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How Mobile Traffic Impacts Staffing and Recruiting Websites

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There have been a lot of questions recently about mobile websites thanks to Google’s latest algorithm change which places a focus on mobile usability. So is mobile having a real impact on the staffing and recruiting industry?  Luckily, we don’t have to guess, let’s turn to the data…

At Haley Marketing, we track data on over 300 staffing and recruiting websites across the globe (with the highest concentration in the U.S..  Here are a few general stats/findings; if there is something more specific you’re looking for please just let me know (bsmith@haleymarketing.com). 

Overall Mobile Traffic to Staffing Websites

Mobile traffic varies by both geography and the type of staffing you do.
 
We find a slightly higher concentration of mobile traffic in larger metro areas, but mobile has steadily grown over the last few years in all areas.

Regarding the type of staffing you do, we find that firms in the light industrial space will have the highest percentage of mobile traffic to their websites.  The LI firms we track have on average 30-35% of their traffic coming from mobile.   Just a year ago that was at about 20% so it’s grown really quickly. 

In the admin/professional space we generally see about 20-25% of traffic coming from mobile; up from about 15% the year before.

Surprisingly, in the tech sector only about 12-15% of traffic is coming from mobile devices right now.  

Healthcare on the other hand hovers right around 24%.   


User Experience on Staffing Websites

We have found some really interesting things when looking at the user experience.  With sites that are mobile-friendly, we see that the time spent on site is about 10% lower on mobile when compared to desktop visits.  For sites that don’t have a mobile-friendly interface it’s about 60% lower.  So there is a big difference there. 

In terms of pages visited, we see that a mobile friendly site has fairly even page visits when looking at mobile vs. desktop, but when you compare a non-mobile-friendly site we see a decline of about 80% in pages visited. 


Conversions on Staffing Websites

When looking at mobile visitors, we find that the majority are consuming candidate-facing content (job postings, career articles, etc.).  So we assume most mobile traffic is from candidates.   With that said, we caution our clients to pay particular attention to the mobile experience for candidates that are searching for jobs and applying.  All too often we see this part of staffing websites isn’t mobile-friendly (even if the rest of their site is).  I would look at how easy it is to search for jobs and how easy the application process is on your mobile device.  Sites that have a long application have a huge exit rate on mobile (the exit rate on desktops increases the longer the application is as well).  Also, many job applications require a resume upload which isn’t mobile-friendly at all.  I would look to make sure the application is short and allows you apply with LinkedIn or Indeed or another profile.  I would also only require essential information on the mobile apply.

Search Engine Traffic

With Google’s recent algorithm change, they are placing a much stronger focus on sites that are mobile-friendly.  While we don’t have enough meaningful data yet to show a huge shift in search rankings, we do expect that sites with a great mobile experience will begin to migrate ahead of those that don’t in search rankings. So if Google rankings are important to your business, you should make sure you’re proving a great mobile experience.

Mobile is Having a Big Impact

As you can see, mobile is having a big impact on the visibility, usage and conversion on staffing and recruiting websites.  The next step is auditing your existing website to make sure that it looks good across mobile platforms and that is also converts visitors into applications or inquiries.  Take a close look at Google Analytics stats to determine if there is a disparity between mobile and desktop traffic and then take the appropriate actions.  If you find that your site is not mobile friendly, here are some good resources to help:

Mobile Staffing Websites

Mobile Friendly Staffing Job Boards

Webinar: How Staffing Firms Go Mobile

Whitepaper: Killer Staffing Websites

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