Starting a venture as a solopreneur can bring you great adventures and satisfaction, but is also the hardest thing you’ll ever do and can cause some frustration at some points. Once you remove the fear, you can see your enterprise grow until you start needing some help to get the job done. That's when it is time for hiring. And one of the most efficient tools for this task is to build a professional job application form.
Hiring a new employee can be a little tricky. In the U.S., 69% of employers reported a talent shortage as their biggest problem with hiring. So, you must put a lot of effort into the recruiting process of being successful at finding the best candidate. And your form can be your ally, as long as it is well-built. Offering some benefits, like health insurance and paid time off, can also help you find good candidates since 60% of people agree that benefits are a great perk when accepting a job offer.
One more thing is to stay close to the latest trends, which is your key to success when hiring as well as it is when having product ideas and offering a good user experience. Do you want proof of that? 73% of Millenials have found their jobs through a social network, and social media is the channel already chosen or in the plans of being used by 94% of recruiters. Basically, hiring is online, and sharing a job application form on social media is necessary if you want more visibility. Plus have access to the candidates that are looking for a job online.
To help you in your hiring process we’ve created this article with information on how you can build a game-changing job application form, plus 10 tips that will make your form perfect to select all top candidates on the market. MightyForms has free templates for you to use, adapt, or even be inspired by, several of great integrations and features to automate your forms and work as an HR assistant when hiring.
What Is A Job Application Form
A job application form is a professional and accurate way to gather information about candidates for an open job vacancy. Through a job application form, you can access job seekers’ information like their work experience and skills.
You can use it when you need to hire people for an open position at your company. They are a great tool that saves you time when selecting the best-fit candidate. With MightyForms by your side, you can build great, high-performing, job application forms and find the perfect candidate for any open vacancy you may have at your business. You can set integrations that not only automate your hiring process, but that also help you to organize and store candidates’ data, which gives your company a talent pool for future hiring opportunities, in the case of candidates that have not been selected at your first round.
Benefits of a Professional Job Application Form
If you are looking for means to accelerate your hiring process but are not sure if online forms are the best tool to choose, pay close attention to these benefits that will definitely help you make up your mind.
Freedom to ask precise questions for your purpose
You are looking for the most fitting candidate for your company, so, you must ask interesting and appropriate questions about the position, so you can be able to analyze the real experience and knowledge of such candidates. With an online job application form, you can add precise and accurate fields and select the best answers, reaching the perfect candidate.
You can easily compare candidate’s skills
Set up an integration with Google Sheets, as an example, and have all data submitted organized automatically. This can prevent you from having to look application by application. You can select specific keywords and filter all the data, choosing only the candidates that match the skills you’re looking for.
It can help to eliminate boring tasks due to automation
The main use of automation is to eliminate boring, time-consuming tasks so you can have the time to perform more urgent and manual tasks. And online forms, like the ones MightyForms provide, are perfect for this goal because of their integrations and features that automate any form, lifting some weight from your shoulders.
You can make sure each application goes to the right hiring manager, and set an automatic message to be shown after each submission informing the candidate about how long until you reach out or the next steps that they have to fulfill yet.
Why Do You Need An Application Form When Hiring
Let’s use our imagination for a little bit, shall we? Imagine that you’re hiring using resumé exclusively. You have to peruse CV by CV and analyze each candidate and sort them MANUALLY by skills, work experience, and so on. It would consume a great deal of time, which in any business is one of the most valuable currencies. Since you don’t want to waste your time, you then look for alternatives. And, as a small business or solopreneur, one of the most efficient, simple, and not expensive ways is by using a job application form.
In sum, you need an application form when hiring because they are:
- Simple
- Fast
- Can be Automated
- Not Expensive
- Precise and Accurate
Just one more thing. We are not saying you shouldn’t be using CVs. Because you can and must use them. We are just advising you that in order to narrow down how many resumés you are analyzing and selecting for an interview, you can have the help of a job application form, which undoubtedly will reduce the tasks and the time you would have spent selecting only through the CV.
How To Create A Professional Job Application Form
MightyForms is a simple-to-use form builder that allows you to build complete and fully automated forms in just a few minutes, all thanks to its drag-and-drop system. Your high-performing forms can be adjusted with precise and necessary integrations and features in no time, allowing you to save both time and money for your company.
