To Hire Better, You Have To Write Better

February 21, 2022

How a Job Ad Can Change Your Hiring Quality

There is no question that we are all experiencing a hiring crunch. The news is even more dire for the foodservice industry. The senior living industry is also changing, and we need to hire better talent that have the backgrounds typically found in the hospitality sector. Without this talent, our operations will wither into dated offerings and be uninspired. So where do we start? To make an impact with your recruitment, it has to start with the way you position your job ads.

When we want to recruit a new resident to move in with us, we are willing and able to spend THOUSANDS of dollars to craft a message that tells the story of your community. According to an article by Karina Tama of Senior Care Clicks:

The average cost per lead in the senior living industry in 2018 pales in comparison to other major industries at approximately $431 per lead. For the record, the industry standards are $229 for business services, $106 for software, $235 for manufacturing, and $85 for home improvement.

In the senior living industry, the average rate per conversion is 30%. At over $400 per lead, it’s a big investment considering the majority of leads won’t convert.

Based on those figures, it's obvious why senior living provider are particular about the way we position our culture, talk about the people, and the beautiful amenities we have. Our marketing teams are critical to the success of selling the lifestyle and care that we provide residents. I think this is a great piece that showcases this (community name and location edited):

WOW. Who doesn't want to live there? It sounds like a great urban retreat that will meet my every need. This text is designed to paint a specific image - luxury, art, experience, and engagement. This is how it is done.

So now, let's compare that great marketing content for recruiting residents and compare it to the job ad that was posted looking for a line cook for an upscale senior living community:

Why? This community is a high-end luxury branded community, and they are trying to recruit line cooks by basically posting the job description. I also want to note, that I did not edit the ad to remove the community details, because they were not there other than in the job title/location. The amount of time used to create this ad was most likely the 30 seconds it took to cut and paste from word doc to job post website, and it was likely given the same marketing review time as it takes to press “F7” to complete a spell-check. This madness has to stop if we ever expect to get the truly exceptional hospitality talent to even consider applying for a food & beverage job in senior living. We have to remember that a job ad is also a marketing piece, and if crafted correctly, it can draw in amazing talent.

So what can you do? Simple changes to your ad writing approach can make a world of difference. We recommend starting with the following adjustments:

Write Your Ad Like a Piece of Social Media Content.

  • The talent that you trying to attract don't care about care awards or that you have 72 locations in 18 states. They want to know how this job is going to impact their life, and if it is going to be a fun, engaging, and rewarding experience that will pay the bills.

Avoid Posting Job Duties unless you have to per Regulations.

  • The people applying for job titles that are in our communities for hospitality and food & Beverage (server, grill cook, sous chef, cafe attendant, barista, etc.) already have a pretty good idea of what the job entails. Plus - and here is a crazy notion - they will be able to review the job description when you interview them. You waste valuable real estate in posting all of that information.

Speak to Your Company Culture, and Bring the Fun.

  • Hospitality-oriented workers want to be in a fun environment that allows them to have a personality and be able to be engaged and grow. There are so many great senior living companies out there that ARE fun, and DO have great culture. Stop hiding it from your prospective employees. Make sure they know that working with our residents can be fun and rewarding.

It's really that simple. Did you realize that the "ads" in job ads is actually short for "advertisement"? 😁 😉. Of course you do. So now is the time to start treating them as important and give them the same level of care as you do your resident advertisements.

If you want more help in creating a food & beverage recruitment strategy as a part of a larger food & beverage marketing plan, please schedule a free 30 minute consultation with the team at Trestle Hospitality Concepts (click here) to see how we can help you craft that message and brand your offerings.