Are you noticing you aren’t getting as many good-quality applications for your recent job ad as you hoped for? Chances are, you may need to review your job description to ensure you are delivering relevant, appealing information.
Job descriptions should sell what makes your company unique and have enough information so applicants can understand if they are qualified for the position and recognize what the job requires.
Apply these general best practices to your job description to attract the talent you are looking for.
Research
The first step to writing a job description is to have a deep understanding of what the role entails. Perform a job analysis by interviewing current employees and managers to grasp their day-to-day duties and the time it may take to complete these tasks. Understand if the duties can be completed alone or in a team, so you can relay the information in the job description.
Address Candidates Directly
“We are looking for a digital marketing specialist” or “you are a creative digital marketing specialist” Which is more appealing to you? The use of the word ‘’you” allows applicants to visualize what it would be like to work for your company.
Title and Summary
Keep your Job title short and accurate (1-3 words) to ensure your job ad will rank on google search. For example, use ‘’Bartender’’ over ‘’drink Connoisseur’’ and ‘’social media marketing’’ over ‘’social media ninja.’’ Using concise titles will tell the job seeker exactly what they’d be applying for and save any confusion.
The most important information should be displayed at the top of the page. Include the job title, the location of the job, and the contract of the role (full-time, part-time, casual). This willensure important information is top of mind and quickly culls any candidates who aren’t interested.
A good job description should be around 300-800 words and contain the following elements: required qualifications, preferred qualifications, job duties and responsibilities. It’s important to break it down into bullet points for readability and SEO purposes.
According to a LinkedIn survey, company culture and mission are usually skimmed over when candidates read a job description, so It’s best to include a short summary of the company culture and mission – you can go into more detail during an interview, but for now, keep it brief.
Include Salary
Including a salary in the job description is considered the most important information to display by 61% of candidates. You may feel that including a salary will only scare off potential candidates because your salary band may be low, but it’s a blessing in disguise. Let’s say, you didn’t state the salary in the job ad and the perfect candidate applied, you had the interview and turns out they have a salary expectation that you can’t afford, that would be a disappointment and a waste of time on both ends.
Highlight Benefits
Highlighting benefits in your job description is one of the best ways to appeal to top talent, this is your chance to sell yourself! 61% of job seekers expect to see a total benefits package in a job description.
Don’t just list benefits like Medicare and superannuation, these won’t make you stand out because most companies offer these benefits. Try listing soft benefits such as career growth and company culture as well. The point is to sell what makes your company unique and to demonstrate what’s in it for the job seeker.
Paint a picture in your head of what your ideal candidate looks like – are they graduates? Do they have children? Then you can target your specific benefits to these applicants if you’re offering benefits such as remote working, career growth, flexible working hours, bonuses, and subsidiaries.
