A job advertisement is often the first interaction a candidate has with your organisation.
Before candidates visit your careers website, speak with a recruiter or meet your hiring managers, they usually make a decision based on a few lines of text:
"Is this opportunity interesting enough for me to apply?"
Yet many organisations still write job ads as simple job descriptions. They focus on internal requirements, responsibilities and qualifications—but fail to communicate what matters most to candidates: why should they choose this opportunity?
A successful job ad is not just a description of a role. It is a candidate attraction tool designed to generate interest, encourage applications and improve the quality of applicants.
At Profile Group, we developed a structured job ad optimisation process based on recruitment marketing principles, candidate behaviour analysis and years of recruitment expertise. This approach has significantly improved the average application rates of the vacancies we manage for our clients.
Why do some job ads attract more candidates than others?
Two companies can advertise similar roles and receive completely different results. One may receive hundreds of applications, while another struggles to attract qualified candidates.
The difference often comes down to how the opportunity is presented.
Candidates do not only evaluate:
- The job title
- The responsibilities
- The required skills
They also want to understand:
- What makes this company interesting?
- What impact will I have?
- How will I grow?
- What is the company culture like?
- Why should I choose this employer over another?
A well-written job ad answers these questions before the candidate even applies. It is also critical to take into account the fact that your job ad will be treated by bots so essential to use the right key words, specially now that candidates use job alerts.
The difference between a job description and a job advertisement
Many organisations use their internal job descriptions as recruitment advertisements.
This is one of the biggest mistakes in recruitment.
A job description focuses on the company:
- Tasks
- Responsibilities
- Requirements
- Internal expectations
A job advertisement focuses on the candidate:
- The opportunity
- The benefits
- The challenges
- The career potential
- The reasons to join
A job description explains what the company needs.
A job advertisement explains why a candidate should care.
1. Choose the right job title
The job title is one of the most important elements of a job ad. Candidates often search using keywords, so an unclear or overly creative title can reduce visibility.
For example:
❌ "Digital Rockstar"
A candidate searching for a digital marketing role will probably never find it.
Better:
✅ "Digital Marketing Manager"
A good job title should be:
-
- Easy to understand
- Search-friendly
- Recognised by candidates
- Consistent with market terminology
- Taking into account words that will be commonly used in job alerts by the relevant candidates
- Avoiding internal terminology
2. Start with an attractive short introduction
The first few lines determine whether candidates choose to click on the job ad to continue reading.
Many job ads start with:
"Our company is looking for a motivated person to join our team..."
This type of introduction is generic and rarely creates engagement.
A stronger introduction should answer:
-
- What is exciting about this role?
- What impact will the person have?
- Why is this opportunity interesting now?
Example:
"Are you passionate about designing sustainable energy solutions? Join a team of engineers working on projects that will shape the future of Belgium's energy infrastructure."
The objective is to create curiosity and emotional connection.
3. Explain the Employee Value Proposition (EVP)
Candidates are not only choosing a role—they are choosing an employer.
A strong job advertisement should highlight elements of your Employee Value Proposition:
-
- Company mission
- Culture
- Working environment
- Career opportunities
- Learning opportunities
- Benefits
- Flexibility
- Team atmosphere
The best job ads answer the candidate's question:
"Why should I work for you?"
And please, even when the recruitment is confidential, at least mention the sector and company position
4. Focus on what the candidate will do
Many job ads are written from the employer's perspective:
"We are looking for someone who will..."
Instead, write from the candidate's perspective:
"You will..."
Candidates want to imagine themselves in the role.
Focus on:
-
- Projects they will work on
- Challenges they will solve
- Teams they will collaborate with
- Impact they will create
5. Make requirements realistic
One of the most common reasons job ads fail is unrealistic expectations.
Long lists of requirements discourage qualified candidates from applying.
A good job ad should distinguish between:
Essential requirements
Skills genuinely needed to succeed.
Nice-to-have requirements
Skills that are valuable but can be developed.
Research shows that many candidates—especially women and younger generations—may hesitate to apply if they do not meet every listed requirement.
