Employer brand

5 Must-dos for an Engaging Careers Site

Study after study shows that job seekers are motivated by more than money. In addition to seeking out opportunities that will advance their careers, they’re looking to build human relationships, do meaningful work, and be part of a positive work culture.

UCLA psychology, psychiatry, and behavioral sciences professor Dr. Matthew Lieberman has found these trends to be a major part of his research, which he summarized in a recent article for CNN:

  • According to one study, employees were willing to give up close to $30,000 in annual salary to be recognized with high praise.
  • Another study found that employees’ productivity doubled when they could immediately see their work helping others.

The lesson is simple. Candidates care about joining a supportive, rewarding, and positive work culture. That’s why one of the most important things that your company can do is to create a warm, welcoming, and informative careers site. Here are 5 tips to help you create an experience that job candidates will love.

1. Show off your office culture with photos and videos

As one 3M Corporation report points out, the human mind processes visuals much more quickly than text. Many careers sites will share written details about the workplace culture but using photos or videos will increase the impact of that page considerably.

For inspiration, check out technology company Square, which uses multimedia to share glimpses into the company’s workplace culture, atmosphere, and everyday life. Square’s collections of photos and videos reflect an environment that is team-oriented, relaxed, and designed to help team members stay creative and productive.

Photos and video can help your brand stand out in a creative and compelling way and communicate a level of depth that text on a page simply cannot.

squareSquare-3

Square-2

2. Share interviews with passionate team members

When job seekers evaluate new opportunities, they care about the types of people that they’ll be working with. Passion and enthusiasm are traits that are incredibly infectious. Top performers will often seek out fellow top performers who enjoy their jobs and are eager to add value to their organizations.

Ed tech company Creative Live, for instance, has produced a short video that shares conversation snippets from team members ranging from the CEO to individuals who are involved with engineering operations. These interviews articulate why team members enjoy working at Creative Live and how they make an impact with their contributions.

3. Feature recognitions and awards won

Job seekers care about social proof, and rightfully so -- they want to make sure that the company’s talent brand can live up to the hype in a substantiated way.

One important way to validate your company’s reputation is to share examples of awards won. These distinctions may relate to your hiring culture or business trends as a whole. For inspiration, check out the following examples from HubSpot, Eventbrite, and Inkling:

HubSpot:

HubSpot

Eventbrite:

Eventbrite

Inkling:

Inkling

4. Share details about the location and surrounding area

Candidates will seek opportunities that maximize their quality of life. They want to make sure that the surrounding neighborhood is safe and that the office is easy to get to from public transportation and major freeways. They’ll also want to know whether it will be easy to run errands -- or simply grab lunch -- within the surrounding area.

On your career site, share as much information as possible about your office’s neighborhood. Include a map and a brief description about the area -- and commuter benefits.

Check out the following example from Eventbrite for inspiration:

Eventbrite

5. Showcase very specific details about your company’s values

Top talent craves more than a job or a title. They want to contribute to a mission and vision that is greater than what they could create on their own. That’s why it’s important for your career site to feature your organization’s values. What inspires your team to get up and come to work everyday? Why did your employees choose your organization for a career?

This “mission statement” could be as simple as a sentence or two. For inspiration, check out the career site from Smule, a software company that creates intelligent music apps:

Smule

Final Thoughts

If you’re wondering what language to use on your career site -- or what images to pick, the best thing to do is ask your employees. What about your brand stood out to them as a great place to work? Why did they choose your company above competing offers? What information do they wish they had but didn’t? This feedback will help you forge the strongest possible connection with prospective candidates.

content marketing for talent acquisition

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