It seems like the whole world is looking to fill positions right now. It feels tough and a bit desperate. I want you to resist that feeling and know that you can still get solid applicants for your open positions. Let’s take a look at how you can maximize applications for your job listings.
Like most things in life, there is a lot of noise in the job market. Included in that noise is a massive amount of job postings. Go take a look – besides what you see online, nearly every door of every storefront in America has a “hiring” sign.
To stand out and get the right applicants, you need to create job listings that are polished and thoughtful.
I recorded this video a while ago. The concepts still hold, but don’t try to go to strongersalespeople.com – that no longer exists.
Take a look! The summary below the video adds some information and examples that may be helpful to you!
Where does the best candidate flow come from?
You will want to show up on multiple job boards. The most common are:
• Indeed
• Zip Recruiter
You may also explore paid listings on LinkedIn and you definitely want to indicate in your LinkedIn profile that you are hiring and include a paragraph about why people choose to work on your team.
Know who you want
Before you post your position, spend some time defining your employee avatar. It’s not complicated, but it does force you to get clear about the skills, characteristics, and qualifications you want and don’t want for this position. If you are like many employers, you are probably looking for a diamond in the rough and think that you might miss out on the perfect person if you put too many specifics on it. NOT true. Defining your avatar will help you make sure you get the right person the first time.
Here are a couple of resources that might help create your employee avatar:
• Using the Avatar Concept for Hiring
• How to create an avatar (with worksheet)
Creating the Job Listings
It’s time for the entire world to step back and take a fresh look at how job listings are created. The traditional methods are sooooo boring! So let’s wipe the slate clean and start over.
First, when a potential employee is looking for a job, they are asking, “WIIFM?” – What’s in it for me? Create your job posting to answer this question. When you write your job description, keep your avatar front and center. Speak to the things that they are passionate about. Speak to who they are. Of course, make sure you are honest about what the job is and the reality of what they will do!
The format of the job listing:
- Heading – Catch their attention
- Subheading – Job title
- Compensation – YES! List a range. Don’t waste their time or yours but making them guess.
- What problem does this position solve? Help them understand why this position is vital to the business and those you serve.
- What skills, knowledge, experience is necessary to be the person who solves these problems?
- Application instructions
Good luck as you find your perfect candidates!