A law firm can only be great if it has great attorneys and staff. While not usually a priority law firm marketing goal, attracting top talent is often a benefit of many of the marketing activities you’re already doing.
A law firm career page is one of the few, dedicated tactics seemingly aimed at recruitment and hiring. However, there are plenty of other marketing benefits that come with a well-executed and thoughtful law firm website career page.
Attracting the Right Talent
The primary purpose of a career page on a law firm’s website is to attract talented professionals who are a good fit for the firm’s needs. A list of open positions that highlight the specific skills and experience the firm is looking for in potential candidates, while also clearly describing the roles, is the heart of law firm career pages. Importantly, the page will also showcase the firm’s values, mission, and culture. These ensure only applicants who are a right fit for the firm apply.
Potential candidates may arrive at a law firm’s career page because they saw your job posting on another site, such as LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, or Glassdoor and wanted to learn more. Or they may be specifically interested in working for your firm or found the firm through an online search. However potential candidates get there, a career page should provide the key information they need to determine if they and the firm are a good fit.
The career page also keeps the talent pipeline flowing if you invite professionals to submit resumes even when there are no openings.
Career Page Branding
A secondary, but important, career page purpose is to support the law firm’s branding. Everything from how the firm describes itself to the design theme of the page should be consistent with the rest of the firm’s branding. This helps potential candidates avoid confusion in determining if this is a firm they want to work at.
For example, if your law firm is a boutique elder law firm that services seniors and their families, you likely use plain, sympathetic language that explains your practice and how you help people. But, if you’re a personal injury law firm whose brand is aggressiveness and emphasizes winning, your messaging is likely bold and strong. Being consistent with your ethos on your career page will help potential candidates judge if they are a match and help you avoid receiving applications that waste your time and resources.
How to Make a Great Law Firm Website Career Page
Like any web page, there are design, content, and functionality considerations. As with most marketing tactics, a good place to start is by reviewing your current page and noting what you like and don’t like. Ask others to do the same — especially people not affiliated with your law firm who can look at the page as a potential job candidate would. The next step is to look at other law firm websites’ career pages for inspiration.
Be sure your law firm website’s career page includes the following:
- A good user experience: You don’t want to miss out on hiring a superstar attorney because she came to your career page and didn’t have a good experience. While design and content have a lot to do with the user experience, think also about the functionality behind the page’s purpose. Does it require too many clicks to read a full job posting or apply to one? Are there so many job positions listed it would be hard to scroll through them all? Can website visitors easily find the career page? The Society for Human Resource Management found that 92% of people never finish their online job applications because of too many barriers in the online job application process. Don’t let these barriers keep top talent from applying for positions at your law firm.
- Detailed and accurate job postings: There is a balance between providing so much detailed information that no one applies and not enough so that everyone applies. Writing catchy yet descriptive and honest job descriptions can be challenging, especially when you also need to be concerned about length and details like salary and benefits. Luckily, there are a lot of tips and tricks available for writing a good job posting.
Incorporate keywords into the job postings and titles to make sure they are search engine optimized. Consider words potential candidates might use in Google to support your SEO. For example, use “personal injury attorney” or “family law attorney” over vague and creative titles like “rockstar advocate” or “empathetic counsel.”
Also, be sure to know if local or state pay transparency laws regarding wage disclosures in job postings apply.
- A law firm description: Sure, the law firm’s “about us” web page has a long history of the law firm’s origins and the types of law its attorneys practice. On the career page, though, you want to provide a law firm description that entices potential employees to apply — and to be excited about the opportunity. Highlight how the law firm stands apart from others by listing recent honors, unique approaches to client service, or technology integrations that help attorneys and staff perform their jobs easier and better. Keep it brief and link to the longer “about us” page to help job candidates who want to learn more.
Include your law firm’s values and mission statement on issues like diversity, equity, and inclusion; environmental sustainability; and pro bono work. A Qualtrics survey found that more than half of U.S. employees would be willing to take a pay cut to work at a company whose values align more with theirs. Even more said they wouldn’t consider a company that holds values they disagree with.
- Perks and benefits: There are factors beyond salary and health insurance that people consider in weighing jobs. While the basic benefits, such as 401(k) matching and sick leave policies, should be included on a career page, also mention perks beyond the financial. Does your firm have a collegial culture with regular outings planned throughout the year? Do the partners treat associates and staff to bagels and donuts every Friday? Are mentors and advancement opportunities available? What are your firm’s policies regarding flexible schedules or working from home?
- Testimonials: Short video testimonials or quotes from a potential future colleague about why they enjoy working at the law firm can be very compelling to job candidates.
When used all together, these career page features will help your law firm not only attract the top talent, but also the right talent. In today’s competitive hiring market, a little extra thought and consideration to your career page’s look, feel, and messaging can give your law firm the edge.
