Seal the Job Search Deal With a “Hire Me” Page

Having an effective website – whether you’re a business, organization or individual – depends on your definition of “effective.” Unfortunately, most website owners skip this fundamental step of defining success. If you don’t know what success looks like, how can you build something to help you get there? If you’re currently in the process of a job search, defining success is easy: It means securing a job.

Websites that are great at getting results utilize effective landing pages. A landing page is specifically designed to convince the visitor to take a particular action. That’s what your Hire Me page should be – a specially designed page that is dedicated to achieving your goal of getting a new job.

Here are some guidelines for building one.

“Hire Me” Page Fundamentals

An effective landing page has the following characteristics:

• Relevance: Your Hire Me page needs to immediately connect with the visitor so that they feel like they’re in the right place. This means that the design, message, tone and entire experience has to match the expectations of the hiring firm. For example, someone looking to get a job as a radio producer would want to have a completely different user experience than someone who wants to be a paralegal.
• Value: People aren’t really interested in you as much as they are in what you can do for them. What’s your value proposition? What are you offering? Note that this is not the same as listing your job title or qualifications. Saying you’re a retail store manager is not the same as saying you are master at product placement.
• Call to Action: If you want someone to do something, tell them! This means defining a successful visit to your hire me page and then asking the visitor to do exactly that. Do you want them to contact you? Download your resume? Watch a video? Decide on the action you want them to take and then make it clear and easy to follow.

Anatomy of a “Hire Me” Page

There are some well established tactics that have been shown to increase the conversion rates of landing pages. These tactics can be applied to your “Hire Me” page in order to get the best results possible. Let’s deconstruct the “Work With Me” page from my website:

Click on image for full size

1.  The page starts of with a clear call to action and definition of what I want. I’m not looking for full-time work, so instead of using “hire me” I’m telling people how they can “work with me.” The call to action is to “contact me.”
2. The headlines clearly state the offer I’m making; Internet makeovers and public speaking. Most Hire Me pages will only have one headline.
3. Follow up the headline with a clear and compelling value proposition. Paint a crisp picture of how life will be better for someone after they hire you.
4. Provide social proof. Testimonials are critical for effective landing pages. You can pull recommendations from your LinkedIn profile and use them here.
5. Pictures are powerful! Try to use a picture that reinforces your headline and value proposition. It can show examples of your work or simply act as a metaphor for the problem you solve.
6. Give visitors an easy way to perform your call to action. If you want them to contact you, be sure to provide both an email address and contact form so they can choose their preferred method.

And one final bonus tip: Be sure to have web analytics installed so you can measure your conversion rate. If you need help getting started with your personal website, download our free #CareerGravity Blueprint for help.