You thought of everything. Detailed all of the position’s missions in detail. Tried to convey the company’s values, its DNA. Slipped in a few key figures… And yet, nothing happens. Your ad doesn’t take off. What if you simply needed to optimize the SEO of your job offers on Google?
Today, any content published on the Internet, whatever it is, must respect some basic rules to be at the top of the search results. How to optimize the referencing of your job offers? We tell you more in this article!
SEO optimization: what is the interest for a job offer?
📌 Let’s first study some basics:
The word “SEO” stands for “Search Engine Optimization“. In concrete terms, SEO copywriting means proposing content that is both useful to humans and understandable by search engine robots.
The “referencing” of a page or a job offer means its ranking on the Google results page. Obviously, the higher the page is placed, the more traffic it brings to the website (because it gains visibility among Internet users).
SEO is exclusively about natural referencing (which is free by essence). It is opposed to SEA (i.e. paid search – in other words, ads on Google).
💡 The ultimate goal of Google’s algorithm is to bring the most relevant result to the user performing the search.
Best practices to optimize the SEO of your job offers
Good news: optimizing the referencing of your job offers (or of your content, in general) can be done by anyone. However, there are a few rules to follow in order to achieve this.
Propose a well-structured job offer
In addition to making it easier to read, a structured job offer allows you to highlight a certain amount of key information. So make sure you divide your job description into several main parts, with, for example, a presentation of the company, a short summary of the position in question and its challenges, the tasks to be carried out, the advantages offered by the position and the company, the profile sought, the hiring process, etc.
💡 A well-structured page allows for the use of large headings (especially H2 and H3 tags). The SEO interest behind? The highlighting of essential keywords (main or secondary). In general, get into the habit of putting keywords in strategic places on your page, which will be examined by Google. This includes titles and subtitles, but also the alternative text of images.
Provide a keyword-rich job description
It is impossible to think about SEO without a good semantic field. The reason? It is simple! These are the keywords that allow Google to evaluate the relevance of a text in relation to a specific Google query.
For example, on a job description looking for a Key Account Manager, you should find keywords related to this job, such as “customer portfolio”, “negotiate”, “BU”, “commercial relationship”…
👉 The main keyword (also known as the “target query”) of your job posting should logically match the job title. Your job posting should therefore revolve around this keyword and repeat it several times (in addition to offering synonyms and similar words).
💡 Put yourself in your candidates’ shoes to determine the right keywords to focus on. In SEO, search intent is everything. Ask yourself, for example, what words candidates use most often to describe the job in question, its various missions, etc. Google suggestions can also give you clues about the lexical variants preferred by Internet users.
Propose an airy content
Because it enhances the user experience and stimulates interest, well readable and enjoyable content guarantees long session times (the term “session time” refers to the average time spent by a user on a web page). And precisely, when the session durations on your web pages are long, it sends a simple message to Google: your content arouses interest. A very good point that will have a positive impact on your SEO!
In practice, an airy content is illustrated by:
- A clear and concise style. Try to keep your sentences short, with less than 20 words. Also, use the active voice rather than the passive voice – for a better reading flow.
- Paragraphs of no more than 300 words – each paragraph should be separated by a large heading (H2 or H3).
- Highlighting of ideas and keywords through formatting (bolding and/or italics, quotes, highlights, etc.)
💡”Fluid and airy” does not necessarily mean short. On the contrary: to optimize its SEO, it is rather advisable to opt for long content – making minimum 800 words. Indeed, Google associates length with quality. The more complete and detailed your content (in this case, your job offer) is, the better it will be viewed by Google.
Some general tips to boost the visibility of your career page
It’s a logical causal relationship: the better your website’s SEO (and domain authority – the score given by Google to your site, illustrating the trust it has in it), the more weight and legitimacy your different pages (and therefore your different job offers) will have in Google’s eyes.
In other words, boosting the visibility of your career page means taking care of the SEO optimization of your site. Here are a few general tips that will help you achieve this:
Optimize the loading speed of your pages
It is the small technical detail that matters. A web page that takes a long time to load can make Internet users impatient. As a result, Google has a habit of “punishing” pages that load too slowly – and that have, in doing so, a higher “bounce rate” (an indicator measuring the rate of visitors who have left a site after browsing a single page).
Get external links
Getting quality links from “authority” sites (meaning “well rated by Google”) will have a significant impact on your overall SEO – and especially on your domain authority. Indeed, when several authority links (in place with your domain) refer to your site, the latter gains credibility in the eyes of Google.
Avoid duplicate content at all costs
There is nothing worse than duplicate content to lose credibility with search engines. Avoid copying and pasting content on your site (whether it’s a classic site, a career site, or a career page) at all costs. Each piece of content must be unique to be valuable.
Analyze the performance of your career site!
This is the final step that allows, in many areas, to assess its strengths and weaknesses, its mistakes or areas for improvement! Measuring the performance of your content in the light of specific KPIs (such as the bounce rate of a web page, its average session duration…), is all the more crucial to optimize your SEO: you need to analyze the content that works (and the one that doesn’t) to be able to adapt and progress!
How to optimize the SEO of your job offers, in conclusion
As you know, a job offer is the first window of your company. It must therefore embody your employer brand, your DNA… Take the time to take care of it – without forgetting its SEO optimization!
💡 To go further, feel free to check out our dedicated article, which summarizes the best practices to apply to write your job offer well.
