When you write a job description, you are not just writing it for the candidate, you are also writing it for Google, Bing, Indeed, and any other search engine out there. That’s why you need the right SEO tips to make sure your JDs get seen. Writing for search engines is one of the key SEO tips and it is also part of SEO Recruitment (search engine optimization (SEO). So, check out the below SEO tips for writing job descriptions.
Note: Check out our free Job Descriptions Guide — it tells you everything we know about JDs, job ads, and the like! And, for more SEO tips on writing job descriptions, also check out How to Write a Job Description — Best Practices & Examples.
Here are 14 SEO tips for writing job descriptions:
1. Write Your Job Title in Plain English
Writing a good job description for SEO starts with the title. This is one of the most important SEO tips. And you should practice Plain English and not be clever. Therefore, using “Sales Rep” (searched on 10’s of thousands of times per month) as your job description title is going to yield more search results than using “Sales Ninja” (hardly searched on at all). And definitely don’t use any weird jargon that is “internal speak” at your organization (I once saw an employer use the acronym of a call center they had (CCC (which stood for Core Call Center) in a the job title. Almost no candidate will know what that means, let alone search Google or Bing for it.
2. Be Specific in Your Job Title
The next step on this list of SEO tips has to do with writing the title of your JD is to be as specific as you can about ‘what” the candidate will be doing while keeping it relatively short in length (about 20 characters (see Tip #3)). Inside Sales Rep” is better than just plain “Sales Rep”; if the job is a focused on Machine Learning software development, then use “Machine Learning Developer” instead of just “Software Developer”. Google’s algorithm will reward your specificity with more Google SEO juice!
3. Job Title Length
SEO expert engineer Bhawna Singh of Glassdoor, has said that the highest click-throughs of job descriptions were for ones with a job title length of 12 to 20 characters. You can go a little beyond 20 if you’re adding some real specific value (“Pharmaceutical Sales Rep” (24 characters) is better than just “Sales Representative” (20 characters)). But if you go over the 60 character range then your click-through will drop in half (compared to the 10 to 20 range) according to Singh.
4. Keyword Density for the Position Name
Keyword density is an SEO term that represents how often words are used on a Web page. And finding the right keywords is one of the most important SEO tips to know. So, when writing a job req for a Customer Support position, for example, then you should mention “Customer Support” or a synonym for it (e.g. Client Success) as many times in your JD as you can without sounding like a robot. Google uses its X-Ray vision to count those words/terms to help it figure out what is the most important topic of content on your page.
5. Keyword Density in Your Requirements/Responsibilities
Keyword density also applies to requirements of the position you are hiring. For example, if you are hiring a software engineer and it is key that they be a master of the Python language, you need to mention “Python” multiple times.
If you are writing a job description for a Full-Stack Engineer, then mention the ‘stack’ (e.g. LAMP) they will be using If you use certain methodologies (such as Agile Computing or Topgrading, Six-Sigma, mention those) — these are all rich keywords that candidates often search for. So, do this and Google will more likely connect them with you if you have such skill-related keywords. When you finish writing your job description, try pasting it into this free keyword density analyzer SEO tool to easily see which words are most popular in your JD. Also, it’s kinda fun to see what Google sees!
6. HTML Tagging
Writing a job description isn’t just about writing text, it’s about writing HTML. There are some basic rules about tagging your HTML on any pages, including job descriptions. For example, you should tag the title of the Job in HTML (e.g. <title>Software Engineer – Atlanta Georgia</title>; Meta-Keywords; Meta-Description; and in some cases the H1, H2, H3 type headers
7. Insert “Schema.org” Data in Your HTML
As we wrote about in Boost Free Google Traffic 40% in One Month Through Schema.org, Google and other search web sites ask that you adhere to something called Schema.org. In short, Google is asking that you insert HTML code on your job description pages to tell them that it is in fact a job description (e.g. the HTML code might look something like this: <div id=”page-body” class=”my-bootstrap-container job-container” itemscope itemtype=”http://schema.org/JobPosting“>. Examples of Schema.org items you can write into your job description include:
- JobPosting
- Organization name
- Postal Address
- Images
- Videos
- Apply Button
- Join Talent Community
- Social Share
The more Schema.org mentions on your job page, the higher Google will rank you.
8. Do Not Include the ATS Name in your URL
Part of writing a good job description is formatting the URL. Do not include the name of your ATS in your URL. If you do, the ATS company is getting the Google SEO credit for anyone visiting that page (not you). This might require you to have what’s called a hosted or masked URL.
9. Include Full Job Title and Location in the URL
Use the following type of format when writing your job description URL: http://jobs.[company name]/software-rep/houston-Texas-USA because Google looks at the URL for keywords too!
10. Link to Your Job Description from Your Own Careers Page
This final tip is not about writing the job description but is so important to anyone seeing your JDs, I had to include it! So, in SEO, it’s important to leave a breadcrumb trail of links to your JD so that Google and other search web sites can see that a legitimate employer (you!) is endorsing the job descriptions you are trying to fill. This will make Google index your pages sooner and display your JDs higher in search results.
This one sounds obvious, but not every employer technically links to its job descriptions. Many employers simply provide a search engine (often provided by the ATS) that leads to the jobs and that will count for little to nothing for your job description SEO. Instead, you should simply create a job family/microsite type page (I recommend you do it based on departments and locations) (e.g. http:/[your-company-name].com/careers/houston or http:/[your-company-name].com/careers/engineering) and then provide links to your job descriptions from that page.
