How to Use Your Small Business Website to Recruit the Best Talent

In today’s competitive job market, small businesses must use every advantage to attract and retain top talent. One of the most powerful and often overlooked recruitment tools is your business website. Think of it as your company’s shop window, showcasing your values, culture, and opportunities to potential candidates. By optimising your website as a recruiting tool, you can make it easier to attract, engage, and hire the best people for your team. Here’s a guide on how to use your website to recruit the top talent your small business deserves.

1. Showcase Your Company Culture

For potential candidates, company culture is one of the most critical factors when considering a job change. Use your website to highlight what it’s like to work at your business. Consider creating a “Careers” or “About Us” section that introduces your team, highlights your values, and provides insights into your workplace culture. Include:

• Team photos and videos: Share photos of your team, ideally in action. Videos can capture the energy and personality of your company better than words alone. Team interviews or day-in-the-life segments give prospective candidates a real feel for the people and the environment they’d be joining.
• A mission and values statement: This is where you can articulate the principles your business stands by and what you aim to achieve. Potential employees will be more interested if they feel aligned with your values.
• Employee testimonials: Ask current team members to share what they love about working for your company, what they’ve learned, or what they feel makes your company unique.

2. Have a Dedicated Careers Page

Your Careers page is the hub of your recruitment strategy on your website. Make it easy for job seekers to find and engage with your job listings. A well-crafted Careers page can transform a passive viewer into an interested candidate. To create an effective Careers page:

• Display current openings clearly: List all available job roles with clear, concise job titles and descriptions. Each listing should have essential information such as job location, type (full-time, part-time, etc.), a salary range (please don’t say “competitive” as this means different things to different people), and any qualifications required.
• Simplify the application process: Make it easy for candidates to apply by offering an online application form. Asking candidates to upload their CV and a cover letter is often sufficient; additional questions should be kept to a minimum to avoid friction in the application process.
• Include a talent pool option: If you don’t have a suitable vacancy, let people submit their CV for consideration in the future. This allows you to build a database of talent you can tap into when new roles open up.

3. Write Job Descriptions That Stand Out

The job description is often the first point of contact between a candidate and your company, so it’s worth getting it right. Your job descriptions should be clear, attractive, and honest. Keep these tips in mind:

• Be transparent about responsibilities and expectations: Candidates want to know exactly what they’ll be doing, so be specific about tasks and daily responsibilities.
• Highlight benefits and perks: Aside from salary, outline other benefits such as flexible working options, training opportunities, or social activities.
• Show personality: Use language that reflects your brand. A tech start-up might use informal, friendly language, while a more established business might lean towards a professional tone. Your job description should give candidates a sense of the personality they can expect from your company.

4. Emphasise Career Growth Opportunities

For many candidates, especially those early in their careers, the chance to learn and grow is a significant draw. Use your website to communicate your commitment to employee development. Here are some ways to do this:

• Share stories of career progression: Highlight employees who have advanced within the company, showing that you reward hard work and ambition.
• List professional development opportunities: If you offer training programmes, workshops, or the chance to gain certifications, let candidates know. Small businesses may not always be able to compete on salary, but they can often offer growth and development that larger companies cannot.
• Mention mentoring or leadership programmes: Even if you’re a small business, fostering mentorship and leadership can appeal to people who want to grow their skills.

5. Optimise Your Website for Mobile

Your website should be mobile friendly anyway, but more than half of job seekers now use their mobile devices to browse for jobs, so it’s crucial that your website is mobile-friendly. A responsive design that adapts to any screen size ensures a positive user experience for all candidates. A mobile-friendly Careers page should:

• Have fast load times: Nothing discourages a potential applicant more than a slow, clunky website.
• Easy navigation: The job search and application process should be simple to navigate on a small screen. Ensure buttons and links are large enough to tap without frustration.
• Enable mobile applications: Allow candidates to apply directly from their phones, either through a streamlined form or by using integrations like LinkedIn Easy Apply.

6. Leverage SEO to Attract Candidates

Search engine optimisation (SEO) isn’t just for customers; it’s also a valuable tool for recruitment. Optimising your website for relevant job keywords can improve its visibility in search engine results, helping more people find your vacancies. For instance:

• Use job-specific keywords: Think about the terms candidates might type into Google when looking for a job. Keywords like “marketing assistant jobs” or “London-based software engineer” can help boost your search rankings but do remember that you are competing against the large job websites when trying to carry out SEO.
• Create high-quality content: Content marketing is an excellent way to drive traffic to your website. Publish blog posts or resources about industry trends, career tips, or insights into your company. This positions your company as an authority in its field and draws in candidates with an active interest in your industry.
• Use structured data: This is a more advanced technique but can make a big difference in your visibility. Structured data, also known as schema markup, helps search engines understand the content on your page. Using job posting schema, for example, can increase the likelihood of your job openings appearing in Google for Jobs listings.

7. Provide a Great User Experience

An attractive, well-functioning website helps you stand out in the competitive recruitment market. Prioritise a clean layout, easy navigation, and a professional design that aligns with your brand. A positive user experience can leave a strong impression on candidates, so consider the following:

• Simplify navigation: Make it easy for users to find the Careers page from any other page on your site. A direct link in your main navigation menu can improve accessibility.
• Include clear calls-to-action (CTAs): Each job listing should have a prominent “Apply Now” button. Avoid cluttering your Careers page, and make the application process straightforward.
• Optimise for accessibility: Your website should be accessible to all, including those with disabilities. Ensure your site meets Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to make your site usable for a more diverse range of potential candidates.

8. Promote Your Website on Social Media

Use your social media channels to direct traffic to your Careers page. Social media is one of the most effective ways to reach a wider audience and showcase your company culture. When you post about job openings, link directly to the Careers page rather than a generic landing page. Consider:

• Sharing team stories and achievements: Personal posts about team milestones or company events can increase engagement and attract followers interested in your workplace culture.
• Using employee advocacy: Encourage your employees to share job openings within their networks. Employee recommendations carry a lot of weight and can significantly expand your reach.
• Utilising LinkedIn: LinkedIn is a fantastic platform for sharing job opportunities. Regular updates and relevant content will establish your business as an active, engaging, and attractive place to work.

Final Thoughts

For small businesses, a well-crafted website can be a powerful tool for attracting the best talent. By showcasing your culture, making the application process straightforward, optimising for mobile, and using SEO effectively, you can position your business as a top choice for job seekers. Remember, your website is often the first impression candidates have of your business, so invest time in making it an inviting and informative space that reflects your company’s unique value.