While construction companies have historically relied on word of mouth to find new employees, the internet is changing the way job candidates discover new opportunities.
As the demand for qualified construction employees continues to rise, companies who continue to rely purely on word of mouth will undoubtedly miss out on the growing number of individuals looking for jobs via the internet. Luckily, posting your company’s open positions online doesn’t have to be hard.
Where to Post Your Company’s Positions
The secret to getting the most eyes on your online job ad is posting the information in more than one place. You’ll want to start with creating an account and posting the position on websites like Indeed and Monster. For some examples of what kinds of positions other construction companies are posting online, check out the search results for construction positions or check out this sample listing:
Utility Construction Laborer
ABC Construction Company
$## - $## an hourWe are seeking experienced laborers to join our team. This is a full-time, year-round position, with a competitive benefits package.
Laborers will be responsible with utility construction work, including, but not limited to, digging, heavy lifting and operating power tools, in all weather conditions.
All work will be completed in a team environment, but employees must be able to follow directions with minimal supervision.
Requirements
2+ years of construction experience
High school diploma or equivalent
Valid driver’s license
Pass pre-employment drug screening and background checkBenefits
Health, dental and life insurance
Seven days paid vacation and three days of sick leave per year
Employee bonus incentive program
If you have a company website, consider creating a career page and keeping a running list of all of your company’s open positions. By making this list available, future job candidates looking at your website can see what positions are currently open, making applying that much easier.
Social media accounts like your company’s Facebook or LinkedIn page are also great places to post information about open positions. It’s free, easy and often results in people sharing your posts far and wide.
What’s This Going to Cost Me?
Just like the classified ads, posting jobs online isn’t always free. Listings can often cost companies a pretty penny, especially if you are posting one job at a time versus several at once.
This kind of expense can be staggering to smaller companies, and especially those looking to limit overhead costs. However, there are discounts for companies who post more than one job at a time. So, if you’re looking for laborers, a project manager and a new bookkeeper, you would receive a discount by posting all three jobs at once.
The Don’ts of Writing a Good Job Description
1. Don’t forget how competitive the market is
The goal of posting job openings online is to entice candidates to want to apply to your company. It’s important to remember that while the people applying are looking to sell themselves as the best candidate, your company must also be selling itself as a desirable employer. Construction workers have more job opportunities than ever before, and when posting a job online, you want to distinguish your position above the other job postings in the same list.
While you don’t want to write too much, you do want to explain what the job entails and the responsibilities involved. Not only will this save you from fielding a tsunami of calls from unqualified applicants, but you’ll be better positioning your description to stand out among others and attract the right kind of candidates.
It’s also important to use your job posting to mention why your company is different from your competitors – like those free lunches you provide on Fridays or the employee bonus program that you offer.
All in all, you want to avoid positing a position like:
Laborer
ABC Construction CompanyConstruction laborers needed. Competitive pay. Call 555.555.5555.
2. Don’t pick an overly general job title
When it comes to clicking on a job description, most candidates click based on the title of the position. For example, if you have the choice between clicking “Laborer” and “Heavy Construction Site Laborer,” which would you choose? Specificity about the type of position, experience level, etc. can make the job more attractive to candidates and can potentially attract more eyes to your posting.
3. Don’t forget to use keywords
Without going into the rabbit hole of how internet searching works, it’s important that the word “construction” appears in the majority of your job titles. Put yourself in the shoes of a job candidate. If you were looking for jobs in the construction industry, chances are your search would contain the word “construction.” In fact, “construction” may be the only search term a candidate uses in their search, meaning your job posting may not even show up in their results if you didn’t use the keyword in your position description.
Despite this, while it makes sense to have position titles like “Construction Laborer” or “Senior Construction Project Manager,” there is no need to have titles like “Construction Bookkeeper” or “Construction Administrative Assistant.” A good rule of thumb is that if the job isn’t directly related to the industry, you don’t need an industry keyword in the job title.
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