How to Build a Kickass Careers Page (and Attract the Right Talent)

In the past, when you needed to add someone to your team, the logical thought would be to throw a link on your otherwise blank careers page, most likely replacing some saying like “There are no open job opportunities at this time”, and linking out to a basic job description and application form.

Once that post was live, responses would inevitably trickle in, and you’d filter through until eventually hiring someone.

While that drab method would have worked in the past, it’s not like that anymore.

Today, the power rests much more in the hands of the applicant. With companies rapidly realizing how critical their team members are to their success, they’re doing more and more to not only keep the right people but attract them too.

And applicants aren’t oblivious.

Job seekers today want to see a lot more about a company up front before applying. What benefits does your company offer? What’s the atmosphere like? What is your company working towards? How does your company help the community?

If they aren’t impressed, it’s on to the next opportunity.

While it may be easy to jump to the negatives about talent being so picky, it can actually help your company narrow its focus to the ideal players for your team.

Even more ideally, it “scares” off all of the applicants who aren’t meant to join anyway.

So how do you go about attracting these ideal players?

As with most things in inbound marketing, it all starts with the right careers page.

How to Build a Better Careers Page

There are many components that go into making a successful careers page, but we’ll highlight a few key parts that will offer some direction in either building one from scratch or revamping one that you currently have.

1. Speak to Them Like They’re Already a Part of the Team.

If a great applicant makes it to your careers page you want them to feel at home.

You want to address them personally and reel them in with what makes your office the best place to work. The goal is to craft an opening line that exhibits the personality of your company and intrigues the right candidates.

Think about what makes your company unique.  Boil down this down into the Cliff’s Notes version and then create a statement that captures all of that.

For instance, let’s take a look at HubSpot’s example below.

Changing the world together? Sounds like this place is creating a movement. I can feel the energy, the passion, and it sounds like they’re doing something exciting. Something that I can be a part of because it’s still taking off.  Yeah, I’d scroll to learn more.

2. Give Them Something to Be Passionate About.

What’s the purpose of your company? Why do people get up in the morning to come here? What do all decisions in the company stem back to?

More specific than just what the culture is like, applicants want to know why the company exists and what the company is in business to do beyond the products or services it provides.

In essence, they’re looking for something to be passionate about at your company. They’re looking for your mission.

Square, for instance, wants to “make commerce easy”. That’s what they do. That’s what drives the decisions and direction of the company.

Not only are they revolutionizing the industry they’re in, but they’re simplifying it too.

Sound like a movement you’re interested in joining? Conveniently, they have some openings.

3. Tell Them What Your Team Values.

You know the qualities you want to see in your team and environment, why not tell people right off the bat? Sharing these “core values” gives job seekers the ability to self-evaluate and determine if they can picture themselves at your organization.

Blue Apron, for instance, has five specific core values that they describe on their careers page. One of these values, which we’ve highlighted below, is “teamwork.”  If you prefer to fly solo, this probably isn’t the place for you.

Save yourself and applicants some time by diving into the expectations of your team and the office culture.

4. Explain the Whole Package.

As I mentioned earlier, simply offering a job doesn’t always cut it these days. From healthcare coverage to weekly pedicures, people want to know their employer cares about them on a personal level.

Typically these add-ons are referred to as “perks” and they can do wonders when recruiting and retaining talent.

Pinterest (below) is more playful with the description of the perks on their careers page, giving more of an overview of what to expect as opposed to coverage percentages or numbers of days off, and that laid back attitude seems to work for them.

However, think about what makes the most sense for your company, and the format and details that your ideal job seekers will be looking for.  

5. Be Real.

If you’re trying to show what it’s like to work at your company, actually show what it’s like to work at your company.

There’s nothing more phony than stock photo images of “employees” who clearly don’t work there. I mean, do you really hold a smile while you’re filling up your cup at the water cooler? Probably not.

At IMPACT, we use real photos throughout our careers page to give people a better feel for our environment and culture. It helps to affirm all of the great things we talk about on the page, and shows off the amazing people we’ve added to our team. (Not to mention, what a good looking bunch we are.)

6. Make Searching & Applying as Easy as Possible.

Let's not a very important part of a careers page - the available careers!

If you have a long list of job openings (like Groupon, pictured below), organizing by job-type might help applicants find what they’re looking for more easily.

You don’t want to put in the effort to attract the right people, only to have them leave without finding the right place to apply.  

Additionally, they might be a great fit for your team, but the right opening might not be something you’re looking for at that time. Consider adding a form to collect and organize applicants who want to join your team but don’t see the appropriate position at this time. Here’s an example from IMPACT’s careers page:

This way if you do eventually need a new position filled, you’ll have an instant pool of applicants who are impressed by what your company has to offer.  

Key Takeaway: Take it one step at a time.

While you might not have all of these components put together or even figured out yet, you can start chipping away at them one by one.  There’s certainly a lot more that we’re looking to do on our own careers page, but we’re taking it step by step until it gets there. Even then, we’ll constantly be updating and improving things. (Growth Driven Design at its best.) So, don’t be afraid to do the same. Use these tips to start updating your careers page and start attracting the right talent for your organization!