What belongs on a good careers page

In short: The careers page is the landing page of your employer brand: the place where every recruiting measure leads and where interest either turns into an application or doesn’t. A good careers page answers candidates’ real questions (pay, process, team, day-to-day work), shows real people and makes it possible to apply in minutes. Vienna-based Maze & Friends builds careers pages with real employee photos and recruiting videos.

You spend money on job ads, perhaps on social recruiting campaigns, perhaps on a recruitment agency. Every one of these routes ends on your careers page. If 60% of visitors leave there after ten seconds, everything before it loses 60% of its effect. That makes the careers page the point with the greatest leverage in recruiting, and often the most neglected one. What belongs on an effective careers page, in which order, and how to tell whether yours is working is what you’ll read here.

Why does the careers page make or break recruiting?

Candidates behave like customers before a major purchase. They research before committing, usually along this route: ad or recommendation → Google → website → careers page → decision on whether an application is worth the effort. At this last stop, the candidate checks three things:

1. Can I picture myself working there? (people, environment, tone)
2. Is it worth it? (pay, development, working conditions)
3. How much effort is the process? (application process)

Every question the page leaves open, candidates answer for themselves, and if in doubt, against you. Increasingly, AI systems do this too. Anyone who asks ChatGPT about an employer gets a summary of what can be read publicly, and an insubstantial careers page turns into an insubstantial AI answer. On the customer side we describe the same logic under GEO, and it applies to recruiting just the same.

How is a good careers page structured?

The order follows the psychology of the visitor: first orientation, then trust, then action. The page is built according to the same rules as any page that is supposed to bring in enquiries. How we approach this is shown on our page about web design with clear user guidance.

1. An honest opening instead of an empty phrase. The first line decides whether people keep reading. “Careers at Example Ltd” says nothing. A sentence that carries the strongest true quality of the workplace says everything and filters at the same time. The wrong people leave, the right ones stay, and both are intended.

2. People first, jobs second. Before anyone reads a job description, they want to know who they would be dealing with. Show real photos of real employees (everyone recognises stock images), short quotes with names and roles and, ideally, a recruiting video in the top third. Here the video isn’t decoration. It answers the atmosphere question faster than any text.

3. The questions nobody dares to ask, answered openly. Pay or a salary range. Working hours, honestly including shifts or travel. How the application process works and how long it takes. What happens in the first month. Each of these answers takes courage and pays back twice, because it signals confidence and spares both sides conversations that lead nowhere. In Austria you can’t avoid the pay question anyway, because section 9(2) of the Austrian Equal Treatment Act (Gleichbehandlungsgesetz) (in German) requires the minimum pay to be stated in every job advertisement.

4. Evidence instead of claims. Everyone claims a “great working atmosphere”. Evidence is what works: average length of service, apprentices kept on after training, genuine reviews, specific named training programmes. A single verifiable fact beats five adjectives.

5. The jobs, easy to find and easy to read. Filterable if there are many, clear cards if there are few. Every job is described in plain language, without internal title abbreviations, with the key information at the top: location, working model, salary range. An option for speculative applications always belongs there, because the best candidates often don’t fit any of the positions currently open.

6. An application that isn’t an obstacle. Name, contact details, CV or LinkedIn profile, two optional questions, done. A mandatory cover letter, a portal with registration and ten steps before submitting cost you candidates, and every additional mandatory field costs applications. The whole route has to work on mobile, because a large share of visitors come from their phones, especially if you run social campaigns.

7. A real person as the contact. Name, photo, a direct way to get in touch. “If you have questions, just call” lowers the threshold for exactly the candidates who hesitate. Often those are the thoughtful ones.

Which mistakes on careers pages cost you applications?

1. A job list without context. Only jobs, no people and no answers. That’s an admin page.
2. Stock photos. Laughing models at a conference table signal: “We have nothing real to show.” Worse real photos beat better bought ones, every time.
3. The portal break. The attractive careers page leads to an external applicant tracking system with a login and twelve pages of forms. That’s where applications die. If there has to be a system, choose one with a short application.
4. Outdated content. Filled positions that have been online for months, photos of people who have left, a “News” section from the year before last. Outdated looks worse than plain.
5. Invisible to search. The page is called “Jobs” but can’t be found by anyone googling “job title + location”. Job titles and texts should use the terms candidates actually search for. Nobody searches for internal designations. With structured data of the type JobPosting, individual jobs can also appear in Google’s job search, according to Google’s documentation on job postings, which is also available in Austria and Germany.

