writing a job posting apparently seems to be easy. It should be straightforward and fairly easy. Describe the position, state the qualifications and salary expectations and you are done. Or, are you?

Well, your aren’t. It isn’t the whole story if you really want to attract the best candidates. To attract the best candidates, you almost have to think of your job posting as an entrance test to a competition. You want to compete against all the other job postings out there that may be enticing your ideal job candidate.

Here are some essential tips to write the best job posting to get the best results.

Right time

Most companies assume that they should post their job openings on Friday afternoon just before closing time. They make this assumption because they believe that job-seekers are looking for employment on the weekends. That is not the case. In fact, the highest traffic is seen between Monday and Wednesday, between the hours of 9.00 am and 4.00 pm. People do not want to search for jobs on the weekend. They want to have fun on the weekend. They are typically looking for work, during the hours of work.

Think alike

The first thing that you need to be doing, is thinking like your job-seeker. That means identifying who the ideal candidate is, and targeting your search to attract that job-seeker. Ask yourself such questions as:

“Who is the person that I am looking for?”

“Where is this person spending their time?”

“How does this person speak?”

By identifying the typical personality traits of your candidate, you might be able to target your search to reach the people where they are spending their time and speak to them in a way that captures their attention.

Identify employees

Who are the star employees in your company? Figuring out what you like about the people who are already doing a great job for you would help you know a great candidate when you see one. These qualities should be added to your description so people can identify if they would be the right fit for you.

Renovate ads

Job postings should speak directly to the candidates. Use their language. Get excited about your company and share that with your potential employees. Speak about the culture, and what is important to your organisation. Use simple language that describes your company instead of idioms that say nothing. Be engaging and to engage the best candidate.

Get started

The over-stretched human resource (HR) department hardly has any time or energy to invest into revamping the way job descriptions are written. They keep recycling the postings in the same old format. If you have limited time and energy to redo the way you post your jobs, then focus on the job description with the highest turnover rate and the job description for the position that is hardest to fill. These are the positions that are costing your company the most money and are therefore worth the investment of time to do a rewrite.

Glasshouse theory

Think about the worst résumés that you have had to read. They are long, boring, have too much information and too many spelling mistakes. You would never consider a candidate who had a résumé like that. Well, why would the best candidate choose your company if you have a long, boring, and wordy job posting with spelling mistakes in it. Hold yourselves to the same standards that you hold your applicants. If not, then change your standards. Try to remember that you want the information to catch people’s eyes.