Recruiters gotta write.
It’s the truth. Whether we’re comfortable writing or not, today’s business climate requires it. From emails to prospects to job ads, hiring manager’s requirements to career site copy; writing copy and compelling copy at that, is something that we all have to learn.
Fortunately, what consumers are used to seeing is rapidly changing, so that storytelling is becoming more necessary than perfectly graphed sentences. The new rules? Find your consistent voice, tell an honest story and draw the reader in. Here are some great copywriting tips that build on the natural tendencies of the recruiter and create dynamite stories about jobs and organizations.
What’s the ask?
I talk about the “ask” all the time. Want to know why? Because in good copywriting, marketing, recruiting, sales, internal communications…ALL THE THINGS, the ASK is the crux of what we’re doing! We’re asking people to buy, to sell, to move, to try, to apply, to call, to demo, to email, to say YES. So, if you drill down your writing to one thing…what is it? That’s the ask. Make sure the headline and the ask (or Call to Action ‘CTA’) are obvious on the page.
…you should test centering and bolding your headline at the top of your page.
Use peer pressure
In junior high we’re supposed to ignore peer pressure, but in marketing and recruiting, we can’t afford to do that anymore. Not in this increasingly social world. So use testimonials, whether they are awards your company has won, a smiling face of one of your interns or the powerful words of your longest and best employees, use the testimonials that are right there at your fingertips. It may take some time to build up a library of things you can use, but once you have it, it makes your job…and the ASK a lot easier.
Be clear
Chances are most of the team names, job titles and jargon that exist within your company walls are at best only familiar to those in your industry, more likely still that they are only relevant to those within the company walls. So stop using them. If you are the only manufacturing company in the Kansas area that calls people Pro Sales Engineers, then quit it. You’re shooting yourself in the foot with language that few are searching for and even fewer can identify. While job boards and search engines have come a long way in classifying many of these terms, you will endear yourself to your reader by using terminology they understand, whether they are familiar with your company or not. You can even do this in email writing.
Add a short but descriptive subject line. Before hitting “Send,” check your subject line. If it’s generic or blank, your message will get lost in your recipient’s overstuffed inbox. Are you asking someone to take action? Highlight that in the subject line. Make your request easy to find — and fulfill.
Be irresistible
This is easier said than done when it comes to B2B. Harder still when you are selling a “job”. But think about it from this point of view. People spend a third of their lives working, often times more. That’s an experience. You are selling an experience. Just like Universities sell their experience, or planned living communities sell theirs and luxury car companies build an entire life around owning their car or SUV. There is absolutely no reason that your writing and marketing should not appeal to those same basic emotions.
So many websites assume that a visitor will get the obvious value that the owner knows he provides. Value is communicated through offers, however, and those offers must be communicated quickly and explicitly. Consider your own surfing habits for a second, and ask yourself – why would my target audience be any different?
Originally post on Recruiter.com
Photo Credit: Olivander via Compfight cc