To create this powerful form the first thing you need to do is to subscribe for free to MightyForms.
Then, drag and drop, resize and rearrange any field that you need in your form.
And to finish it, remember to add your logo, company’s name, and any design detail that brings up your company, like color scheme and typography.
What you can (and must) include in your Job Application Form:
- Name field (both legal and preferred)
- Address field
- Contact information: phone number, email address, preferred contact method
- Work period availability: time, day, if the candidate can work on weekends, etc.
- Position being applied for
- Education history (when applicable for the job position)
- Languages and other skills
- Work history
- References contact
- CV Attachment
- Legal disclaimers
- Signature
How to structure your Job Application Form
The form structure is something basic, yet essential to your form, so it can be light, easy to read and respond to, and also have a consistent flow.
When building your form, make sure you organize the questions by topics, like:
- Personal information
- Education (when applicable)
- Work history
And then add any field and integration that can turn your form into autopilot mode.
Use multiple-choice and single-choice type of questions to help you with the screening of the candidates by allowing the candidate to select the most suitable answer. By the selected answer choices, you can narrow it according to your needs and interests. One more type of question you can add is the Likert scale question, which will give you an in-depth insight into each candidate, telling you the best match for your company, selecting those candidates that have the best fit to the culture of your business.
To automate your forms you can use Zapier, try some good Zaps ideas to benefit your business and your hiring process, like integration with Dropbox for filing all uploaded CVs or Google Calendar, for scheduling interviews. Automate your thank you message as well, just remember to keep a human tone to the message.
If you realize that you must keep updating information and questions on your form, you can use Google Sheets integration to send data from it to the form, updating it quicker.
Finally, you can use Google Analytics and MightyForms Abandoned Form Recovery feature to keep track of your forms and get to know how it is performing, what time you get more submissions, and other details about your candidate. Don’t forget to let the candidate decide when to submit the form by adding the Save & Resume option to it.
10 Tips To Build The Perfect Job Application Form
You already know what a job application form is, all the benefits of using it, and why and when to use it. Now we’ll talk about how you can build the perfect job application form and hire the most fitting employee to help your business grow. And MightyForms is here to help you achieve your goals through web forms that eliminate tasks and attract target leads. Here you have 10 top tips to build the job application form that will help you select the best candidate:
1. Keep it short
You want a human employee, not a machine. So, you must be concerned about the length of your form. A very long form may cause abandonment of it, and you may lose a good professional that can make a difference in your business. On the other hand, a too-short form can prevent you from narrowing down suitable candidates. The secret is to find the perfect size in between, where you can add any relevant information and only the necessary fields to help you make your decision.
2. Be clear
Use clear and easy words, and make sure your sentences are not ambiguous. Anything that helps the candidate to respond to your job application form faster and efficiently, so you won’t miss any relevant detail about them that may have an impact on your decision. Clear short phrases are easier to read and to understand. Inspire yourself in any job application form you ever had to fill out before becoming an entrepreneur and try to do yours better.
3. Add any relevant information about the open opportunity
Use the Custom Content field to add any pertinent and relevant information about the open opportunity you have. This can help assure the candidate that they have enough skills to apply for the job position. Any requirement and demands for the job must be clear on the form, so no confusion or doubts can arise from it.
Make sure you include your logo and even an “About Us” video to your form. It gives the applicant the opportunity to recognize and learn more about your company.
4. Be outstanding. Be original
Don’t keep on the same old boring questions no candidate can stand to keep answering. Go straight to the point and ask relevant questions for the position. If you’re hiring a programmer, make relevant questions about this field, and don’t go expecting them to know or have any relevant design skills, for instance, for that you’ll need a specific job form for a designer. Take this as a chance to look for candidates that have actual knowledge about things you need for your business to grow. The candidates will appreciate you more and have a bigger interest in being part of your company.
5. Be an Equal Opportunity employer
Tell me, how is getting to know the marital status of your candidate will ACTUALLY affect their performance at work? It barely will, so, why ask about it? No reason at all.
These questions on marital status, race, religion, and so on, are really important if your company needs to file an EEO-1 Report, and you’d need to have at least 100 employees (or 50 if you are a federal contractor). But even then, this is only relevant after the applicant is hired.
Even if you want to collect this data as a way to make sure you are being compliant with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, it’s recommended that you keep it anonymous and separate from the application itself.
