Having looked at the best way to write a CV in 2026, and at how to prepare for a job interview today, this week it is time to turn to a different audience: the other side of the coin, in short. Those looking to hire new employees.
Yes, because if looking for work is not easy, neither is looking for workers. In this complete guide to attracting relevant applications, we will look together at how to reduce hiring errors and make the process clearer.
Let’s begin.
Why Writing an Advert Is Difficult
It may not seem so, but writing a job advert is complex too.
Those who publish one often fall into a series of errors that are not always easy to spot. And the first selection error happens before the first CV arrives.
It happens when a company publishes an advert that fails to explain properly whom it is looking for, what that person will have to do and by which criteria they will be assessed.
At that point the problem seems to lie with the candidates: barely relevant CVs, generic cover letters, applications sent without meeting the requirements. In reality, part of the noise was produced by the advert itself.
A position described through interchangeable phrases will receive interchangeable responses. A list of requirements without hierarchy does not select better; it forces the reader to guess what really matters. When responsibilities, seniority, pay and working arrangements remain vague, even the best-suited profiles may decide not to apply.
Writing an effective job advert means designing the first stage of the selection process.
The text must attract relevant people, allow others to recognise that the role does not match their career path, and set criteria clear enough to guide recruiters and managers through the later stages. And this is where it all begins.
A job advert is not a wish list
Many adverts originate by copying an internal job description, reusing a text published years earlier or combining the requests of several managers.
The result is an ideal candidate expected to have strategic, operational, interpersonal and technical skills, master numerous tools and work with complete autonomy. All within a role that, in its title or pay, is still presented as junior.
An effective advert starts from a simpler question: why does this position exist?
Before writing, the company should clarify:
- what outcome it expects in the first six or twelve months;
- which activities will actually take up the person’s time;
- which decisions they will be able to take autonomously;
- which skills they must have from day one;
- what knowledge they will be able to develop after being hired.
Without these answers, the text can be formally correct and still be looking for the wrong person.
The title must speak the language of the market
The job title is the first filter.
It must be recognisable and searchable, not understandable only within the organisational chart. “Project Manager III” may have a precise meaning within the company, but it does not convey seniority, function or area of expertise.
Labels such as “Digital Wizard”, “Marketing Ninja” or “Growth Rockstar” may also seem distinctive, but they make the vacancy harder to find and interpret.
An effective title combines a recognisable role with a useful specification:
Project Manager – Digital Projects
Senior Sales Account – B2B Market
Junior HR Specialist – Recruiting
The job title must be consistent with the autonomy, responsibilities and conditions on offer.
Consistency starts with the title.
The opening must explain the work
The first lines are often taken up by a long corporate introduction.
History, values, clients and awards may be relevant, but anyone opening an advert is looking first for one answer: what kind of job is it?
The opening should therefore make clear why the position was created, where it sits in the team, who it reports to and what contribution it will be expected to make.
“We are looking for a Project Manager to coordinate digital projects from planning to delivery, working with creative, technical and account teams. The successful candidate will join a team of eight professionals and, in the first six months, will be tasked with making timelines, priorities and approval steps more predictable.”
In a few lines, the candidate understands the function, the context and the expected result.
The company description can follow. The work comes first.
Activities, responsibilities and outcomes
“Project management” describes an area.
“Coordinating three concurrent projects, managing deadlines and liaising with clients and internal teams” makes the work visible.
“Reducing delays and unnecessary steps in the delivery process” clarifies the expected outcome.
Duties indicate what the person will do. Responsibilities define the part of the work they will be accountable for. Results explain what the company considers good performance.
An advert built solely on activities mainly attracts those who have already performed similar tasks. A text that clarifies responsibilities and outcomes also allows people from different backgrounds to recognise transferable skills.
Candidates must be able to understand not only what they will do, but also how much decision-making scope they will have and how they will be assessed.
Essential, developable and preferred requirements
The requirements section should have a visible hierarchy.
| Level | Meaning |
| Essential | Needed to perform the role from day one |
| Developable | Can be learnt during onboarding and on the job |
| Preferred | Adds value, but does not on its own determine eligibility |
If everything is essential, nothing really is.
LinkedIn reports that adverts listing specific skills achieve a view-to-application rate almost 20% higher than those that do not. Describing skills helps people recognise a match even when their previous job title is different.
A skills-first approach does not eliminate experience and education.
Avoid using them as shortcuts when what matters can be expressed through observable capabilities.
