Marketing the Position with the Advertisement
Writing effective advertisements is the best way to market the job and will ultimately bring in the highest caliber candidates. The following are a few items to think about when writing the ad.
- Sell the Job. To the extent that it's feasible, appropriate and cost-effective, craft the language to sell the department and the University. Consider what features of the job, the department, or the University that would especially appeal to the candidates you want to attract. Often the department's web site highlights interesting facts or information that may be useful in selling the job.
- Sell the Benefits. Benefits are often a great way to sell a job or the advantages of working at the University of Arizona. Pick and choose from what the University offers, from the standard benefits, to the tuition waiver, ticket discounts, access to UA facilities, museums, events, flexible schedules, etc. If ad space is at a premium, sometimes a brief statement will help generate interest: Salary: $33K + outstanding UA benefits!
- Format. Research the format of the targeted publication or web site. Create an outline of the information, both required and desired, to be included in the ad. Note word count restrictions and the use of certain conventions, such as the use of ampersands (&) and other abbreviations to reduce ad size.
- Style. Each publication has a distinct style. For instance, ad copy for the Chronicle of Higher Education would be less likely to feature the abbreviations and incomplete sentences often used in newspaper advertising.
- Match the posting. Base the ad copy on the information and language used on the official posting. This will ensure that advertised information does not conflict with the information stated on the posting.
- Make it easy to read. Make the ad visually attractive and easy on the eye by breaking text into small paragraphs and skipping lines in between. The white space between paragraphs helps to rest the reader's eye and serves to highlight the information contained in each paragraph.
- Emphasize. Use all caps or bold for emphasis, especially in titles. (Note that some publications will charge a higher bold rate for the whole ad, even if only one line is in bold type, but the increased visibility may be worth it.)
- Combine. If the department is advertising two or more positions in the same newspaper, combining both jobs in the same ad is an excellent way to increase visibility and, in most cases, save money. (Note that generally only newspapers accept combination classified ads; journals and other publications will only accept multiple positions in display advertising.)
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