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Wordsmith - Wordwise Blog - Insight on Copywriting and Content Marketing

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How to write a job description that applicants will appreciate

Larry Yu February 21, 2022

The job market is undergoing global reforms – not just because of COVID-19 and its undying persistence, but because the norms of employment are evolving. Towards the end of 2021, the United States was hit by “the Great Resignation”, where millions of workers resigned due to a myriad of reasons, like bad company culture, job insecurity and poor pandemic responses. Although this created plenty of job openings, a growing number of employers have reportedly been unable to fill them, which inadvertently placed greater stress on existing staff and caused a knock-on effect in staff departures (especially when sufficient reimbursement for extra responsibilities was denied).

A potential reason why employers are unable to attract new applicants is due to poor transparency in their job descriptions. Prospective applicants are tired of having to sift through ambiguous details and attending interviews – only to find out that the job isn’t right for them and wasting the time of both employee and employer. If you’re looking to hire, here’s how to write job descriptions that applicants will thank you for!

Breaking the taboo behind pay
Given recent inflation and increased costs of living, it’s not unusual for prospective employees to want to know how much they will be earning at their new job – a key piece of information that many employers like to withhold from job descriptions. According to Inc. contributing editor Jeff Haden, he points out that interviewers do so as a salary negotiation tactic to minimise salary expenditure.

For example, if your company is willing to pay between $40,000 to $60,000 annually for the position, you will likely offer a person who previously made $40,000 a wage increase of $5,000 to entice them to join your company. It sounds commonplace and fair, but Haden believes otherwise. “What a prospective employee earned at a previous job has no bearing on their value to a new employer,” he argues. “Maybe they took that job to gain experience, maybe they liked the short commute, maybe they didn’t recognise their value. Whatever the reason, it’s their reason – ultimately, an employee’s pay should reflect their value to you.”

Obviously, this doesn’t mean that you should pay everyone you hire $60,000, but do make it clear on the job description what warrants the value between either ends of your price range. Perhaps the lower end only needs a bachelor’s degree and 3 or less years of experience, whereas the opposite needs a master’s+, 5 years of experience and leadership qualities.

Wage transparency has its benefits! Assuming all employees know how much each colleague is earning, it helps to foster better working relations and can lead to wage equality. Although there are also valid criticisms that employees may become competitive or bitter over others earning more than them, this is a problem that can be solved with more transparency.

Go all-in on transparency
What else is there to be transparent about beyond wages? Here are a few items that Haden believes should be included in the job description:

·  The work arrangements
Given the pandemic situation, many businesses may choose to operate under work from home arrangements, A/B schedules and so on. Alternatively, if you don’t want people to commute long hours to avoid unnecessary traffic, set restrictions on how far a prospective employee is permitted to live from the workplace.

Specify precisely where and how you expect employees to work so that there will be no misunderstandings.

 

· The reporting structure
Who will prospective employees be working under? Will there be a team? Will the new employee have people under him or her? These are all questions that prospective employees will have!

 

· The hiring process
Some people get hired immediately after the interview, some after months of lengthy deliberation. Regardless of how your business operates, it’s important to inform applicants about the hiring process and expected timeline. For potential employees, it’s absolutely soul crushing to think they did well at an interview, then have to bear two or three weeks of radio silence before being told they weren’t a right match.

Do your best to set schedules that let applicants know when they should an expect an answer (and what to expect if not…). “Granted, setting a time frame may be problematic, especially if you’re concerned it might take time to cast a net wide enough to attract the perfect candidate,” Haden explains, “but that’s also OK – if you need time to expand the time frame, revise your job posting and explain you still haven’t found the perfect candidate.” Just be sure to let the other applicants know!

 

· Job expectations
“Wait… this wasn’t a part of the job description!” is a thought that scares many new employees – and for good reason. Going to work with one set of expectations, only to have a bomb dropped on you about “other responsibilities” is unfair and often made without due compensation. Even if they were duties performed by a predecessor, it is essential that new employees understand what they are signing up for before they apply.

Be as specific as possible and list out what prospective employees will be expected to do in their daily responsibilities. What are the weekly targets associated with the job? Will it involve leadership and creative processes? Or is it data entry exclusively? Being precise here ensures that you’ll attract applicants who are keen to work under the stated responsibilities.

 

· Politics – yay or nay?
Many businesses are careful with their marketing and opt to be apolitical to avoid potential problems. However, when politically outspoken employees blast their opinions on social media, it can lead to unjust persecution against the company – usually by associating the company with the employee’s political alignment and/or accusing the company of not properly screening their employees. Either way, it often results in public embarrassment.

To avoid this kind of situation, Haden recommends making a clear statement that requires applicants to be respectful towards other political beliefs and to not publicly broadcast or share messages with political undertones. Think of this as a bit of insurance. “If you don’t agree with those stances, hey, don’t apply. Companies have the right to create and try to maintain their own culture,” writes Haden.

  

With the job market so unstable, landing good employees who stick around is essential. Being able to convince potential employees to apply for open positions with a well-written job description is the first step to success!

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Wordsmith - Copywriting and Speechwriting in Hong Kong

Award winning copywriting and speechwriting services

Wordsmith - copywriting and speechwriting for international brands, financial institutions, industry innovators and their leaders. We work with clients throughout Asia on projects seen around the world.

Our work covers everything written – from copywriting of annual reports, speeches, websites and brochures to corporate books, award entries, investor presentations, video scripts, ad copy and executive communications. We have special expertise in speechwriting, financial writing, corporate communications, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), translation and tone of voice consulting. 

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