Keep your questions specific to the professional details, that’s what matters.
6. Build a flow through the form
Keep similar questions close so you can guide the candidate through the form, helping them to answer your questions and fill out all fields carefully. Make groups with the questions by topic, and then you can help yourself to analyze the answers with all the questions well organized. Make a logical flow, like a timeline. As an example, you can start by asking personal (not intrusive) questions, like name, address, email address, and phone number. Followed by graduation and educational background, ending with work experience and references.
7. Pay attention to your form structure
If you have to make groups of questions by topic for a quick flow, you must as well mind how you structure the form. Building a multi-step form can make the flow and the answering process equally easier and less overwhelming. A bad structure can end up confusing the respondent. So, pay close attention to how you organize your form and how you adjust each field on it.
8. Proofread and review your form before publishing it
Nothing worse than a poorly written job application form. It not only confuses candidates but also can create a false perception of your business. You may even lose good candidates over bad grammar. So, proofread and ask for other people to do the same so your form can be grammar error-free.
9. Test the form yourself
Answering the form yourself is a good way to check its flow and grammar. See if the fields are properly organized and if your sentences and questions, plus the answers options, are good to go. By testing your form you can see the ease of it and make all necessary changes.
10. Make sure your form states the deadline clearly and any other legal aspect
Our last tip is something very simple, but that remains not being used by many companies: the deadline along with the job information and requirements. Don’t let the candidate on eternal hold, wondering when they are going to hear from your company. Make it clear until which day you’ll be receiving submissions and by when you can give your answer to each candidate. And also any disclaimer and legal details, like the signature and legal information must be part of the form, so you can be transparent. That shows concern and respect for the candidate by your company.
Free Job Application form templates for you to hire the Perfect Staff
MightyForms has several free form templates for you to use and adapt to your business requirements and needs. Use the following templates as inspiration, or then customize them to achieve your goals by hiring the perfect candidate.
Application for Employment Free Form Template
Although this is a long form, it is divided into multiple steps, which makes this form lighter despite its size. It conveys all kind of information you may require from a job applicant, like the essential data - Name, Contact information, Salary desired, Degrees achieved, and Work Experience -, but it also brings data that may help you eliminate unsuitable candidates, like questions related to work hours, and request any information about references to save your time.
Get to know your candidate with this form and select the most fitting applicant.
Job Application Form Free Template
Although this is a simpler form, it fulfills the goal to help you find the best candidate among all the submissions. It provides a field for the candidate to submit their CV, which can help you in the process of selecting those that advanced for the open vacancy.
Multi-Step Job Application Form Free Template
Our last example is a multi-step form, where you can add any relevant information about the company and the open vacancy. That is an important action to be considered since it helps the candidates to apply only to the most suitable job offers, and in turn, helps you since you only receive fitting submissions.
Federal Forms You Must Fill Out Upon Hiring
After building your form and getting some submissions from candidates, it is time to start to hire. Once you hire your first employee, or even an entire team, you have a few steps to follow and Federal forms to fill out, not to mention the forms required by your State. You can’t fail to register all necessary data and fill out all forms in State Employment Agencies. At the Federal level you’ll be required to:
Register yourself as an employer on the IRS
This is a step you must take even before starting hiring. You must request an employer ID number, which can be done online, and then you have to join the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS), where you’ll deposit your business and employee taxes.
File Form W-4
Since January 2020, as an employer, you must have one more form per new hiring, the W-4 form. This form must be filled out by your employee so you can withhold the correct information about income tax. You can have more information and download the W-4 Form straight from the IRS page.
File Form I-9
The I-9 Form is for work eligibility and is part of the employer’s task to make sure the employee has the eligibility to work legally in the U.S. You can have access to all documentation that is required and to the form at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services page.
Conclusion
Professional job application forms are the quickest solution for small and mid-sized businesses to manage and display open opportunities. With a well-built form, you can have access to candidates’ keys information and narrow your search until finding the perfect fit for the job position and your company.
MightyForms is a powerful form builder and intake platform that helps you to perform your tasks faster and efficiently and lets you build the job application form that is a game-changer to your business. Automate your job application form to keep all data organized and your candidates updated. Start building for free and uncover super powerful forms that will streamline your processes and help you find the best candidates.
