I see so many examples of ‘don'ts,' and things to avoid when it comes to online job advertising that I thought it would be a good idea to share some best practice to help you get your online advertisement viewed by the top candidates, and increase the likelihood of a great response.
It is these ‘don'ts' that result in poor responses and lead many business leaders to conclude that online advertising doesn’t work for their company. They then often resort to using more expensive recruitment methods.
Here is my checklist:
1. Identify your audience
This may seem obvious, but it's still a point worth making. You wouldn’t try to advertise to potential customers without knowing your target market, and you shouldn't advertise for candidates without having a focus. What experience, background and skills are required? Where are these people likely to be spending time online?
2. Research relevant job titles
Having worked across a plethora of industries, I have come across many obscure job titles that are unique to a particular company.
It is important to remember that job seekers will search for their own job title, or the one they aspire to.
A quick search on any of the major job boards will help you to choose the most relevant title. If there is a possibility that your ideal candidate could search for more than one job title, then ensure that you weave these words into the advert too – so it is returned in search results regardless.
3. Identify key words
Which key words relate to the job title that you are recruiting for? Ensure that these words are repeated 3-4 times within the body of the advert so that search engines read the content as relevant to the job ‘searcher'.
4. Build key attraction messages
Research what is likely to appeal to your ideal candidate and use this as the basis for your advert.
You could ask staff who are already doing the job what attracted them to the role/company in the first place, and why they enjoy working there.
Be careful not to leave out key messages just because you don’t see them as important. Different things appeal to different people e.g. training, advancement, social events and dress down Fridays!
5. Keep it concise
All too often, companies post lengthy job descriptions or advertisements with wordy paragraphs.
When consuming information online, we want to be able to scan it quickly and decide whether it's relevant. With the vast numbers of online job advertisements out there, job seekers want to quickly decipher whether the job is of interest, and then whether they have the required experience before applying.
6. Highlight salary and benefits
I speak to many HR leaders who are reluctant to advertise salary and benefits, as they want to encourage additional response.
This practice can reduce response, however, as applicants often determine the level of the role themselves and rule themselves in or out based on this information.
7. List location and region
Typically, job seekers will search online using the format – ‘job title' jobs in ‘location'. It is therefore important that you incorporate the location and region, repeating it circa three times within the body of the advert to increase visibility to your ideal candidate.
8. Check spelling and grammar
This is simple stuff, yet I still see online job adverts with spelling errors and poor grammar. What first impression does this give to a potential new employee?
9. Incorporate photo/video
New media will not only help improve your visibility on Google, but will keep prospective applicants engaged with your advertisements.
Where I have used video in social recruiting campaigns, I have found the average page view duration increases from around one minute to over six minutes! View to application ratio also increases from 10% to 26%! Need I say more?
10. Use testimonials
Who better to tell your story than your current workforce? Add credibility to your amazing business by weaving short testimonial snippets into your advert.
11. Social sharing
At my company, we have found that up to 70% of job seekers view social recruitment campaigns via mobile or tablet devices.
Make it easy for people to share your vacancies with their social networks and extend your reach to more prospective applicants.
12. Promote your employer brand
You are recruiting, so tell the world! This is a great opportunity to tell your customers, prospects, suppliers and even competitors that your business is thriving!
Candidates are more likely to respond to you than to a Recruiter because they are in control of where their CV is going.
13. Consider routes to apply
Whilst it is more difficult to measure multiple routes of apply, it is important to think about how someone can engage with and respond to your advert.
Are they likely to view it via mobile whilst commuting, or while relaxing on their coffee break?
Then consider an apply with linkedIn integration or similar.
14. Strong calls to action
Want fast responses? Tell people how they can apply. I see so many adverts that just finish with information about the role/the company.
What next? How about, “Apply now to this urgent role using the link below,” for example.
Want someone to share your advertisement with their friends, family, colleagues? Then state “Please share this super opportunity with your own network…” People are more likely to oblige.
Make it clear and easy and take the reader on a journey…
I hope that you have enjoyed this journey of key points to consider when composing your online job advert and that you have found it useful.
If you believe that others could benefit from the content in this post, then I'd be super grateful if you could share with your own networks! 
Until next time…
