Business is feeling pretty much normal again after the upheaval of Covid-19 and the ensuing global shutdown. But the alphabet soup around job advertising, including CPC, CPA and CR, continues to wear on the minds of HR pros as they strive to hire the best talent in a fiercely competitive marketplace while staying within their budget parameters.
What do these acronyms even mean? Why are they important to you and your business? And what goals should you be shooting for when it comes to each of these key hiring metrics?
CPC: How Much You Spend Every Time Someone Clicks on Your Ad
This is cost per click. Most job posting sites work on this model, which means you pay them only when a candidate is interested enough to click on your job ad. To illustrate it in a simple mathematical equation, your total cost divided by the total number of clicks equals your cost per click.
- Since you’re being paid for your ad’s performance, you need to make sure your ad redirects to your landing page, soliciting candidates to respond to your call to action.
CPA: How Much You Spend Every Time Someone Actually Applies for Your Open Job
Clicking on your ad is all well and good, but the rubber doesn’t hit the road until a candidate applies for your position: This is where your cost per applicant comes into play. CPA measures how much you spend on recruiting resources, including job postings, online sourcing tools, recruiter hours, onboarding, equipment and related salaries.
- To determine your CPA, add up the recruiting costs you incur, then divide by the number of qualified applicants received. Note: Your numbers may be higher if you’re wooing passive candidates, as they’re not actively searching for jobs and it typically takes more resources to attract them.
CR: The Percentage of Clicks that Turn into Applicants
This is your conversion rate. It refers to the percentage of successful candidates hired, compared to the number of vacancies you have available over a period of time. The higher the CR, the better for your business.
- Tactics for boosting your CR include optimizing your use of social media, personalizing each candidate experience, using automation and data to your advantage, and paying special attention to passive candidates. Through ongoing measurement of your CR, you can better identify the challenges you face in your talent management approach.
To stay on top of your recruitment budget and ahead of your competition, you need to be constantly aware of your CPC, CPA and CR, as well as all the other variables impacting your job advertising spend. If you need additional help and guidance getting it all right, consider partnering with Haley Marketing. Our recruitment specialists will partner with you to ensure the highest possible return on your talent acquisition budget – starting with a free, 30-minute focus call so we can get to know each other. Contact us today to learn more.
