If your hiring process is flooded with applicants who do not fit the role, or if strong candidates are not applying at all, the most likely culprit is not the platform you are using. It is the job description itself.
Most job descriptions are written for legal and HR compliance rather than candidate conversion. They describe the role in terms of what the company needs rather than what the candidate experiences. They are long on requirements and short on reasons to care. They describe a job, not an opportunity.
What a Bad Job Description Looks Like
- Generic opening: 'We are a fast-growing company looking for a talented individual to join our team.' This could be any job at any company. It creates no differentiation and gives strong candidates no reason to prioritise your listing.
- Requirements list written as a wish list: every nice-to-have becomes a requirement, which drives away qualified candidates who do not tick every box.
- Vague role description: 'You will support the team on various projects as required.' This tells a candidate nothing about what success looks like, what they would actually spend their days doing, or what career development is available.
- Company description that reads like a website header: 'We are passionate about delivering results for clients.' No evidence, no specifics, no human voice.
A widely cited Harvard Business Review analysis found that women are significantly less likely to apply for roles when they don't meet every listed requirement, while men apply when they meet roughly 60%. Overstuffed requirements lists cost you a disproportionate share of strong, diverse candidates before a single application is submitted.
What Strong Employer Branding Actually Does
Employer branding is not a LinkedIn Company Page banner or a careers section on your website. It is the consistent, specific, human case for why someone should choose to work for your company over the alternatives.
The most effective employer branding tells three stories: what it is like to work here day-to-day, what your employees have achieved and where they have gone, and what kind of person thrives here (and who does not). When these stories are told consistently and specifically, they act as a filter — attracting candidates who fit and deterring those who do not.
The Impact on Candidate Quality
When we rewrite a client's job descriptions and employer brand materials, the first visible change is not an increase in application volume. It is a decrease in unsuitable applications — which cuts screening time — combined with an increase in passive candidates who reach out directly rather than applying speculatively.
Senior and specialist candidates, in particular, rarely apply for roles they are not genuinely interested in. They research. They form an opinion about whether the company sounds like a place they would want to work. A weak employer brand is a conversion problem at this stage of the funnel — and it costs you the candidates who are most valuable.
Where to Start
Audit your last five job descriptions. Ask: would you apply for this role based on what is written? Is there a specific, human reason given to work at your company? Is the role described in terms of outcomes rather than tasks?
If the answer to any of those is no, you are not presenting your company at its best in the market — and the candidates you are attracting reflect that.