know what they are applying for. This saves you time and builds a great candidate pipeline, enabling you to build your brand.

Key Takeaways to Make Sure Candidates Apply to Your Job Posts

The ultimate strategy for meeting your hiring goals is acknowledging the applicants for your job. Acknowledgement is essential for candidate engagement, because great candidate engagement is what will give you the edge in the battle for talent that is going on all the time! Once you have funneled many ideal candidates into your pipeline, you should reach out to all of them with well-timed and personalized emails to deliver candidate delight and ensure 100% candidate engagement right from the start so that you always have active as well as passive candidates in your talent pipeline!?

Use these points to write the perfect JD! It should be a crisp high-impact summary of the job, ideally between 300 and 600 words, plus the qualifications of the ideal candidate, because that is the most important factor that candidates see while scanning your JD for a first impression.?

Qs? No worries! Instahyre Academy ’s team analyzed 1000s of JDs to help you write the ideal job description that will surely help recruiters overcome today’s extremely short attention spans. Get certified absolutely free from Instahyre Academy, and add the superpowers to elevate your resume and get promoted!