Close to 50% of Candidates Feel Job Descriptions Use Annoying Buzzwords: Report

Job postings are nothing new. However, like any brand advertisement, job postings, too, face stiff competition, as several companies would have posted similar ads trying to woo job applicants. With the Great Resignation creating a vast labor shortage across industries and companies, organizations are further doing their best to attract potential job seekers. On the other hand, job seekers have more choice today to decide which organization they would like to join. And a significant portion of their decisions is made based on job postings.  

So, what kind of job postings are attracting job seekers? Are there specific terms, keywords, or phrases that attract or repel candidates? Skynova recently conducted a study to understand this, which included A/B testing various job posting styles and analyzing actual job postings. Here are a few interesting findings from the survey. 

Some People Are Actively Seeking While Others Are Window Shopping

About 58% of the survey respondents were actively looking for a job, while 25% looked at job postings just to understand what was out there so that they could apply if an opportunity arose. About 16% were not really looking for a job. Further, only 50% of unemployed people were actively looking for a job, while 37% were just keeping a lookout for the right opportunity. Interestingly 61% of employed people were actively looking for a job while 25% were just browsing.

So, what motivated these people in a job posting? Interestingly, a salary component in the job description may not necessarily be a deciding factor for many people. For example, 72% of respondents said they would apply for a job even if the salary range was not mentioned in the description. In contrast, an equal percentage said they would apply if the job description mentioned a salary component. Besides salary, job seekers consider other factors in the description, such as benefits, responsibilities, qualifications required, and completeness.

Percentage of job applicants considering each important to a job description

Source: Skynova StudyOpens a new window

When it came to actual job postings, 74% of the listings listed a salary, either in the form of a fixed salary or a range and 53% of companies listed educational requirements as part of their postings.

Some Terms Shoo Away Job Seekers

While some phrases and terms attract job seekers, a few phrases or words turn them away. For example, words like “growth”, “challenge”, “creative”, “motivated”, and “flexible” gave candidates a positive impression. On the other hand, words like “guru”, “competitive”, “challenge”, “wizard”, and “ninja” gave job seekers a negative impression. Of course, a few other terms or lack thereof in the job description were deal-breakers for job seekers. The following is a list.

Percentage of job applicants considering each job post a deal-breaker

Source: Skynova StudyOpens a new window

When actual job posts were analyzed, 42% of the companies used the term “growth”, 36% used “flexible”, and 16% used “motivated”. Only 12% used the term “challenge”, and 5% used “creative”. Interestingly, an A/B test showed that 69% of job seekers would apply for a job with vague benefits listed, while 66% would apply for a job with specific benefits listed.

Keywords Matter When It Comes to Job Applications

Similar to any blog post or an ad, it was found that keywords matter when it comes to the success of a job posting. Some of these keywords and phrases include “experience”, “skills”, “manage”, “customer”, and “team”. These were also some of the commonly used terms and phrases in the actual job descriptions. Another noticeable finding was that 66% of job posts mentioned whether a remote work option was an option, and 8% of them did offer a remote option. This is an important addition since the COVID-19 pandemic completely altered the work dynamics.

Having said that, postings should also paint a clear picture of the job. Only about 50% of the respondents said that the postings paint a clear picture of the job, while 16% said descriptions rarely provide a complete picture or describe the position clearly. Further, job descriptions should avoid using annoying buzzwords and internal jargon. About 49% of respondents said it was typical of job postings to use annoying buzzwords, and 38% said internal jargon was typical of the posts they saw. Furthermore, 52% of job candidates felt job posts expected too much from the candidates. On the other hand, people were more likely to apply for a position if it had a vague description of the responsibilities (71%) instead of a detailed description (55%).  

Finally, candidates were much more likely to apply if the job posting included the company’s description. About 72% of job seekers said they would more likely apply for a job posting with a company description, whereas only 56% said they would apply even if there was no company description.

Job Posting Matters

In the age of the Great Resignation, organizations should undoubtedly work on their corporate culture, employee experience, and compensation and benefits programs, among other aspects, to attract high-quality talent. Simultaneously, part of creating an employer brand that stands out in the crowd is creating a job posting that is clear and attractive to the candidate. With so many organizations vying for the right talent and candidates having more choices than ever before, organizations should use techniques like A/B testing to ensure their job postings attract the right prospects.

Do you test your job descriptions before posting them? What insights have you gained? Share with us on FacebookOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , and LinkedInOpens a new window .