How to get applicants for your Dental Job

by | Jul 19, 2021 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

The saga continues. Getting applicants for your Dental Assistant, Hygienist, or Front Desk Dental Personnel continues to be a challenge for some.

However, our staffing consultants at DirectDental have been working closely with all the major job boards to ensure our dental practices get the most candidates.

So this post is a HELP ME HELP YOU post.

I BEG YOU if you are struggling with getting applicants for your job post, either hire us and our staffing services OR read and implement this blog post in its entirety.

There are 2 pieces to getting applicants for your job post. First, you have to make the job boards (Indeed, Ziprecruiter, Google Jobs, etc.), like your job post and want to get it in front of applicants AND you have to make the applicants want to apply once they see your post.

Here is how you do both.

Do what the job boards want you to do

This is loaded but super important.  Working with the job boards for so long, I understand that they all want different things from your job post.  The more they like your job post, the more candidates they will show your job to. So here are what the job boards what from you to make sure the candidates see it. 

#1 They want a certain length of words

Make sure you have a minimum of 150 words in your job post. The sweet spot is 300+ words.

#2 They want the position title to be in the body of the job descriptions several times

I put it in the position title in the job post a minimum of 3 times, and I include abbreviations.  Ex. We are looking for a Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH) to join our growing team. 

#3 They want to know the name and location of your practice

So only mark your job confidential IF YOU ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO.  However, if your job is marked confidential, the job boards will most likely not let it be seen. 

#4 They want to see how much you are paying

Most people like to mark DOE, which I totally understand; however, the job boards don’t… so if you can, show the rate of pay.  And make sure it is competitive.  

#5 They don’t want to show hundreds of the same jobs

Using our dental job templates is great, but please MAKE IT YOUR OWN.  The templates are designed to help you outline and meet the other parameters the job boards want. But, if you just use the template and don’t edit it, it gets thrown in with the hundreds of others that didn’t edit the template.  When Indeed and Google see hundreds of the same job, and they push them down the priority list, and they don’t get seen.  So, please include some of your own words in the template.

#6 Money talks

Paying the job boards more money gets your job seen by more candidates! We offer boosted job posts where we give Indeed, Ziprecruiter, and other job boards an additional $$$ to make sure your job gets more applicants.  Offices using our boosted job post are averaging 30+ applicants in their first 2 weeks with the boosted plan.  

From the data we have collected so far, the jobs post following the first 5 rules are getting 18x more clicks than those not following these rules.

So do them!

Now that we know what the job boards want let’s discuss…

How to get candidates to apply to your job

#1 They aren’t reading your job post

I hate saying that; I do.  But they aren’t.  So make sure all the good stuff is at the top.  I like to include why they want to work with us, followed by the benefits.  Then I put the rest after that. So please don’t skip putting the rest because the job boards want that extra stuff. 

#2 What is in it for them

A good job doesn’t cut it anymore.  With offices so eager to fill their vacancies, offices are offering more competitive pay and great benefits to bring in top talent. 

If you want more info on Benefits and Pay, follow the links below.

Understanding your Dental Employee Benefits
What should I pay my dental staff?
Can dentists reimburse their employees for health insurance?
5 tips to get more candidates for your dental job post

#3 Easy application wins

That is why DirectDental does the 1 click apply.  The easier the application process, the more applications you are going to get.  Don’t require that they email you or anything special cause they won’t.

#4 They want to know your office before they meet you

Meaning, make sure you have a great web presence.  Good reviews, a nice website, and interactive Facebook and Instagram profiles let applicants know what they are getting into before they interview with your practice.  

#5 They need to hear from you, fast

Make sure to call candidates as soon as they apply.  Call, leave a voicemail, then send a text message.  More often, they are going to reply to a text message than a voicemail.  

This post here tells you have to get applicants to call you back for an interview.

If all of this sounds like a lot of work.  We understand.  Sign up for one of our staffing plans, and we will do all the work for you.  You can read more about the benefits of our staffing plans here

Smiles, 

Holli Perez
DirectDental

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