new job boards - any good ?

[DaveG]

Is anyone having success recruiting through some of the new job boards such as jobsjobsjobs and careersites ?

[Louie Jones]

Dave,

I think you will find careersites is no more (already!)

Cheers,
Louie

[Sonya P]

We haven't used any of them.

I've seen jjj's advertising around town - must be costing a fortune!

However, I can't see how it differs that much from the established job boards such as Seek, MyCareer and CareerOne. I'm not sure we really need yet another generalist job board. It's just one more place we as employers will feel obligated to advertise and yet another site for job seekers to keep an eye on.

It would be interesting to hear the views of other HR people (and recruiters) on this topic.

Sonya

[mspecht]

Hi If you want to get a good run down on the job boards in Australia check out the NowHiring Blog where Brett covers lots of the ins and outs of the players.

I agree jjj does not seem to offer anything new and will probably go the way of all the other competitors who have tried to take on the big media backed 3.

[kevinh]

Michael,

Although I am not a fan of Seek, they have succeeded in spite of the 'big media'.

However, I think some of the newcomers have forgotten that Seek didn't made a profit in their first 4-5 years of operation because they spent so much on marketing. What was different for them however was that they were able to get some reasonable revenue because they were the first viable job board in the Australian market and the only other alternative for advertisers was print media, which was expensive by comparison. This flow or revenue helped fund the growth of their business.

Fast forward 10+ years and Seek is the dominant player in the market with MyCareer and CareerOne also well established. It is now very difficult for a new player to establish a worthwhile revenue stream, because most recruiters want a considerable free trial before they are prepared to start paying. This presents a major challenge for newcomers and requires that they have considerable cash reserves if they are to survive. They probably need enough cash in reserve to survive 1-2 years before they can expect any meaningful revenue.

I hear CareerSites were selling advertising for $1!

[jaybee]

I think JJJ is great and will give SEEK a run for thier money. Thier job posting from the Rec Agency end is slick and quick. Great candidate site and much better value fro money that SEEK. Good luck to them!

[mspecht]

Kevin, Seek has had big media support through the PBL investment and the marketing agreement that was then put in place with ninemsn.com.au. They just not have it day one :-)

[kevinh]

Originally Posted by mspecht

Kevin, Seek has had big media support through the PBL investment and the marketing agreement that was then put in place with ninemsn.com.au. They just not have it day one :-)

Michael, they didn't have it from 'day one' because ninemsn didn't exist back then, which means it was harder for Seek to become the dominant player in the market. They are currently followed by MyCareer and CareerOne, both of whom had a massive advantage due to their newspapers.

So if MC (Fairfax) & CO (NewsCorp) can't surpass Seek, how is a startup generalist job board going to fair, when there are now also many specialist job sites and mail list products chipping away at the market ?

When we started Jobs in HR three years ago we were surprised at the extremely high level of acceptance Seek had in the market. We quickly realised that it has become automatic for most employers and recruiters to advertise on Seek - the only question for advertisers is where else will they advertise? Therefore new employment advertising products are competing for the remainder of the advertising budget, because no one who is serious about recruitment can afford to forgo advertising on Seek in favour of a new job board.

My view is that new employment advertising products need to reach a different audience to the 'big three' if they are to survive, which means not being 'just another job board'!

[DaveG]

Maybe it's my sheltered lifestyle, but I saw (or noticed) my first JJJ billboard only yesterday on Nepean Hwy in Melbourne. However, unless I already knew what JJJ was, it could have just as easily been a billboard advertising one of the other big job boads, such is the generic nature of their name (it is not a very distinct brand).

[cam]

It seems like there's a new wave of Internet sites with a web 2.0 feel to them trying to take on the established brands with all the bells and whistles that AJAX provides.

I think that jjj are offering something that adds a bit of value to the user experience but no doubt seek will respond with a vengeance if required. I can't help but wonder if seek was required to overhaul it's site in response would they have the capability to do it effectively? That's if, of course, jjj can get grounded in what is a tough industry to crack.

[Nlangford]

Yet another job board, I don't know about any of your experiences but everytime I call someone who has applied for a position from on-line and I ask them " what was it about this position that made you apply?" and they say "what position was that?", because they've applied for so many jobs.
The unfortuante thing about on-line job boards is that it has made it too easy for people to apply without putting any real thought into the process. I can't remember the last time I got a cover letter with an on-line application, and one that's actually addressed to me instead of a generic one that's sent with every application. I think that on-line job boards attract quantity whereas newspapers tend to attract quality. Although there is a significant cost difference between on-line and print advertising I think you get what you pay for. I would rather get 2 quality applicants from a newspaper ad than 10 average applicants from on-line. I'm not saying not to use on-line but rather not to rely soley on it to find you quality candidates. The best way to approach the recruitment process is to use a holistic approach. If you want to reach the entire employment market then you need to use all the tools that are available such as newspapers, on-line ,networking, and recruitment databases that way your sure that your getting in front of both the active and passive candidates.

[jaybee]

I wish I could agree with you about the newspaper. I get a sick feeeling in my stomach when my client passes over $8k for an EGN advert for me to place the candidate from the job boards. I agree with you completely about the sloppiness of net applications however.

[HRSense]

Like others I have only just become aware of JJJ and after looking through it I went away feeling that it doesn't offer more than Seek for a job hunter, just a variation on a theme. Having not used them as an advertiser I can't say how the interface or cost compares.

At the end of the day the site with the smoothest interface, quality/qantity of roles, and value for money, will win out and Seek have a head start. They have improved in the last 12 months with the ability to file jobs on line for later with notes, but I have found on a personal level (using it at the moment!) that the email advise on jobs doesn't necessarily tie in with an online search, so there is still room for improvement.

Whether we will ever get to the pipe dream of an effective all embracing on-line candidate database where organisations/agencies can find someone in less than 24 hours is another matter!

[Elisabeth]

jjj certainly wins my vote in terms of customer service - their response time and professionalism put SEEK to shame. It just remains to be seen whether jjj can maintain the momentum, now that they have hit the market with a splash.

[Elisabeth]

jaybee, do you have greater success in placing candidates from EGN ads?