- Jesi Bolandrina
- October 7, 2020
Millions of Americans have felt pandemic layoffs and business closures impact their careers in 2020. Many have turned to the gig economy to stay afloat. A study by Upwork found that 24% more people entered the gig economy this summer than in previous years. Gig workers are an alternate hiring solution for businesses trying to manage their operational expenses. This means job boards and listings are getting flooded with options for temporary or project-based work.
While a rapidly growing need for gig workers is great for applicants, it can create an issue for hiring companies. It can make you feel like your posts are getting buried or overlooked. So, what should you do to get your job post more applicants? We’ve put together five things you can do to get your job post to stand out and attract high-quality candidates.
1. Revisit your post title
A well-written and competitive job post begins with an easy-to-understand post title. When a job seeker visits a job board, they will be presented with an endless scrolling list of options. Your job post title needs to convince a seeker to stop scrolling. If your post is easy to ignore, you’re going to find yourself spending more time trying to get more job applicants. Save time and frustration – make sure your job title is eye-catching.
“The title is the first thing that a worker will see,” said Sara Avellar, Customer Success Manager at Jobble. “It is important to be straight forward in describing the job. But, it is also your chance to catch our community’s attention.”
You will want to find a balance between straightforward and attention grabbing. Think about the terms and job titles a job seeker would look for if they wanted a job like yours. Quirky or creative job titles (like sales ninja or marketing guru) receive fewer applicants. On the other hand, too simple of a title can be detrimental too. A warehouse job titled “Associate” doesn’t provide enough information and wouldn’t stop potential applicants from skipping past it.
Consider adding other key words that could catch an applicant’s attention. “Adding to the title can be a tool in your arsenal if you aren’t getting traction with the community,” said Avellar. “Flagging that a job is urgent, new or that the rate increased, will catch an applicant’s eye as they scroll through their options.”
2. Make sure your pay rate is competitive
Pay rate is a commonly used filter when searching a job board for opportunities. Visit a job board and search for your job to see if you have a competitive hourly or project rate. View the other listings that appear and compare your posted pay rate. If yours is lower, it could be a large factor into why your post isn’t getting enough interest. If your rate is competitive, you will find yourself getting more job applicants.
Matt Pozner, Sr. Community Manager of Growth and Acquisition at Jobble, shared: “At Jobble, we find that a competitive post starts at $15 per hour but some cities see higher rates, like San Francisco ($19-$22) and Seattle ($18-$21).”
You should consider your hourly or project rate, but also the duration of your job. A slightly lower-than-average hourly rate could be balanced by having a longer shift duration. Workers look at both the hourly rate as well as the potential earnings.
3. Offer a recurring schedule
As mentioned in the last tip, workers want to look at a job’s potential earnings when deciding to apply. This means they are interested in how much they can make through the job while also wanting to know if there are future needs they can reapply for.
“Our Jobble workers get excited to see a job that not only lasts several days, but also repeats the next week,” said Tevin Cruz, User Success Associate at Jobble. “To them, that means if they apply once and do well, they could have the chance to do more work at the same place. This means they’re not just thinking about applying to one job, they’re thinking about the future work and it helps them put more thought into their application and motivates them to work harder on site.”
If you put yourself in a job seeker’s shoes, you could see how a job that has the possibility of recurring work can be more valuable than one that simply ends. You can communicate the possibility to find more work by posting a job post for the following week, or writing in the job description itself, “Continued work available for great workers.”
4. Consider your job description
If you find you’re not getting enough applicants, you should read through your job description again to see if there are any barriers that are turning applicants away. Sometimes, a job that is too firm in their desired qualifications can be a turn off for applicants who could qualify but are intimidated.
Additionally, make sure your job description is the most important part of the longer job post. Too much focus on your company values and culture can make a post unnecessarily long. While gig workers would like to know more about the company they could work with, most prioritize understanding what the gig or job is about over if you have a snack bowl and monthly outing (especially if these perks don’t apply to gig or temporary workers).
Other helpful pieces of information to include in your job description are: your company’s website, a person to contact if an applicant has a question, or even your company’s social media if it shows a peek into what the job or working environment would be like.
5. Ask your existing pool of workers for referrals
Even after you’ve reviewed your title, pay rate, schedule and job description, you still may find yourself trying to get more job applicants. Not getting enough applicants can be frustrating, especially when you have work that needs to be done. At Jobble, we have asked current workers for their help and have had success quickly sourcing ready-to-work job seekers.
“If you’re not getting enough applicants for your post, asking for referrals can be a great solution,” said Avellar. “If there are workers that have performed well for you, reach out and see if they know of anyone that will be a good fit as well.”
Gig workers carry their reputations with them when they pick up jobs. A worker who has built a solid relationship with you is more likely to refer a friend that they are confident in. It does them no good if they refer a poor worker.
A blog by LinkedIn found: “Research shows that employee referral schemes are highly effective, universally increasing the retention rates of both the person being referred in and the referrer. The concept is pretty simple: if you’re willing to refer someone to your organisation, you must think it’s a great place to work.”
Applicants referred by your current workers can come in with heightened interest (since someone they trust encouraged them to apply) as well as heightened intent to complete their job (their friend’s reputation is on the line if they don’t perform well).
6. Still need help? Consult our Jobble experts
We’ve listed five things you can do on your own if your job post is not getting enough applicants. If you try the strategies we outlined and still need help, consider utilizing the Jobble platform to help fill your hiring needs. You still control the hiring process, but we give you the tools and captive job seeking audience to make it easier to build your team anywhere in the United States.
