The “Better Job Posting” Cheat Sheet

Whether your company is hiring 1 person or 10,000 people, somewhere in the candidate experience job seekers will inevitably land on a job posting.

Job postings are often the first (and sometimes the last) chance you have to attract the right-fit candidates you’re looking for. In that light, job postings need to be treated exactly like any consumer-facing advertisement and in today’s talent market it is more important than ever to stand-out from your competitors as a desirable employer.

Your job postings and descriptions are a direct reflection of your company, the culture, the benefits and the opportunities you provide. You could have the best opportunity in the world, but if you don’t put care into what goes into your job postings, your job seekers aren’t going to care about what you have to offer.

I’ve talked to dozens of organizations of all sizes that say things like: “Our job postings suck. I wish we could change them”, or “we’re working on revamping our job postings” or “we just copy postings from other companies and rework them to fit our needs”.

If any of these sound like you… Here is a simple, but incredibly impactful step by step job posting template you can implement right now that will instantly guide you in writing better job postings AND help you attract the talent you’re looking for.

Step 1: “Who we’re looking for”

Most job postings start with a blurb about the company. Totally cool… if you like high-fiving yourself. This first step is about being completely candidate centric. Instead of opening with your company, speak directly to the candidate you want to hire.

In this section your goal is to hook your candidates by helping them self-select if they are a good fit for the position and organization. You can talk about why your organization is awesome, but frame it in a way that is beneficial for your candidates.

Be as specific and granular as possible but don’t go looking for a unicorn.

Step 2: “What you’ll be doing”

You might also want to include some critical tasks relevant to the position. And how candidates can expect to accomplish these tasks. Don’t go crazy with bullet-points. Keep it short and sweet, and speak directly to the impact candidates will make. Make sure to add some deliverables and the technologies/timeframes or outcomes expected. Check out this article I wrote on a formula to use to help write better job descriptions with context.

Step 3: “Things you’ve accomplished recently”

Instead of adding an endless laundry list of duties and tasks that no one really cares to read. Talk about some recent accomplishments that an ideal candidate has made recently. For example, if you’re hiring a business development manager an accomplishment you might want to include is: “you’ve closed a deal in the past month” or “you’ve successfully convert a cold sales lead into a demo call”.

You can also talk about some position-related experience that is necessary or “nice-to-have”.

Step 4: “Why this is the best place for you”

Remember your company blurb? This is where it belongs. Here is where you can celebrate why you’re an awesome organization. List some of the benefits you’ve got that make your company unique.

And… if you follow these steps. You can take a plain, old job posting, and easily transform it into a high effective employer-branded job ad that is candidate centric, full of context and that converts the talent you’re looking for. And remember, this is just a guide. Feel free to add your own employer-brand to take this to the next level.

Who we’re looking for…

You’re a proven sales leader who thrives on making a meaningful impact on business. You can turn a cold-lead into a superhotfire-customer. You genuinely enjoy helping clients, and working alongside a goal-driven team. You have phenomenal interpersonal skills and pride yourself on your ability to network with any and everybody in an outgoing way.

What you’ll be doing…

— You will research and source a minimum of 15 leads with a detailed breakdown in Hubspot
— You will creatively reach-out to potential customers via LinkedIn, and cold e-mails using tools like Bombbomb to maximize response rates
— You will collaborate closely with the Account Executive team to ensure each lead has a specifically tailored solution based on their needs
— You will also participate in afternoon recap meetings to keep the team updated on your findings, and learn tips and tricks from others

What you’ve accomplished recently…

— You’ve successfully converted a cold lead into a demo call
— You’ve sourced, qualified and inputted leads into Hubspot with all relevant details
— You’ve watched, listened to, and/or read a piece of content that has improved your workflow and has taught you something new
— You’ve created a report and/or presentations using Excel, PowerPoint, Keynote, etc.

Why this opportunity is perfect for you…

Our mission is simple: to help people work better. We are dedicated to genuinely providing help, and treating customers the same way we treat our friends. We’ve got a wonderful office, filled with awesome people, ping-pong tables, free lunch, and flexible working hours.