The career page is such a huge opportunity to show candidates exactly what you want them to see. This is the one corner of the world wide web where employers have complete control over their brand, image, and message. A career page that simply displays job listings is such a wasted opportunity.
The career page will usually be the first real impression of the employer that the candidate will get. This page should be engaging, easy to navigate, and full of information. With a little love and a lot of care, your company career page could become a powerful recruiting tool.
Do You Have Employees? I Can’t See Them
Candidates don’t want to hear from bosses, they don’t want to hear from recruiters, they want to hear from employees. Many companies are featuring employees on their career page to recognize hard work, and give candidates a snap shot of the company culture. Companies can also offer their employees the opportunity to share their experience and /or expertise with blog articles. Even quick social media updates from employees are fun, engaging and quick.
Is it Members Only?
Facilitating diversity only happens with a conscious effort to do so. Diverse workforces tend to be more creative, better problem-solvers and enjoy a wider consumer base. You need diversity, and this entails more than Big Stock photos of racially ambiguous people. A diversity statement on the career page is a straightforward and obvious diversity initiative.
Does Your ATS Feel Like the Virtual Equivalent to Airport Security?
If candidates feel like they just had to get through the Broncos defense to apply for a position, you need help. We’ve all be there ready to apply for a position, only to quit, halfway through the process of creating a login, confirming the email, registering, filing out forms, uploading the resume that is inevitably not compatible and never reaching the actual application. Be sure that your ATS is welcoming, easy to use, quick, and painless.
So Where Are the Careers?
Again, easy to navigate is a must! Some experts say that if candidates can’t find the job listings within one click, you should rethink your setup. This is especially important for passive candidates. When the job board is right there in front of the potential candidate, they are far more likely to browse.
Is Your Career Page Visually Appealing and Bite-sized?
Give them something to look at, watch, read, anything! We are a generation that gets our information on the fly. We write in 140 characters and take 6-second videos. All of the information on the career page needs to be bite-sized and visually appealing. Get creative with videos, blog posts or social media buzz, but make it short and make it sweet.
Why Would I Want to Work There?
The candidate shouldn’t have to search for anything. When creating content, come from the perspective of answering all of their questions before they ask them. Perks, values, and the company mission should be center stage. The career page should clearly answer the question, “What is this company about?”
Are the standard social icons good enough? Really?
They’re standard; the cute little icons on the bottom of the page in a branded color. Where’s the call to action?! Entice candidates to engage with the company via social by offering them something. Use teasers like, “Check out our culture”; “We’d love to follow you right back”; or “Follow us and get your mind blown.” They see a million of those little icons a day. Why do they want to click on this one?
Turning your career page into a recruiting tool is actually pretty simple. While engaging employees in this process, you might just learn a thing or two about your current talent pool (win-win). This doesn’t all have to happen over night; start small, but be consistent. Visualize what you would like your career page to be, and work on it on a weekly basis. You will soon have a dynamic and effective recruiting tool working for you.