How do you measure whether your careers page is working?

Four numbers are enough for an honest diagnosis:

• Careers page visitors per month: is anyone arriving at all?
• Bounce rate / time on page: do people stay, or leave after seconds?
• Application rate: applications divided by visitors. If it is a low single-digit number per thousand visitors, the page is losing almost everything the channels before it delivered.
• Quality: how many applications make it to an interview? A good page filters. Fewer but better-matched applications are therefore a success.

These numbers require clean tracking. How to set it up without tripping over data protection is covered in the article on setting up conversion tracking properly.

First the page, then the reach

The careers page decides whether interest turns into an application. Get it in order before you put money into reach: real people, open answers on pay and process, a short application without a login. What goes on it is supplied by employer branding as the strategy, the recruiting video as the strongest format and social recruiting as the amplifier that brings visitors to the page in the first place.

From the studio: car.acho: website, photos and videos · Lumitech: corporate film from a single shoot day.

Frequently asked questions

What is a careers page?

A careers page is the section of your website where you introduce yourself as an employer, show open positions and receive applications.

Properly thought through, it is the landing page of your employer brand. Every recruiting measure leads here, and this is where it’s decided whether interest turns into an application. A good careers page answers candidates’ real questions about pay, process, team and day-to-day work, shows real people and makes it possible to apply in minutes. Many careers pages, by contrast, are just job lists with a stock photo.

Why does a company need its own careers page?

Because every recruiting channel ends there. Job ads, social media campaigns, recruitment agencies and referrals all lead to this one page.

If 60% of visitors leave there after ten seconds, everything before it loses 60% of its effect. That makes the careers page the point with the greatest leverage in recruiting and, at the same time, the only employer branding space that belongs entirely to you. Then there’s AI search. Anyone who asks ChatGPT about an employer gets a summary of what can be read publicly, and an insubstantial careers page produces an insubstantial answer.

What belongs on a careers page?

An honest opening, real people, open answers on pay and process, readable job listings and an application without hurdles.

The proven order follows the psychology of the visitor, first orientation, then trust, then action:

• An opening that carries the strongest true quality of the workplace
• People first: real photos, quotes with names, a recruiting video in the top third
• Answers on salary range, working hours, application process and the first month
• Evidence instead of adjectives, such as apprentices kept on or average length of service
• Jobs with a speculative application option, a short application and a personal contact

How do I create a careers page?

In four steps: gather content within the company, define the structure, produce real photo and video material and build in a short application including tracking.

The substance comes from the business, meaning from conversations with employees, salary ranges, the application process and verifiable facts, while the structure follows the questions candidates really ask, with people before jobs. You phrase job titles the way candidates search, and the whole route has to work on a phone. For most mid-sized companies, one strong main page plus individual job pages is enough. The content usually takes the most time, the technology less so.

Which careers pages are good examples?

Good careers pages show real people, talk openly about pay and process and make applying easy.

How well known the brand is doesn’t matter. Large corporations have elaborate careers pages, but budgets that aren’t comparable for mid-sized companies. Test an example with three questions: after a minute, can I picture myself working there? Do I know whether it’s worth it? Can I complete the application on my phone in a few minutes? A simple page with real photos, a salary range and a short application beats an expensively designed page with stock photos and a portal break.

Should pay be on the careers page?

Yes, wherever possible, at least as a range. Candidates increasingly filter out employers who don’t state pay.

“Negotiable” is read as a warning sign. In Austria, under section 9(2) of the Equal Treatment Act, job advertisements must state the minimum pay under the applicable collective agreement anyway and point out any willingness to pay above it. Anyone who only states this mandatory figure while actually paying considerably more makes themselves artificially unattractive. An honest range takes courage. But it signals confidence and spares both sides conversations that lead nowhere.

What are the most common mistakes companies make on careers pages?

