Recruiting in 2025 isn’t getting any easier. The talent pool is shrinking, and competition is fierce. And budgets aren’t growing.
Yet somehow, you’re still expected to find perfect candidates quickly and cheaply. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. We continue to hear the same frustration from hiring managers worldwide: “I need to do more with less.”
So when job openings multiply but your budget stays flat, what’s the solution? Stop spending without seeing results and start making smarter choices. In this article, we will examine what really works and provide practical steps that will be useful to every recruiter.
Jooble is a global job aggregator, sourcing data from over 140,000 platforms across 66 countries — and we see firsthand the challenges recruiters in Europe are facing.
In recent years, hiring intentions in France have risen significantly — primarily driven by pent-up demand following the pandemic. The trend is changing in 2025: according to France Travail, the number of hiring intentions is 2.4 million, 12.5% less than in 2024. This slowdown is attributed to the fact that pent-up demand has already been absorbed, as well as to the unstable economic and political context.
In France, half of all hiring projects are now labeled “difficult to fill.” On the other hand, economic uncertainty means finance teams are scrutinizing every euro spent.
Many have already begun to notice that an old approach — posting a job and waiting — no longer works. Job seekers today scroll through listings the way they browse social media: quickly, distractedly, with dozens of options competing for attention. You have maybe 3 to 10 seconds to make an impression — that’s your window.
Truth is: candidates don’t dislike your company. They just can’t figure out what you’re offering them.
At Jooble, we’ve analyzed the behavior of millions of job seekers, and the pattern is clear. Candidates want immediate answers to basic questions:
When these answers aren’t front and center, candidates move on.
Read also: How We Boosted Clicks by 20%: Inside Jooble’s Email Strategy
Jooble can get your listings in front of qualified candidates. We aggregate data from over 140,000 sources across 66 countries. But if your job ad is vague or confusing, even a perfect placement won’t save it.
We put this to the test by adding smart tags that display key information (contract type, salary range, remote options) directly in search results: at the French market, conversions jumped 7%, and clicks increased by 3%.
We simply answered candidates’ questions before they had to go hunting for answers.
It’s time to address the uncomfortable topic of salary transparency. Many companies still hesitate to include compensation details in their job postings. But Jooble’s data tells a different story: job ads with salary information get 31% more clicks! When salary is missing, you lose both trust and traffic.
And here’s something to keep in mind: starting in 2026, the EU’s Pay Transparency Directive will require employers to include salary information in job postings. It’s becoming mandatory. Companies that have already made the switch are now seeing better results, and they’ll have a smoother transition when the rules take effect.
A client once posted a role for a “Digital Rockstar.” Creative? Sure. Effective? Not even close. Nobody searches for “rockstar” when they’re looking for a job. They type “Digital Marketing Manager” into search engines. When they made that one change, their click-through rate jumped 26%.
Simple rule: keep job titles clear and searchable, and stay under 50 characters.
Most candidates start their job hunt the same way they search for anything else — by typing a role title into Google or a job platform. Did you know that over 70% of job seekers use generic titles, such as “Marketing Manager,” “Software Engineer,” or “Data Analyst,” when searching for a job? Fewer than 5% type in creative variations like “guru,” “ninja,” or “rockstar.”
That’s because job platforms and search engines rely on keyword relevance and semantic matching to show listings. When a company posts a vacancy for a “Digital Rockstar,” algorithms can’t easily match it with people searching for “Digital Marketing Manager.”
Read also: How to Write Job Postings That Get Clicked: A Recruiter’s Guide to Text That Works
Why keywords matter
Search engines index job titles and descriptions the same way they index web pages. If your job ad doesn’t include the words candidates use in their search queries, it simply won’t appear.
The shift we’re seeing now is toward performance-based models. You pay for actual outcomes: clicks, applications, results that matter.
This approach delivers:
Every extra step in your application process is another chance for candidates to give up.
We’ve all been there. Candidate clicks “Apply,” gets redirected to another site, hits a login screen, and thinks about whether they really need to spend so much time on it.
That’s why we offer Apply on Jooble — a streamlined application option designed to reduce friction, improve completion rates, and drive better conversions for recruiters and agencies. Applicants complete the whole process directly on the Jooble platform. The process feels smooth for job seekers — no redirects, no distractions — while recruiters receive applications directly by email or through their ATS, ready to review.
This has proven especially useful for clients seeking organized sets of resumes, as it guarantees a standardized application format along with reliable, high-quality data.
In order to stay within budget, let’s outline what we discussed earlier in this article.
Here’s what you should focus on to attract candidates without overspending:
Recruiting doesn’t have to feel like guesswork. At Jooble, we combine reach with relevance, providing you with real-time insights. Whether you’re hiring for one position or scaling your entire team, we help you stay in control of your results and your budget.
Want to see what this looks like in action?
Reach out: sales.teamwork@jooble.team
With Jooble, recruitment becomes measurable and transparent. We combine broad reach with real-time insights, helping you attract the right talent, optimize your campaigns, and stay in control of your hiring outcomes and budget.
