Learn how to write job posts that attract the caliber of talent you’re seeking
Key takeaways:
- Writing an excellent job post can be challenging.
- How you craft a post can significantly alter your hiring process.
- Attracting or repelling great talent relies on first impressions.
Writing an excellent job post is the first step in attracting your ideal applicants. Therefore, it’s critical to write it well to avoid costly hiring mistakes. Job advertisements can sharpen your competitive edge. Here are eleven tips for writing a magnetic job posting.
1. Start with a clear job title
Your job post’s title matters because it can attract or repel potential applicants. It may seem obvious but using the position’s name as the title is very effective. People are often skimming job postings so they need to immediately see what they are looking for. Make sure the title is clear and not too long.
2. Highlight the position’s core duties in the introduction
Begin with highlighting a few of the job vacancy’s core duties in the introduction. Start with the most attractive and exciting dimensions of the position to attract applicants’ interest. One or two sentences should do – you don’t want to make the post too long.
3. Clarify the job’s responsibilities
A job posting is incomplete without a position’s clear duties. Highlight duties using numbers or bullets for easy reading and scanning. Make this section as clear and complete as possible. It should answer a potential candidate’s questions regarding the position’s daily duties like:
- What are the position’s expectations?
- Is the job remote, in-office, or hybrid?
- Is the position hourly or full-time?
- What are the hours, if applicable?
4. Clarify the job’s qualifications
Highlighting the necessary skills and minimum qualifications the position requires is critical when writing an excellent job post. Your role’s nature will determine its exact qualifications and requirements, such as:
- Certifications
- Training
- Leadership experience
- Experience working with specific tools
5. Give an overview of your company
Your potential applicants need to familiarize themselves with your company to help them make informed decisions. Some candidates make their decisions based on an organization’s aspects. Therefore, consider describing your organization’s:
- Product or service range
- Mission statement
- Vision
- Core values
- Environment and culture
- Size
- Career growth and development opportunities
- Corporate social responsibility
- Experience and age
6. Make it easy to read
People are busy and usually don’t have time to read lengthy job postings. Make your job posting brief but complete for your potential hires to read. Always summarize where necessary and use bullet points so potential applicants can skim through to sections that interest them the most.
7. Revise the post and get your colleagues’ input
An excellent job posting designed to attract the best talent should include your team’s input. It helps to involve your team to determine which skills are essential for the vacancy. Your employees can also provide a second set of eyes to detect and remove flaws before advertising the job.
This consultative approach is important because new workers will need to jell with current ones. Also, your workers in similar positions or departments know the best skillsets for the job. Your team’s input can facilitate a smooth cultural fit between it and the new hires, which will maximize performance.
8. Summarize the role
Summarize the role the new hire/s will perform. It’s nice to do it in a personal way. Avoid the traditional “incumbent” or “successful candidate” phrases, and say, “You will…” This personalized and direct approach makes the job more attractive to applicants because they envision themselves in the position. Your summary should help the incoming employee understand the following facts:
- Whether the role is new or established
- To whom they will report
- What necessitated the vacancy
- If they will also support other company functions
- What the role will achieve in the next one or two years
- The type of work they will be doing most of the time
9. Describe what you would like in a candidate
Make your job posting more targeted by describing what type of candidate you would like. This shouldn’t include personal characteristics, such as gender or race, but rather technical and soft skills. Write a short paragraph that explains the desired traits by clarifying the following:
- Soft skills that would be useful on your team such as “consistently on time” and “a team player.”
- The skills you would like to develop in the candidate through training
10. Include benefits and additional job details
Remember to include precise details on remuneration. Tell the incoming employees how you will pay them: salaries, commissions, or a combination of both. Clarify your payment schedule: daily, weekly, or monthly. Lastly, consider clarifying the job’s salary.
Overall, the payment should be competitive and align with the job description title. Don’t forget to mention other additional job details and perks.
11. Include your contact details
Lastly, include details regarding the best way for job applicants to contact you. Clarify if you prefer email or phone calls. You may also add a link to your company’s website for more information about your organization.
Begin your hiring process with Doxa7 today
Your job post is the critical first step that determines what kind of candidates you will attract. The 11 tips listed above will help you craft a magnetic post – one that is brief but complete, offering your target employees all of the information they need to apply.
Collaborating with a reputable Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company like DOXA will also greatly benefit your talent search. Doxa7 helps small to medium-sized businesses build high-performing, scalable, global teams. Using our proprietary system, we ensure that SMB’s have the infrastructure, tools, and resources to compete with larger organizations. We will tailor our recruiting solutions to your business in order to deliver excellent results. Call us today for a free 20-minute consultation.