Job lists without context, stock photos, the break to a complicated applicant portal, outdated content and a lack of findability.

A list of jobs without people and answers is an admin page. Laughing models at a conference table signal that there’s nothing real to show, and worse real photos beat better bought ones. If the page leads to a portal with a login and twelve pages of forms, that’s where applications die. Filled positions that have been online for months look worse than a plain page. And with internal titles, nobody searching for “job title plus location” will find you.

Which metrics show whether a careers page is working?

Four numbers: visitors per month, bounce rate or time on page, application rate and the quality of applications.

You calculate the application rate as applications divided by visitors, and if it is a low single-digit number per thousand visitors, the page is losing almost everything the channels before it delivered. For quality, what counts is how many applications make it to an interview. Fewer but better-matched applications are a success, because a good page filters. These numbers require clean tracking, which must be set up in compliance with data protection rules.

Do I need an applicant tracking system, or is a form enough?

For a few positions, a good form is often enough. An applicant tracking system is worth it as soon as many applications and several people involved need to be coordinated, but only with a short application.

The critical point is the portal break: the careers page leads to an external system with registration and many pages of forms, and that’s where applications die. Name, contact details, CV or LinkedIn profile and two optional questions are enough. Every additional mandatory field costs applications. Before you choose a system, check whether applying on a phone is possible in a few minutes without a login.

What is the difference between a careers page and a LinkedIn careers page?

The careers page on your website belongs entirely to you. A LinkedIn careers page is part of your company profile, and LinkedIn decides its features.

On LinkedIn you reach people who are there anyway, above all in office and skilled professional roles, but the platform determines design, scope and data, and some careers features are paid add-ons. It’s best to check the current range of features and prices directly with LinkedIn. Using both together makes sense: LinkedIn as a shop window and channel, your own careers page as the destination where the application happens.

How does my careers page get found on Google and in AI answers?

With job titles and texts that use the terms candidates actually search for, such as “job title plus location”.

A page that is just called “Jobs” and consists of abbreviations won’t be found by anyone. Separate pages per position help, with the key information at the top, meaning location, working model and salary range, which can also appear in Google’s job search with structured data of the type JobPosting. AI systems such as ChatGPT or Google AI Overviews summarise what can be read about you publicly. Concrete, consistent answers on pay, process and day-to-day work make your page the source of those answers.

What does a careers page cost?

That depends less on the technology than on content and scope. The drivers are copy, photo and video production, the number of pages and how applications are connected.

The substance, meaning answers, quotes and facts, mainly costs internal time. External costs arise for structure and copy polishing, a shoot day with real employees, design and technical implementation and, where applicable, an applicant tracking system. More effort comes from many job and sub-pages, several locations or languages. Then there is ongoing maintenance. An outdated careers page looks worse than a plain one.

Should I build the careers page myself or have it built?

The content has to come from the company. Structure, copy polishing, photography, video and technical implementation are classic agency work.

Nobody knows the answers on pay, process and day-to-day work better than you. An agency or experienced partner puts them into a form people will read and produces real images instead of stock photos. The most expensive option is the halfway solution: an elaborately designed page without real content. So stick to the order: substance first, then design. If you have the time and experience in-house, a simple website builder may be enough to start with.

How often does a careers page need updating?

Job listings immediately with every change, content and photos at least once a year.

Nothing looks more neglected than filled positions that keep running or photos of people who left the company long ago. When reviewing, check whether the colleagues shown are still there and whether the statements still hold true, for example on working hours or training. A fixed date each quarter has proven itself: half an hour with a checklist. A “News” section that has been standing still since the year before last does more harm than good. If in doubt, leave it out.

Is a careers page enough, or do I also need job boards?

On its own, a careers page brings in hardly any visitors. It is the destination that job boards, social media campaigns and referrals lead to.

Job boards and Austria’s Public Employment Service (AMS) mainly reach people who are actively looking, which for sought-after skilled workers is the smaller part of the market, while you are more likely to reach people open to a change who aren’t looking through social recruiting. Whichever channel you use, the decision is made on the careers page. So get it in order first and only then put money into reach. Sending ads to a page that loses applicants is budget thrown away.