11. Use header tags and bullet points
When it comes to creating effective job descriptions, using header tags and bullet points is a great way to boost your SEO efforts. So, header tags, like H1, H2, and H3, help organize your content and make it easier for search engines to understand. In effect, this improves your web pages’ search engine rankings and attracts more organic traffic.
Why Use Header Tags?
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Improve User Experience: Header tags make your job postings easier to read, especially on mobile devices. So, job seekers can quickly find the information they need.
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Highlight Important Keywords: Placing your target keywords in header tags helps search engines recognize the relevance of your job openings.
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Boost Search Rankings: Well-organized content with header tags can improve your website’s visibility on search engine results pages.
The Power of Bullet Points
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Enhance Readability: Bullet points break down job responsibilities and requirements into easy-to-read sections. So, this is especially helpful for potential candidates who are skimming through job posts.
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Highlight Key Information: Use bullet points to emphasize the most important details of the job role. This also helps attract qualified candidates by making the job requirements clear.
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Improve SEO Performance: Including relevant keywords in bullet points can boost your on-page SEO. Thus, helping your job listings rank higher on job boards and search engines.
Best Practices for Using Header Tags and Bullet Points
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Start with an H1 Tag: Use the H1 tag for the job title, like “Web Developer Job Opening”.
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Use H2 Tags for Sections: Organize the job description with H2 tags, such as “Job Responsibilities” and “Qualifications”.
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Incorporate Bullet Points: Under each section, use bullet points to list specific job requirements and responsibilities. For example:
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Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science
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3+ years of experience in web development
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Proficiency in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
This approach helps you attract the right people, improve your search rankings, and also enhances your recruitment marketing strategy.
12. Monitor and evaluate SEO performance of job posts
Monitoring and evaluating the SEO performance of your job posts is essential to attracting potential candidates. It also helps to ensure your job postings reach the right audience. So, here’s how you can do it effectively:
Track Your Rankings
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Use Google Analytics: This powerful tool helps you track how your job posts are performing. So, you can see which job listings are getting the most traffic and where your visitors are coming from.
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Google Search Console: Monitor your job posts’ performance on search engine results pages. It also provides valuable information on search rankings, click-through rates, and the keywords bringing job seekers to your site.
Evaluate Keyword Performance
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Google Keyword Planner: This tool helps you identify the right keywords for your job postings. So, track how well these keywords are performing and adjust your strategy if needed.
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Keyword Research Tools: Regularly check which relevant keywords are trending and incorporate them into your job descriptions to attract qualified candidates.
Analyze User Experience
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Check Bounce Rates: High bounce rates might indicate that your job postings aren’t engaging enough. So, optimize your content to keep potential candidates interested.
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Mobile-Friendly Website: Ensure your job listings are easy to read on mobile devices. A mobile-friendly layout improves user experience and keeps job seekers on your page longer.
Review and Adjust Your Strategy
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Regular Audits: Conduct regular audits of your job postings to ensure they are optimized for SEO. So, look for areas where you can improve your content strategy.
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Analyze and Adapt: Use the data from your tracking tools to see what’s working and what’s not. Adapt your SEO strategy based on these insights to keep attracting the best candidates.
13. Share your job description for your vacancy on social media
Sharing your job description on social media platforms is a great way to reach potential candidates and boost your job postings’ visibility. So, here’s how to do it effectively:
Expand Your Reach
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Social Media Platforms: Share your job openings on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms. This increases your online presence and reaches a larger audience.
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Engage Mobile Users: Many job seekers use mobile devices to browse social media. So, make sure your job posts are mobile-friendly for the best user experience.
Boost Brand Awareness
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Valuable Content: Share informative content related to the job role and your company. This enhances your employer brand and attracts top talent.
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Internal Links: Link back to your career page or specific job postings to drive traffic to your recruitment website.
Engage with Your Audience
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Target Audience: Tailor your job posts to your target audience. Use engaging language and visuals to capture their attention.
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Recruitment Marketing: Use social media as a recruitment marketing tool to showcase your company culture and employment opportunities.
14. Get featured on Google for Jobs
Getting your job postings featured on Google for Jobs is a great way to attract potential candidates and improve your online presence. Here’s how you can do it:
Optimize Your Job Descriptions
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Right Keywords: Use relevant keywords in your job descriptions. This helps your job listings show up in Google for Jobs search results.
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High-Quality Content: Write clear and concise job descriptions. So, avoid keyword stuffing and focus on providing valuable content about the job role and requirements.
Structured Data Markup
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On-Page SEO: Implement structured data markup on your web pages. This helps Google understand the content of your job posts and display them in search results.
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Meta Titles and Descriptions: Ensure your meta titles and descriptions are optimized with target keywords. This improves your search rankings and visibility.
Improve User Experience
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Mobile-Friendly Website: Make sure your job listings are easy to read on mobile devices. Many job seekers use mobile devices for job searches, so a mobile-friendly layout enhances user experience.
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Internal Links: Link to other relevant job opportunities or informative content on your career page. So, this keeps job seekers engaged and improves your website’s visibility.
Why I wrote this?
If you can practice these 14 SEO tips for writing job descriptions, you will be crystal-clear to Google and more likely reach your targeted candidate.
And if you’d like Ongig to automate these SEO tips and approaches for you, we’d be glad to help. Our Ongig Job Description Software automates many of these SEO tips and our professional copywriting team will write the actual text of any job descriptions you need. Request a demo, today!
