Writing Job Postings: The 3 Most Relevant Elements

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Contents

• Information overload is rising, attention spans are shrinking
• Talent is flooded with job offers
• #1 How well the role fits their own expectations
• #2 What is the company like?
• #3 Who is my contact person?
• Do not overwhelm talent with information
• Add eye-catchers to your job postings
• Conclusion
• Frequently asked questions

TL;DR

Successful job postings make three things clear: how well the role fits (location, salary, employment type), a look at the company culture (benefits, goals) and a transparent contact person with a name and a photo, so talent can tell in a few seconds whether the role is right for them. Graphically designed info blocks with icons instead of long walls of text make sure this information registers at a glance.

!A recruiter designs a job posting on a laptop with graphical info blocks for location, salary, benefits and contact person.

Author: Dominik Becker · Published: 11 May 2022

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Maybe you still remember it: a few years back a rather loose "study" was doing the rounds. It claimed that a goldfish has an attention span of nine seconds, and a human only eight. And that it keeps getting shorter and shorter. Is that actually true? We do not know. We have never met a goldfish that could confirm it for us. But jokes aside. There is a kernel of truth in the comparison. Day after day we are bombarded with so much information that content really has to land to grab our attention. That goes for your job postings too. We will tell you the three points you need to watch as a recruiter so that talent actually notices them.

Information overload is rising, attention spans are shrinking

Emails, messages on LinkedIn, Xing or WhatsApp, push alerts from news apps: all day long our phone buzzes and signals that there is something new. It feels like the volume of messages grows from one day to the next. To avoid drowning in the flood of information, we filter ever more sharply.

You know this from yourself for sure. In the past you would look at almost every post in your LinkedIn timeline for a few seconds and then decide: I will click on this one. Or: no, not my thing. Today you scroll through the network at breakneck speed and only stop when something is especially catchy and grabs your attention.

Talent is flooded with job offers

The same is true, of course, for talent looking for a job. Right now they too are being bombarded with job ads. So they only skim job postings. Within a few seconds they decide: flop or top. As a recruiter you can certainly relate. You put so much care into good content and smooth copy in your job ads, and yet the time people spend on your postings is a few seconds at most?

That is why you have long been wondering how to raise the visibility of your job ads. Well, we have a few good tips for you. If your job posting includes certain information and you place it the right way, you can boost how well talent notices it enormously. But one thing at a time. Here come the three factors you should definitely address in your job ads.

#1 How well the role fits their own expectations

Candidates want to check as quickly as possible whether an advertised role meets the right conditions and fits them. So talk about the following:

• Where is the workplace located?
• When is the planned start date?
• What experience level is the posting aimed at?
• What employment type is it: part-time, full-time or a freelance role?
• Salary range: how much will I earn?

#2 What is the company like?

Talent wants to know how things work behind the scenes at your company:

• What benefits are on offer?
• What goal are you pursuing, and how?
• What is the company culture like?

#3 Who is my contact person?

Data protection has not passed candidates by either. They are highly aware that their data must not end up in the wrong hands. All the more they want to know who receives their personal information when they apply. So in the job posting you should ideally list your contact person with a name, a phone number and their position in the company.

Do not overwhelm talent with information

As already said: the key with this information is that you embed it in your job posting so that it is visible at a glance and registers immediately with talent who are searching. That works best when you do not bury the relevant facts in endless blocks of text.

Instead, build them into a graphically designed info block. With the right applicant management system, this is easy to design and integrate into your job posting. It contains icons and short headlines where you can, for example, cover the conditions of the job or the benefits at your company:

• Working from home
• Mentoring programs
• Company events
• Workplace health management
• Flexibility
• CSR
• Training budget

Generation Z in particular places great value on these benefits.

Add eye-catchers to your job postings

A small tip: skip any explanatory text at first. It makes your strengths as an employer hard to grasp. Anyone who wants to know more about a specific point simply moves the mouse over an icon and a small window with extra information appears. That way you create an eye-catcher without overwhelming talent with too much information right away.

Another eye-catcher: alongside the name and contact details, add a photo of the contact person from HR. That creates closeness in the application process, because talent can see straight away who to turn to.

Conclusion

Only the best job postings get talent's attention today. With the right applicant management system, it is no problem to design your job offer so the most important information jumps out at talent. Easily add eye-catching icons, images from your company and a photo of the responsible contact person. That way, with little effort, you create a job posting that leaves no questions open. Even when the first look at it is only brief. Done!