The Job advert is competing with other digital content that exists out there, to get the attention of content consumers. And taking into consideration the type of content that exists out there, which is the result of meticulous examination and data-driven decision making (when to post, what colors/images to use to attract most users), it’s highly unlikely that the modern consumer, will pay any attention to traditional job ad, with the traditional job description. One word: Booooring…

What you have to do? Nothing more than to treat your job advert as a true piece of content, the goal of which should be to grab the attention of the targeted audience, meaning the candidates matching the desired profile, and make them apply for the vacancy advertised. Here are three simple ways, how you can get there.

1. Write a short and engaging job title & description

Wording is everything. It has to be short, smart and to the point. No one on the internet will spend more than a few seconds to decide on whether to keep reading. So, your copywriting has to be good. Like really good.

And you have to start right from the job title.

To achieve this, speak to your candidates’ hearts first! Try telling them how they could improve their lives and progress their career through the job you’re posting.

As soon as you have their feeling involved, then you can talk about job responsibilities. In this section, focus on deliverables not the day to day work. Write, what the person is expected to achieve within the first few months of the job and the challenges of the role. The day to day work is boring and in most cases very similar. But actual deliverables and challenges vary, depending on the industry, the company and the mix of people working in a department or a project. This kind of insights will motivate the right people and demotivate others.

Some responsibilities examples:

  • Grow sales by 5% in European markets
  • Lead the effort of digitalizing organizational process
  • Redefine market development plans

Final Tip: Keep it short and give a link to something more in detail. And remember, your actual job titles, don’t have to be the same as your posted job titles! Neither your responsibilities for that matter.

2. Choose an awesome – eye-catching photo

An image can boost or kill your job ad, just as any other piece of content. The things you have to be careful with reference to the quality and character of the photos accompanying your job post. Prefer to use actual photos of your workplace and your employees casually interacting. Also, photos should preferably contain up to three people, as this is a more relatable scene for people viewing them.

While, professionals suggest avoiding the use of stock images, as this may be perceived as an inauthentic representation of what you offer as an employer, I understand that not all have the budget for a professional photographer. So, use them, but with caution and some editing, to make them more relatable to your brand. In this case, cropping and color editing is your friend, since these two techniques can easily change a frequently used photo.

You can include some text on the photo, making it more branded. But you always have to use similar colors and formatting to “educate” the viewers of your posts, making it easier for them to identify your content and job posts.

3. Call to action

A finishing touch for your job ad, should be a call to action. Use strong active verbs to guide your reader to an action. Such verbs are: explore, start, connect, reach out, check out

Reading such messages, it’s more likely for a reader to click on a link and then apply.

I’d like to close with two things: Firstly, you don’t have to do all these marketing things on your own. If you have a marketing department, ask for its help. Emphasize your colleagues’ expertise – flutter them in other words – and the benefits of applying their expertise in the employer brand context, which will attract more capable coworkers for their team. And secondly, you don’t have to sacrifice the scientific and evidence-based HR. You can still have a detailed job description, but as a link, not something that is advertised and shared on social media. In other words, you have to adjust your job posting depending on the channel it is shared.

Finally, with recruiting becoming more and more marketing oriented, recruiting professionals have to embrace the new status quo if they want to stay relevant and effective in attracting the best talent. You can start by applying this simple three-step strategy, but to fully grasp the benefits of social media in recruiting context, one must have a great understanding of SEO, sponsored content, content creation and management, social media strategy, among other things. So, keep learning, reading, talking to marketing experts and experimenting. This will give you both, the knowledge and what works best in your industry and company.