Having spent
30+ years in the fitness industry, I have always been obsessed with hiring the
best available talent for every position. Why? Very simple: My job became
easier and my clubs were more profitable.
Fast forward 30+ years later. As the founder and owner of FitnessJobs.com, I have seen it all when it comes to recruiting staff online. I have seen 2 sentence ads with grammatical and punctuation issues, respond to email addresses misspelled so candidates can’t apply, incorrect websites and every other possible mistake that is humanly possible.
Except for the careless issues noted above, the quality of the ad is usually the issue. Whenever I have the chance to speak to an employer in advance the last thing I tell them is “Take time creating your job posting. Great ads attract great people and crummy ads attract crummy people.” They all chuckle but it resonates with them.
There are a few critical components in creating a great ad. I will briefly list them and hope that anyone that is hiring staff will incorporate these simple concepts. You or your marketing lead should assist in this effort, as the same care that goes into crafting new member marketing messages should go into recruitment ads.
1. Your opening paragraph should have a clever, positive headline and an opening branding paragraph about your business. GET CANDIDATES EXCITED. Talented employees want to work for top companies. Your job posting speaks volumes about your organization!
2. In the DESCRIPTION field speak about the opportunity without listing a full-blown job description. Big picture, important things about the job opportunity.
3. Next and MOST IMPORTANT, you need to answer this question, “What’s in it for Me”? People want to know what are the hours/shifts available? What is the pay range? What growth opportunities exist within the organization? Are there benefits, perks, free memberships or discount family memberships? Free or discounted child care, paid time off? Continuing reimbursement, and anything else that you may offer.
At the end of the DESCRIPTION remind the candidates the following: Interested or qualified candidates should apply through the APPLY LINK above.
Under REQUIREMENTS, go big picture. Don’t scare people away with 28 items of must do’s. You can review a JOB DESCRIPTION during the interview purpose.
The objective of a job posting is to get candidates excited about your company and have them to apply!
Alan Cohen is a renowned fitness industry career expert with more than 30 years of experience in the health and fitness industry. He is the founder and president of FitnessJobs.com.