A balanced job ad attracts a wider talent pool.
6. Optimise the length and structure
Candidates often scan job ads from their phones before deciding whether to apply. A good structure includes:
Introduction
Why this opportunity is interesting.
About the company
Who you are and what you offer.
About the team and the manager
Who is the manager, how many people in the team and what do they do.
The role
Main responsibilities and challenges. Focus on what is the impact of the role and avoid long task lists.
The profile
Key skills and experience required. Keep it short.
What you offer
Benefits, culture and career opportunities - be as exhaustive as possible and mention a salary range.
Call to action
A description of the recruitment process, the recruiter phone number and a clear invitation to apply.
7. Use inclusive language
The language used in a job advertisement influences who applies.
Avoid:
-
- Unnecessary jargon
- Gender-coded language
- Excessive requirements
- Internal company terminology
Use:
-
- Clear language
- Inclusive wording
- Candidate-focused messages
An inclusive job ad helps organisations reach a broader talent pool.
8. Optimise the job ad for search engines
Candidates increasingly discover opportunities through search engines and job boards.
Job ad optimisation includes:
-
- Using relevant keywords
- Choosing the right job title
- Structuring content correctly
- Highlighting important skills
- Avoiding duplicate content
A well-optimised job ad improves visibility and increases the number of potential applicants.
How Profile Group optimises job ads
At Profile Group, we consider job advertising a key part of recruitment success, specially focusing on highlight the company’s EVp and benefits of joining for the candidates.
Over years of recruitment experience, we developed a structured job ad optimisation methodology combining:
- Recruitment expertise
- Candidate behaviour insights
- SEO principles
- Employer branding
- Market knowledge
Proven results: Profile Group achieves the highest application rates in Belgium
Writing a better job advertisement is not only about improving the candidate experience—it has a measurable impact on recruitment performance.
At Profile Group, we continuously measure the performance of our recruitment campaigns by analysing key indicators such as:
- Number of views generated
- Number of applications received
- Application conversion rate
- Quality of candidates attracted
According to our benchmarking analysis across the main Belgian job boards, including StepStone, Jobat and Références, Profile Group campaigns achieve among the highest average application rates in Belgium.
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These results demonstrate that the success of a recruitment campaign does not only depend on where a vacancy is published. It depends on how the opportunity is presented, how the job ad is optimised and how effectively the message resonates with the target candidates.
Why does job ad optimisation generate more applications?
The difference comes from combining several elements:
Better candidate messaging
Instead of simply listing requirements, we focus on:
-
- The candidate's motivations
- Career opportunities
- Impact of the role
- Company culture
- Employee Value Proposition
Better Visibility
A strong job advertisement must first be found.
We optimise:
-
- Job titles
- Keywords
- Structure
- Search relevance
- Distribution channels
Better Conversion
Getting views is not enough.
The objective is to convert visitors into applicants.
We optimise:
-
- The introduction
- The candidate journey
- The application process
- The call-to-action
A vacancy that receives 10,000 views but only 20 applications has a conversion problem. A well-optimised job ad turns visibility into measurable recruitment results.
From job advertisement to recruitment campaign
For difficult-to-fill roles, job ad optimisation is only one part of the solution.
The strongest results come from combining:
✓ Optimised job advertisements
✓ Employer branding messages
✓ Multi-channel visibility
✓ Recruitment technology
✓ Talent pools
✓ Candidate communication
✓ Recruitment expertise
This is the philosophy behind Profile Group's Talentboost recruitment campaign solution: transforming a vacancy into a complete candidate attraction campaign. (Talentfinder)
Conclusion
A job advertisement is no longer just a way to announce an open position.
It is a powerful recruitment marketing tool that can determine whether candidates choose to engage with your organisation.
By combining candidate-focused writing, employer branding and optimisation techniques, companies can attract more applicants and improve the quality of their talent pipeline.
At Profile Group, our job ad optimisation methodology helps organisations transform vacancies into compelling opportunities that attract the right candidates.