Why choosing the right salary level for your job ad is so important

Salary is a crucial factor for candidates when they are looking for a new role. But how can salary information help employers ensure they are targeting the most relevant candidates and positioning their ads for success?

When searching for roles, candidates use the salary filter to refine their results and will use the advertised salary range for a role to determine whether they have the right skills, experience, and capability for the position.

As an employer, if your advertised salary isn’t within a competitive range, it’s likely your ad might not be seen. “In fact, when we look at ad performance, 50% of underperforming ads (ads that receive fewer applications than other ads for similar roles) are advertised with a salary range below the market average,” says SEEK User Experience Lead, Rob Scherer.

“As candidates can refine their searches to a salary range, it’s critical that ads are posted with an accurate and competitive salary to appear in relevant candidate searches,” says Scherer.

Without knowing what the market is paying for similar roles, hiring managers can be left guessing on salary range, and may advertise a role for remuneration below what candidates expect. This in turn can impact not only the quantity of applications but can also have a significant impact on the quality of candidates that apply for your role.

All job ads on SEEK must include a salary range. This is used to help candidates search for the most relevant roles. “We know some employers prefer not to display the salary on their job ads,” says Scherer. Despite this, around half of all employers acknowledge that are more likely to receive more of the right candidates if they do choose to display the salary.

To help businesses better navigate the territory of salary, Scherer and his team came up with the idea of a salary guide. Built into the job ad posting experience on SEEK, the salary guide allows employers to easily access the likely salary range for a job based on the role title and location.

“To help employers determine the appropriate salary range for their ad, we now provide a range that similar ads have been advertised with, leveraging SEEK’s extensive data,” Scherer says.

The salary range and graph provided ensures employers have the best chance of success with their ad by positioning it at a relevant salary band for the market.

“Giving employers access to the salary range for similar jobs ensure that they are able to gauge where their salary is sitting in comparison to other businesses advertising for similar roles,” says Scherer.

You can access the salary guide feature when you post a job ad through SEEK.