Is your website scaring good candidates away?
Have you ever been contacted by a company that you hadn’t heard of before? If yes, chances are that you Google’d that company straight away to find out more information.
When it comes to candidates in the job market, the same process is applied.
As a hiring manager or recruiter, gone are the days where you could invite someone into your office, light a scented candle and a ensure the scene was set for a great first impression!
77% of job seekers are researching companies before you’ve had a chance to meet them face to face.
From our experience, we know that candidates will go as far as researching social media pages, online reviews and employer branding before they consider putting their name forward for a job.
Statistically, a candidate will form an opinion in .05 seconds.
Your company website is where candidates will go to learn more about your organisation’s values, purpose and culture. If it looks dated, dodgy, unprofessional or clunky, you can kiss good bye any chance a highly skilled candidates even making the journey to meet with you and discuss your job vacancy in person.
Three mistakes we know are scaring good candidates away are:
1. Poor staff profile pictures:
On many websites, we commonly see that some team members either do not have a picture or the photography and formatting lacks consistency and professionalism.
The team page is where candidates will assess whether they believe they will be a good fit. Staff biographies can help tell your company’s story, especially when presented in a visually engaging and friendly way. These summaries give candidates an insight into the experiences and skills that help people succeed at your company while providing a sense of your company culture.
2. Too much focus on the product or service:
Individuals who are researching your company as a potential employer will want to know what a typical work day will be like not just the product and services you provide.
If your company website only focuses on your customer as a stakeholder, you are missing a huge opportunity of potentially attract highly skilled and like-minded candidates.
The companies that attract candidates via their website, display on their website a clear picture to help prospective employees see themselves in the position. An example of this is a team gallery with photos and / or videos can show candidates what it’s like to work in the business. Further, employee testimonials or blog posts can provide first-person descriptions of your company culture and the sort of traits that could make candidates a good fit.
3. Non Compatible with mobile devices and tablets:
We know that the vast majority of candidates are searching and applying for jobs on their mobile and their approach to researching employers is no different. If your website isn’t mobile friendly for example the text size and formatting appears messy or your page doesn’t load at all, candidates will assume that your systems and processes are equally outdated.
The best websites we see, welcome candidates with a clean design, structured content, and user friendly navigation.
We recently upgraded our very own website: www.pressrecruitment.com.au