The start of the year is often a good time to reevaluate the positions available in your organization and post job advertisements to find new employees.
Creating the perfect post for a position in your company can be difficult. In some instances, employers may be inclined to put too much information, afraid to leave anything out of the post. Other times, employers don’t put enough information, which fails to tell the applicant what they need to know in order to apply.
In this post, we cover the basics of creating an employment advertisement and provide a few tips to help you create yours.
What Do Most Job Posts Include?
Though there is no rulebook that covers how to create a job post, many employers follow a basic outline, and a typical job post will include:
- The name of the company that is hiring
- The position title
- A summary of the position as well as the core responsibilities
- The required qualifications and skills (such as educational requirements or what industry knowledge is needed)
Some posts will also include:
- The number of hours the employee is expected to work per week
- The days of the week the employee is expected to work
- The salary range (if there is one)
- The type of position it is (full time, part time, contract, or temporary)
- Noteworthy employee benefits (such as health and dental packages, free weekly catered lunches, fitness memberships, etc.)
For most employers, the goal of a job post is the capture the best candidate’s attention and have them send in an application. If everything works out, this could lead to an Employment Offer Letter and a new employee.
It can be difficult to write a job post that is clear and concise but also provides a thorough explanation of the position. Employers in doubt should follow these tips for creating a suitable and memorable job post.
Tips for Creating a Job Post
1. Be Clear about what the Job Entails
In a job post, clarity is very important. Though an ambiguous job post will still likely receive responses, some of them will be from people who didn’t understand the position properly or who are unqualified. This isn’t a benefit to your company, and often results in you or other hiring managers having to do more work to find the right person.
Instead of tailoring a post that encourages everyone to apply, be sure your post encourages the right people—qualified, experienced candidates to be exact—to apply.
Some questions you may want to answer when crafting your post could include:
- What job title accurately describes the position?
- Have I included all the core responsibilities in the post?
- Are there any unnecessary qualifications, like degree requirements, that may scare qualified, experienced people away?
- Are the responsibilities and qualifications realistic (for instance, does the post include mandatory skills that can apply to different professions as opposed to the one being advertised, such as when a Marketing Coordinator position asks for graphic design experience)?
It’s also important to make sure the job duties you’ve included in the post match the responsibilities listed in the Employment Contract so you can avoid misleading the applicant about the position and the type of work they’ll be expected to perform.
2. Create a Great Job Title
Sometimes, this isn’t within your control, but when it is, a great way to capture the attention of qualified job seekers is with the position title.
A good title should tell the applicant the type of profession (by using words such as “manufacturer”, “writer”, or “marketer”) and the rank, if possible (“senior”, “lead”, “junior”, etc.).
It’s equally important to research the typical title used for the position you are advertising for because this will also affect whether or not your post is successful. For example, if you are seeking a class 1 driver for your trucking company, your position title should resemble the title your competitors are using.
The title you choose will become the applicant’s first impression of your post, and in some instances, your company, so be sure to make it both memorable and accurate.
3. Remove Redundant or Unnecessary Words or Phrases
The best job posts tell the applicant all the information they need to know in as few words as possible. This can make writing a post is challenging.
The easiest way to do this is to edit your advertisement after it is written and remove any redundant or unnecessary words or phrases. You’ll want to be sure:
- Information hasn’t been repeated (for example, if you’re asking for someone with an accounting degree, you can safely leave out “good at math” because it is implied)
- You stay on topic (for instance, a brief company biography is helpful to applicants, but a two-page success story is not)
- You’re not overusing adjectives and adverbs (for instance, hiring managers should avoid adding phrases with irrelevant details such as “we are seeking an enthusiastic, hard-working go-getter with infectious positivity” as opposed to saying you want someone who is “enthusiastic and self-motivated”)
4. Get Outside Opinions on Your Post
Before publishing your post on your website or a state job board, be sure to let a few people read it over and get their thoughts. This will help you catch embarrassing errors or misleading statements that may end up wasting your time.
Preparing Your Job Post
A company job post should adequately summarize the position being offered to capture the attention of qualified applicants. Those writing their own posts should use the basic outline many other job posts use. Employers may also find success by being clear about the job responsibilities, using a proper job title, and removing redundancies in their post.
