Job Posting

Hiring Success Glossary
« back to glossary
SmartJobs

Table of Contents

What is a Job Posting?

Also known as job ads, job postings are the primary means through which companies recruit new applicants for available positions.  Traditionally, job postings were often posted in the classifieds section of newspapers. Today, job ads are typically published online. Organizations use recruiting software, like an applicant tracking system or a modern Talent Acquisition Platform, to create and circulate job postings. The utilization of recruiting software ensures centralized job distribution across online properties, like the company’s career site and social media platforms, as well as external job boards.

There are two basic types of job postings--internal and external.

Internal Job Postings

With internal job postings, the circulation of the job ad remains within the organization. This means that the posting is distributed solely to existing employees. By giving existing employees the first crack at the new position, internal postings offer existing staff the chance for internal mobility--the chance to potentially switch departments or take on a new role in an existing team. Many companies prefer internal job advertising because it saves time and money and allows organizations to leverage in-house talent.

External Job Postings

Unlike internal postings, external job postings are circulated among the job-seeking public from the get-go. External postings allow candidates from outside the organization to apply immediately for a position. Organizations often publish external job ads on job boards tailored to their specific industry or employee demographics. External job ads enable companies to expand their existing employee base, bring in outside expertise, and add value to an organization externally.

What to include in a Job Posting

A well-crafted job posting is essential to attracting the highest volume of qualified applicants. Jobs postings should clearly describe the available position and detail the requirements for consideration. Basic features of job postings include:

  • A concise summary of the job, expectations of the position and any other pertinent information
  • Information about the company and its work culture
  • Required years of work experience
  • Minimum education requirements or specialized education requirements
  • Required Documents
  • Physical and/or mental requirements
  • Preferred method for applying to the position

Characteristics of an Effective Job Ad

The most effective job ads generally consist of the following:

  • A creative job title
  • Relevant keywords for the position
  • A clear and detailed criteria for job success
  • A concise description of requirements with at least an implicit explanation as to how they are relevant to the job at hand.
  • A personal and relatable tone, rather than a more sterile, or formal description

Remember, a job posting is often the first contact your organization will have with a potential employee. Its therefore essential that your postings generate interest in your position and your organization. The stronger your job advertisement, the more success you will have attracting more and higher quality applicants that will yield a higher application conversion rate.

Job Posting vs. Job Description

A new position in an organization requires a detailed and complete job description. A job description is an internal document that details the responsibilities, authority, nuances, decision authority and working conditions associated with the job at hand. A job posting, on the other hand, is an advertisement meant to attract applicants. The posting, therefore, should be a slimmed down, concise, yet hyped-up version of the description designed to attract applicants.

Put another way, a job description is akin to a legal document outlining the responsibilities and duties of a position. A job posting is the advertisement “selling” the position to potential applicants.The most effective job ads successfully brand the company and sell the position.

What is Job Advertising?

Traditionally, job advertising was both expensive and tiresome. To find a single candidate, hiring teams would post a position across multiple channels and weed through countless applications before pinpointing someone with the right skillset and characteristics for the job.

Fast forward to today where innovative companies rely on intelligent platforms that use programmatic job advertising technology to automate job advertising in order to find the best candidate for the job, at the right time, and in the right place. By advertising jobs online with targeted messaging, companies can affordably and effectively get job opportunities in front of top talent. When coupled with candidate nurturing efforts within candidate relationship management solutions (CRM) and traditional job advertising sites such as LinkedIn, Monster, Indeed, and many more, replacing the finding a needle in a haystack model of the past, becomes much easier, efficient, and cost-effective.

The first step in a job posting is placing the open requisition on a career page on your company website. A job advertisement that is search engine optimized (SEO) and mobile-friendly allows Yahoo, Google, and Bing to index the post from the free listing services. To promote your listing further, use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) that offers integrated job posting management services that assist in building, maintaining, and managing your career page. In addition, the ATS provides insight into which board services deliver the best candidates at the best price via robust analytics. This information is useful for making informed decisions.

As with nearly everything, one size does not fit all. Some job sites focus on specific genders or careers, helping to drive your inclusion or diversity hiring needs. By adding programmatic job advertising to your company’s ATS you can focus on specific target audiences and effectively deliver quality over quantity.

