Job ad creation can take a lot of experience, which is why we offer job advertising services here at Employment Office. One of the most common places people make mistakes is figuring out what you truly want out of an employee in the position:

• What they need to know.
• What they need to be best at.
• What they have to be comfortable with.

Often times you can think up a few necessary “skills” or experiences, but in some cases those may be overstated. Does an applicant really need 3 years of experience? Or is it more like 5? Or is it only 1? The qualifications you put on the job advertisement affect who’s applications you receive, and so if you’re putting the wrong qualifications you run the risk of turning off qualified applicants or attracting the wrong kinds of applicants.

How to Decide What Should Go On the Job Ad

So you need to figure out what absolutely must go on the job ad. You need to figure out what should go on there, what should not go on there, and how it matches your ideal candidate. The following are some strategies to figure out this information:

• Survey Supervisors/Coworkers Independently

One of the simplest strategies is to have everyone that works with that position provide a list of the things they “need” from someone in the job independently, without the influence of the other supervisors/coworkers. Once you have a list, you can figure out what themes there are, what is unique, etc., and then as a group you can all gather and have everyone explain their responses. Together, you can then decide what should go on the application and what should not.

• Ask the Previous Employee

No one is going to know their position better than the person that was previously working there. You can ask them what they think is necessary from someone that fills in the role. What experience do they think is necessary (if any), what skills should a person have, and what are some of the day to day experiences that they may need to have knowledge of that perhaps are not even on the job description? The previous employee is in the best position to answer this, and in some cases you can learn more about what their job was like for them by their responses.

• Review Other Job Descriptions

You can also consider reviewing the job advertisements of others in the field. Often these will differ from yours, and you should not treat it as gospel (after all, if you advertise in the same way as everyone else, you will attract only the same people), but the job advertisements of similar jobs can be a great way to identify qualifications that perhaps you hadn’t considered before.

Writing a Great Description

Job advertisements are the key tool used to attract talent, and so what is on the job description can have a significant impact on the types of applicants you receive. Consider the qualifications carefully, and make sure that every single qualification you’re providing relates back to what the ideal candidate will have.

For more tips on recruitment and employer branding you can contact us at info@employmentoffice.com.au or visit our website at www.employmentoffice.com.au.