How to write an effective job advert – jobs.ac.uk

Writing a well-constructed job advert is a vital part of using a job board to attract top talent. Getting a job advert wrong can lead you to receiving a myriad of irrelevant applications or even worse, no applications at all. 

By following these tips, you can ensure you are reaching the right people for the job and attracting them to apply. As a result, promoting your employer brand and increasing recruitment efficiency. 

Target Audience 

The person specification is the best place to start defining your audience. Use it to determine the three most essential requirements and the three most desirable requirements that might differentiate a candidate. 

The requirements need to be measurable. For example, “2 years’ experience in marketing” or “PhD in Biology” will be better than using “experienced” or “professional”. 

The content and words you use in your advert depend on who you want to apply. Connect with that audience through language, expression and motivation. It is also important to put yourself in the position of the ideal candidate and what will they be looking for in a job advert.  

Searching for similar roles to the one you want to advertise and see how they have been done, considering what works and doesn’t. Additionally, find someone already in the role and ask what would make them want to apply or what they would want to see in an advert.  

Keyword Optimisation 

Jobs boards work on a keyword relevancy basis when matching job vacancies with jobseeker searches, so make sure relevant keywords that jobseekers would search on (e.g. specific skills or job titles), appear in your job advert. 

Jobs boards place more “weight” on keywords in the job title to help make the best match possible with jobseekers’ search terms. Therefore, avoid vague or general sounding job titles that could be completely missed by jobseekers. For example, “PhD Research Studentship in Chemical Engineering” is more likely to attract better targeted jobseekers than just “Research Studentship”.  

Consider the title itself and ensure it makes sense outside the context of your organisation and there is no internal or sector specific terminology that would alienate a jobseeker. 

Moreover, try inserting skills and keywords or repeating the job title in the body of the advert text to increase the ‘ranking’ of your advert. 

Advert Contents 

For your opening paragraph, ensure it is short, engaging and informative. It is often the first thing a jobseeker reads so make it count and sometimes on job boards the first few lines are shown in the search results to make it stand out and shy away from genericity.  

Location is a deciding factor for most jobseekers, whether they want to stay local or are looking to relocate to a certain city. It is essential you include the town/city, region and country of the role, or even the specific campus. 

Jobseekers appreciate a salary in the advert, not including it makes jobseekers less likely to apply as they don’t want to get to the end of the hiring process to find out your salary does not align with their needs, and you don’t want this either as it is not efficient. If a precise salary is not known, give a salary band. This also means your advert will show up in searches by salary.  

No matter what you choose to include in an advert, it is crucial to be clear and concise in your writing. The simpler the better. Attention spans are short online, so you need to get to the point before the jobseeker clicks away. 

Advert checklist –   

• Avoid buzz words, acronyms or technical terminology 
• Break text up and avoid words that add ‘padding’ 
• Use short paragraphs and bulleted lists for easy reading 
• Use subheadings to separate introduction, job duties and candidate
  specifications etc. 
• Highlight important points in bold 
• Don’t just copy and paste job descriptions 

Legality 

As a recruiter it is your role to ensure that your job advert is free of any form of discrimination. Being familiar with the legislation in the country you are advertising in can help you avoid the pitfalls. 

In the UK, the Equality Act 2010 legally protects people from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. The Act protects people from being treated less favourably because they have a protected characteristic. 

The relevant protected characteristics in employment which should be considered when writing your job advert are: 

• Age 
• Disability 
• Gender reassignment 
• Marriage and civil partnership 
• Pregnancy and maternity 
• Race 
• Religion or belief 
• Sex 
• Sexual orientation 

Other things to remember are to not use job titles which have a distinctly male or
female connotation, as well as referring to the job holder as “he” or “she”. Instead, where possible, use job titles that have a gender-neutral connotation. 

Be aware that inferences can be drawn as to age from words such as “graduates”. Make it clear that it is skills and qualifications that are of interest and not the age of the applicant. 

Statements encouraging applicants from particular racial groups should not be used, unless the job in question meets the limited conditions for taking positive action. 

Driving licence requirements may disproportionately exclude disabled persons and should not be cited in job adverts unless they are genuinely essential for the performance of the job and where no reasonable alternative method of performing the travelling duties is available. 

Call to Action 

Have one simple call to action makes starting the application process as easy as possible. Always direct them straight to the relevant job on your careers site or application form. Alternatively use an email address where they can attach their CV.  

Checklist 

Here is a quick checklist to make sure your advert is on the right track  

• Descriptive job title 
• Short organisation introduction 
• Be clear and concise 
• Job role 
• Job requirements – the ideal candidate 
• Salary and benefits 
• Clear and simple call to action 
• Too much technical detail terminology 
• Unnecessary words 
• Unappealing description of the role 
• Too much emphasis on the job and not enough on the ideal candidate