Within the job description itself, best practices would be to create a compelling advertisement that encourages top talent to apply while including pertinent information such as:

  • Job title - make it attractive without obscuring the actual position
  • Job location - potential employees search by location when determining commute times or possible relocations
  • Key qualifications - such as licenses, skills, education, and experience
  • Sell the position - include perks, benefits, and work hours
  • Summary of responsibilities - describe duties associated with the position, including examples and measurements of success
  • Promote the company - list the mission and values of the company and the impact of the position on them
  • Provide directions for applying - include requirements for references, cover letters, etc.

Finally, when a company desires the right candidates to apply to the right opportunities, it is best to leverage targeted ads within a structured programmatic advertising engine. These services can greatly reduce the amount of noise at the top of the candidate funnel as they ensure that the company receives the right talent for the right opportunities at the right time.

Job Posting Sites

There are numerous job posting sites. Be sure to read our Job Board page for more information on job boards, how to use them, how to find the right one for you, etc. As an employer, your interaction with job posting sites differs from those of your potential applicants. For applicants, job boards provide an interface where they discover, learn, and apply for relevant open positions. For employers, job boards provide the platform to advertise external job ads.

Employers have numerous options when it comes to job boards. Some boards, like Indeed or Glassdoor, offer massive databases with extensive reach into potential applicants from across industry, background, and experience. Other boards offer more industry-specific or otherwise tailored setups designed to connect employers more efficiently with relevant candidates.

In addition, some boards, like Indeed, offer no cost posting options. You can click here for an extensive list of free job posting sites. Glassdoor and Career Builder, on the other hand, charge for job postings, but offer more robust AI and machine learning tools to identify strong candidates more effectively and efficiently.

How to post jobs on LinkedIn

With more than 260 million active users monthly, LinkedIn is the largest professional social networking site. In addition to connecting professionals, it contains a job board for management and executive positions that is in a “go-to” for job seekers. To advertise a job on LinkedIn:

  • Sign in to or create a LinkedIn account
  • Click the WORK icon at the top right of the LinkedIn home page
  • Select the POST A JOB icon in the menu
  • When prompted, enter the job posting details in each field

Click here to find more detailed instructions on how to advertise a job on LinkedIn.

How to post jobs on Monster

One of the oldest and most trusted job sites, Monster has over 1 million job posts that cover nearly every career. To advertise a job on Monster:

  • Sign in to or create your Monster account
  • Click on POST A JOB at the top left
  • Select the number of jobs you would like to post
  • Enter the job type and location
  • Enter job posting details when prompted

To begin the process of advertising a job on Monster, click here.

How to post jobs on Indeed

With more than 250 million job searchers using Indeed per month, it is one of the largest job sites in the world. To advertise a job on Indeed:

  • Go to the employer homepage at indeed.com/hire
  • Sign in to or set up your Indeed employer account
  • Enter the job details
  • Enter the job description when prompted

Click here for more detailed instructions on how to advertise a job on Indeed.

Google for Jobs

Google for Jobs is an enhanced search feature that aggregates job ads in a Google Search. Employers cannot post jobs directly into Google. Instead, Google for Jobs compiles relevant job ads from a variety of job boards and career sites and displays them in a singular Google search.

There are two ways to ensure your job is included on relevant Google for Jobs searches. First, if you are using a popular job board, the site is likely already integrated with Google for Jobs. If so, your job will automatically appear in relevant Google for Jobs searches. You can discover more about which job boards are included in Google searches here.

If your position is posted on a job board that does not integrate with Google for Jobs, you can still have it included in relevant Google searches. To do so, however, you will have to integrate your posting directly with Google, which you can read more about here.

For more on Google for Jobs, click this link.

Building Your Own Recruiting Platform to Maximize Hiring Success

While Job postings, job boards, Google and other third-party resources can all help organizations identify new talent, if an organization is truly interested in building a robust and sustainable Talent Acquisition funnel, it should consider building its own recruiting platform.

Here at SmartRecruiters, we offer mobile-optimized, localized and configurable career web pages that list your current job openings and allow organizations to drive candidate traffic, showcase your brand, and provide interested candidates an unparalleled user experience. Within a career page, employers can:

  • Create multiple career pages and target it to a dedicated audience
  • Build global career centers thanks to built-in support for 22 languages
  • Fully customize and configure the design, images, content, and jobs displayed
  • Give a mobile optimized experience for candidates using a mobile device
  • Integrate with your corporate website for a consistent candidate navigation experience

You can read more about how SmartRecruiters can help you build your company's career page here.

Other terms in this category:
Career and Job Site Tips
Hiring Success book

Read. Share. Hire. Sign up for weekly curated content from the Hiring Success Journal.

Watch Video (1:44)Learn More