Fix Your Job Descriptions Before 2024 with These Tips to Attract Top Talent

When companies post job ads, their goal is typically to find right-fit candidates as quickly as possible. If you want to make that goal a reality, then ensuring your job descriptions are designed to attract top talent is essential.

In many cases, job ads are the way most candidates first learn about a company. If the job description doesn’t make a positive impression, then the best and brightest job seekers may simply move on to other opportunities. Fortunately, updating your listings to make them enticing isn’t challenging. Here are some tips that can help you fix your job descriptions before 2024 and increase your access to top talent.

Use Traditional Job Titles

When candidates search for openings, they’ll usually stick with conventional job titles as search criteria. Since that’s the case, if your company shirks convention and has non-traditional job titles, job seekers may not see your openings in the results list.

If you’re going to include the non-traditional job title, put the conventional one in parentheses next to it. That way, both versions are present, increasing the searchability of your job ad.

Focus on Skill Proficiency

Many companies state that candidates need to have a minimum number of years of experience to be eligible. The issue is that experience doesn’t necessarily align directly with proficiency. Top talent may be incredibly adept at various skill areas even though they have less time using them professionally. However, since they don’t have the required number of years, many companies don’t give them a second look, causing them to miss out.

If you genuinely want to attract top talent, focus on skill proficiency over experience. By doing so, you’ll reach applicants who happen to learn faster than most others in the field, ensuring you’re tapping into job seekers with significant potential.

Highlight What Candidates Gain

While you want your job description to showcase the nature of the role, you also need to highlight what candidates have to gain if they’re hired. Making sure that your stellar culture is on display makes a difference, as job seekers factor that in when choosing where to apply. Similarly, showing off training opportunities, mentorship programs, educational benefits, and various aspects of the employee experience helps candidates envision how the company lifts them up or supports their overall journey, making the role more enticing.

Include a Salary Range

While listing a salary range isn’t universally required, it’s a critical step if you want to attract top talent. In-demand candidates are often hesitant to apply to positions when the potential compensation is unclear. Essentially, they don’t want to waste time on a recruitment process if the pay offered wouldn’t adequately meet their needs, causing them not to apply.

If you don’t want to post a full range, adding a minimum salary to the listing can also work. With that strategy, you’re letting candidates know that they’ll earn at least the stated amount. Then, you can include a note that shows higher compensation is possible if the job seeker has the right skills and experience.

Ultimately, using the tips above to update your job descriptions makes accessing top talent easier. If you’d like to learn more or want to partner with recruitment specialists to find the candidates you need quickly, Hamilton-Ryker can help. Contact us today.