Core77

photo: Splodge

You never get what you want, unless you ask for it. "A job that's well-defined is easier to fill, and a job posting (if that's how you choose to publicize) that's clear and compelling can raise your quotient of good candidates dramatically," says Carl Alviani from his most recent article on Coroflot's Creative Seeds. Here are some other good tips we found while reading through:

Avoid marketing speak.
Long lists of non-specific company characteristics (dynamic, insightful, engaged, consumer-driven, etc.), or applicant characteristics (hard-working, self-starter, team-player, etc) are generally ineffective. Not that these characteristics aren't important--because they are--but if you want to target the right job-seekers, you need to pick the few things you're really looking for and describe them, using examples if possible: if your position requires 60-hour weeks and the generation of 20 concepts a day, say that, not "hard-working and prolific."

Be flexible.
Teaching someone a new software package is much faster and easier than teaching them to lead a project team, or come up with innovative concepts, or perform well under a deadline. Too often, a job listing takes the form of a laundry list of skills: must use a Wacom tablet; must know Pro/Engineer; must code in Flash. While it's true that some jobs are so dependent on expertise with a particular tool that it's non-negotiable, long term success is often decided by more nebulous qualifications like enthusiasm, thought process and learning ability.

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