Companies aren't merely competing based on compensation packages or traditional recruitment methods. Instead, the forefront of the talent hunt has shifted to digital platforms, and career websites in particular.

Your career website serves as the primary touchpoint between your organization and potential talent. That's why you need to prioritize and optimize everything from the design and functionality to the branding and messaging.

However, that's often easier said than done, which is why we hosted a webinar with Donald Knight, Chief People Officer at Greenhouse, and Neil Costa, Founder and CEO of HireClix, to figure out how your company can create top-notch career websites.

Here's everything we learned from Donald and Neil on how you can create a high-quality, top-converting career website for 2024 and beyond.

Use data to stay ahead

Talent acquisition is experiencing a massive transformation—one that's reshaping how companies approach, attract, and retain potential candidates. And at the heart of this revolution is data.

Data is the backbone that underpins strategies, dictates decisions, and drives innovative solutions in the recruitment sphere. As the job market evolves, so do the preferences and behaviors of your job seekers. Understanding these shifts and nuances is essential to keep your business ahead of the curve.

"For too long, people have thought about career sites as turning it on and letting it run for two or three years because that's how long the contract is. That's not the reality anymore. You've got to continually evolve...and keep getting better."

- Neil Costa

Gone are the days when hiring was a game of instinct or based solely on resumes and cover letters. Leveraging data has become a non-negotiable element in the hunt for top-tier talent and data-driven strategies empower your organization to preemptively identify talent trends and adapt accordingly.

Track user behavior on career websites

Before you can optimize your career website for conversion and retention, you have to understand how job seekers navigate these pages. You can leverage industry data on these trends, but what's more important is your own collective analytics.

Every click, scroll, or pause tells a story about what potential employees are looking for. Use this information to better resonate with your job seekers. Learn what types of roles they are interested in and the kind of company culture they prefer.

You can also integrate your application system directly into your Webflow career website to gain additional data on how your audience finds, interacts, and engages with these pages.

Refine content to resonate with target demographics

It’s also important to craft content that tells a compelling story. Your career site isn't just a listing of job openings—it's a platform to showcase your organization's culture, values, and vision.

As Neil aptly put it, if you capture "a moment of someone's time which is borrowed and scarce," you need to make the most of it.

When you leverage data from your site analytics to learn about applicant preferences, needs, and interests, your business can better attract the right talent for the right roles.

Staying agile and responsive

To keep up with evolving audience and market demands, you'll need to prioritize agility and responsiveness for your career site. Here, it’s important to take a proactive approach by building with agility and responsiveness from the get-go.

The need for continuous evolution

Your career website is never one-and-done—it's something you'll need to continually revisit and update based on incoming data and trends. If you're serious about hiring and retaining top talent, you'll need to prioritize updating your career site as an ongoing investment.

Imagine if a restaurant never updated its menu. Over time, the offerings might become stale and boring—and patrons would likely look elsewhere for fresher alternatives.

Donald likened career sites to restaurant menus. Like menus, your career site needs to be kept fresh, updated, and enticing. Its content must resonate with the target audience to effectively capture and retain the attention of potential candidates.

"Now, career sites are the biggest differentiator to making sure you attract and retain top talent...Treat your career site like a food menu. You want to make sure that it has all of the right things on there in the right order for people to want to come spend their time and talents."

- Donald Knight

Tools like Webflow empower your organization with a robust visual design platform that enables agility in design and content updates, allowing for real-time responsiveness to the market's needs and preferences.

Align branding, technological innovations, and content strategies

Simply offering a role isn't enough anymore. Just as brands craft a meticulously designed customer journey, the path to attracting top talent requires a strategic combination of branding, technology, and content strategy. It's about painting a cohesive picture where brand values, technological tools, and narratives intersect seamlessly.

Here’s how you can make it happen. 

Unified experience between talent and customer acquisition

Attracting top talent and enticing customers share many parallels. At their core, both are about presenting a compelling story and value proposition.

When it comes to recruiting, this means showcasing what makes your company unique, its culture, and the opportunities it presents. Leveraging tools can help bridge the gap to help potential candidates experience a journey as seamless and engaging as customers do.

The role of tech tools

The modern recruitment landscape isn't what it used to be. Old methods have given way to innovative systems that streamline and enhance the application process.

Neil shed light on the significance of modern application tracking software (ATS) systems, like Greenhouse, highlighting their importance in providing a fluid, integrated application process. Additionally, tools like Webflow have emerged to give companies the flexibility to innovate and adapt their online presence swiftly, ensuring they remain at the forefront of attracting top talent.

Consistent brand messaging

Your brand's story is pivotal. Whether addressing potential customers or job applicants, the message should be consistent, reflecting the brand's core values and ethos.

Storytelling plays a critical role in getting your brand to come to life. It's not just about listing job specifications or company benefits—it's about weaving a narrative that resonates.

Yes, the perks, benefits, and compensation are important, but a competitive career site needs more. In today's modern work environment, a career site needs to compel candidates to want to spend their days and weeks working for your organization.

Make sure to craft content that mirrors brand values while striking a chord with potential applicants. This ensures that when they land on your career site, they're not just looking for a job—they're looking to be a part of your story.

"When you look at your career site, you've gotta think about how can I... tell them a little bit about the company and the job so that those people can self-qualify to some degree," says Neil. "And that way, they don't have misaligned expectations."

Differentiate your career website with Webflow

Your career website is the bridge between potential applicants and your organization. It's the most important asset you have for attracting and retaining top talent.

Today, you're empowered with insights that transcend resumes and cover letters—you have real-time data to understand complex user behaviors, preferences, and expectations. Leverage this data to refine your content and improve your career pages to better resonate with your target applications.

As you build, update, and evolve your career website, think about the following principles: data-driven decision-making, agility, and brand alignment. Doing this ensures your career site remains relevant, effective, and compelling.

Ready to elevate your career site and prepare it for ongoing updates and iterations? Use Webflow to build better, faster websites with our visual web development platform. Everything from our Designer and Editor tools to our built-in SEO and CMS functionality streamline the recruitment process and keep your organization at the forefront of creativity, control, and flexibility.

Start your free Webflow account today to start building the career websites of tomorrow.