A job advertisement is not a job description
Southwestern Recruitment
A job advertisement is often the first point of contact between a company and a potential candidate. Yet many organisations still write it as if it were a job description – listing responsibilities, requirements, and benefits while hoping the right people will apply.
In practice, a job advertisement has a significant impact on the type of candidates a company attracts. A well-written job advertisement does more than increase the number of applications. It helps attract people whose motivation, skills, and expectations genuinely match the role.
A job advertisement should answer the question "why?"
One of the most common mistakes is focusing only on what the person will be doing. Candidates are equally interested in why the role was created, the impact it will have on the business, and the goals the new hire will help achieve.
For example, when describing a Sales Manager or Engineering role, it is often far more compelling to talk about the company's growth plans, expansion into new markets, or strategic projects than to provide a long list of day-to-day responsibilities. Context helps candidates decide whether they want to be part of the company's journey in the first place.
The best candidates are not simply looking for a job
In today's labour market, companies compete on much more than salary and benefits. Experienced specialists and leaders want to understand the organisation's leadership style, culture, and future direction. If they do open a job advertisement, they often decide within the first few paragraphs whether the company is interesting enough to explore further.
For that reason, every job advertisement should answer at least three questions: What will the person be doing? Why is this role important to the company? And what will the candidate gain from the experience? Without these answers, a job advertisement is likely to become just another listing among many others.
A job advertisement also shapes your employer brand
Even candidates who choose not to apply form an opinion about a company based on its job advertisement. Generic wording can create the impression that the organisation has not clearly defined its hiring needs. In contrast, a clear and well-considered job advertisement demonstrates that the company has a clear direction, a purpose, and a good understanding of the person it is looking for.
Across our recruitment projects, we have repeatedly seen that the strongest candidates respond to job advertisements that provide an honest picture of the role, its challenges, and the company's expectations. Overpromising may generate more applications, but not necessarily better candidates.
A good job advertisement saves time throughout the recruitment process
A job advertisement is not simply a piece of marketing copy. It is a tool that helps set expectations, generate interest, and encourage the right people to apply. The more clearly the role, objectives, and the company's unique characteristics are described, the less time the hiring team will spend assessing unsuitable candidates.
