Does your job board need a logo?

There are thousands of job sites out there. If you spend much time looking at them, like I do, you quickly realize that many lack ‘brand identity’ – very few job board logos to be seen.

In other words, they’re forgettable.

Try it yourself. Go to JobBoardReviews or Google “your favorite industry + jobs” and see what you find.  I’m betting that (after you get past the aggregator and Big 3 listings) you’ll discover niche sites that look and feel, well, anonymous.

So ask yourself – is your job board forgettable? More specifically, do you have a job board logo and positioning statement? If the answer is no (or if your logo is simply your name in a colored font), this post is for you.

Logos and positioning statements (or ‘tag lines’) serve an important purpose for both job seekers and employers: they help them to categorize and remember your site.  Together, a logo and positioning statement can convey in a few seconds what your site is all about – and provide a visual marker in your prospects’ minds.

A good logo is visually appealing, striking, and simple. A good positioning statement is short, specific, and accurate. Easy to define, hard to get right.

For example, take a look at Doostang. The name doesn’t mean anything to me as a job seeker, and the visual treatment doesn’t give me any clues as to what the site is about. The tag line, “Accelerate your career” is generic – and again doesn’t give me a hint that this is a site for recent college grads. (By the way, I think this is a nice site despite the branding!)

Contrast that with College Recruiter. The name tells me it’s about recruitment and college (although it’s a bit ambiguous as to who is getting recruited for what). The visual is somewhat distinctive. The tag line is dead on: ‘College career connector.’ In other words, I glance at this page and know what the site’s about. That’s a good thing.

What’s the bottom line value for spending time on your site’s logo and positioning statement? Higher retention of job seeker and employer traffic. Higher return visitors (because they remember you). Higher valuation of your site (because you have risen above the crowd of competitors and created a brand). More revenue!

So trust me – spending a few hours (or days) on your job board logo and positioning statement will pay off. Go ahead and do it now!

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