EMPLOYER RESOURCES

JAZZING UP ADS WITH HTML
by Brian Weis, President
RecruitersNetwork

Have you ever seen an internet job posting that had centered text, different colored text and nice bulleted lists? Every wonder how they did it? The answer is simple, the recruiter who posted the job used HTML in the job posting form. HTML is a web programming language and one of the easiest to learn. (HTML stands for Hyper Text Markup Language)

You you do not have to be a computer genius to learn and use HTML. Actually, the basics needed to spice up your job postings are very, very simple. Before we dive into the how to, lets examine the why and where to use it.

Why use html in job postings?

1. Better Formatting - html allows for a better formatted job description that is easier to read and is very eye appealing.

2. Greater Response Rates - better formatted postings yield better response rates. Your ads will stand out and you will differentiate yourself from your competition, the other ads. Recruitment advertising is marketing 101...blah ads gets blah response rates.

3. Add Links - Have you ever added a web address to your job ad and it was just text and not an actual link? By adding some simple code you can make those web addresses live links. A great way to drive jobseekers back to your company's website, your employment section or even your own application/resume submittal page.

4. Add Email Links - not only can you link to your website but you can make email links in your ads. You can create web links that are live email links so a jobseeker can click on it to generate an email. This will also increase your response rates.

Where to use html?

1. In career sites - almost every career site allows for html in their job postings. Why not maximize the service provided?

2. In company profiles - make your company profile stand out on a career site!

3. In your job postings on your company's website - your company may have job postings on its website. Many times these jobs postings are simple and have basic formatting. By using html you will be able to spice up your own internal job postings on your company's site.

HTML Basics

1) Bold Text:

For example - Sales Reps Wanted!
The code to output text in bold in the example is as follows:

<b>Sales Reps Wanted!</b>

* Note all you need to add is the <b> and </b> around the text you want bold. It is that easy!

2) Italics:

For example - No relocation available for this position!
The code to output text in italics in the example is as follows:

<i>No relocation available for this position!</i>

3) Bullets:

For example

• Experience Needed
• Must have drivers licenses
• Must have reliable transportation 

The code to output text in a bulleted list in the example is as follows:

<li>Experience Needed</li>
<li>Must have drivers licenses</li>
<li>Must have reliable transportation</li>

4) Justifications - Center, Left or Right

For example -

The code to centered text in the example is as follows:

<p align="center">This text is centered!</p>

* If you want to left justify use "left" and you guessed it to right justify use "right".

5) Add a Web Link (this function not valid at Nurse-Recruiter):

For example - Visit our home page!

The code to output a hyperlink in the example is as follows:

<a href="http://www.recruitersnetwork.com">Visit our home page!</a>

6) Add an Email Link (not valid at Nurse-Recruiter):

For example - Email Your Resume!

The code to output an email link in the example is a follows.

<a href="mailto:resume@rescruitersnetwork.com">Email Your Resume!</a>

Conclusion and Advance Tips

The basics are extremely simple and taking the extra step to format your jobs will payoff with higher qualified and more candidates, which will yield in more hires/placements. Experiment the next time you post a position. It is easier than it looks.

Once you mastered the basics you can do more advanced things like different color text and fonts. You can also embed graphics/company logos in a job postings or a company profile.

Here are a list of sites that have comprehensive html basics.

WebMonkey -  HTML basics
Microsoft - HTML for Beginners
HTML basics 
Web Monkey - HTML cheatsheet

About the Author

Brian Weis is the President of Recruiters Network, The Association for Internet Recruiting. He has over 10 years of recruiting, contract recruiting and internet recruiting experience.

This article is reprinted with the permission of Recruiters Network.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at 877-562-7555.