“Three years in the same role” is an indicator.
“Ability to coordinate activities, manage competing priorities and communicate with different stakeholders” describes what the person will actually need to be able to do.
Pay and Conditions Must Be Explicit
From 7 June 2026, the Italian legislative decree on pay transparency requires job adverts to state the starting pay or pay range, defined through objective, gender-neutral criteria, together with the provisions of the applicable collective agreement.
The law also prohibits asking, even indirectly, about previous pay, and requires job titles and adverts to be drafted according to gender-neutral criteria.
Transparency is not merely a compliance requirement: it allows people to assess whether an application is viable before investing time in the process, and reduces the risk of arriving at the interview with incompatible expectations.
The advert should also make clear:
- contract type;
- location;
- working arrangement;
- working hours;
- any travel required;
- relevant benefits;
- stages of the selection process.
“Remote working available” leaves room for interpretation.
“Hybrid arrangement with three days in the office” allows an informed decision.
AI can write the advert, not define the role
Artificial intelligence can organise the text, remove repetition, simplify the language and check that duties and requirements are consistent.
What it cannot do, however, is know the role better than the organisation does.
If it receives vague information, it will produce an advert that is formally correct and similar to thousands of others: dynamic environment, growth opportunities, ideal candidate, excellent communication skills.
The risk increases when AI is also used to rank applications, assign scores or recommend profiles.
The European AI Act lists among potential high-risk systems certain tools used in employment and recruitment, including CV-screening software. The specific rules for these use cases will apply from 2 December 2027; from 2 August 2026 the transparency provisions for systems falling under Article 50 are already in force.
Companies should already know today:
- which tools are involved in the selection process;
- what data they use;
- which criteria influence the ranking of candidates;
- who reviews the recommendations;
- how errors and potential discrimination are handled.
AI can speed up the process, but it cannot turn a muddled brief into a sound decision.
The job advert is already employer branding
An advert makes a promise about the way the company works.
A text that asks for precision and contains contradictions weakens that promise. A position that speaks of trust while hiding pay, hours or selection stages communicates more through its omissions than through its stated values.
Generic phrasing also has a cost.
“Young and dynamic environment”, “high stress tolerance” and “willingness to go the extra mile” can conceal very different expectations.
Company culture becomes credible when it is translated into observable information:
- ways of working;
- access to feedback;
- assessment criteria;
- level of autonomy;
- education;
- growth opportunities.
The advert is often the first piece of company content read by someone interested in working for the brand, and so becomes part of the candidate experience.
The pre-publication check
Before publishing, recruiters and hiring managers should reread the text together and answer the following questions:
- Is the title actually used by the market?
- Is it clear why the position exists?
- Do the duties match the day-to-day work?
- Is the level of autonomy clear?
- Are the expected results observable?
- Are essential requirements separated from those that can be developed?
- Are pay, contract and working arrangements stated explicitly?
- Will the same skills also guide the interview?
The last question is decisive.
If the advert asks for certain capabilities, the selection process must be designed to assess them. If it promises a certain level of responsibility, the offer and the actual job must confirm it.
Writing Better Means Hiring Better
A good advert should not convince as many people as possible, but give enough information for the right people to recognise themselves and for the others to rule themselves out.
The quality of the CVs received depends not only on candidates’ ability to present themselves, but also on how precisely the organisation describes the role, sets priorities and makes the conditions clear.
Responsibility, in short, is mutual.
Before asking people to write better, companies must also learn to ask better questions.
New Connections (FAQ)
How do you write an effective job advert?
Start from the outcome the role must deliver, then define the activities, responsibilities, autonomy and skills required. The text must clearly state pay, contract, working arrangements and the stages of the selection process.
Is it mandatory to state the salary in a job advert?
In Italy, from 7 June 2026, job adverts must state the starting pay or pay range and the provisions of the applicable collective agreement.
Can a job advert damage the employer brand?
Yes. An inconsistent, opaque advert, or one built on generic formulas, says something about the company before the interview has even begun. Professing trust and autonomy while concealing pay, working arrangements or assessment criteria creates a gap between the declared identity and the candidate’s actual experience.
From the Brand Governance perspective adopted by Bliss, recruiting is also a point of brand expression: tone of voice, the information provided, the selection process and the conditions offered should all confirm the same promise the organisation makes to clients, employees and the market. A good advert, therefore, does not only serve to attract better applications. It also serves to make the hiring company credible.
BLISS®
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