How to Conduct a Website Audit for Staffing and Recruiting Firms

Is your site working as hard as you are?

We know the past few years have been a grind for staffing and recruiting firms, making an already highly competitive business even tougher. The Staffing Hub 2024 State of Staffing report highlighted, to the surprise of exactly no one in the industry, that the top three challenges facing agencies today are: client acquisition and sales (25%,) economic challenges (18%,) and talent acquisition (17%.)

Your staffing website might be one of the most overlooked parts of your sales strategy. If it hasn’t been touched in years or was built without performance in mind, it could be quietly slowing you down.

That said, starting your own audit can be really valuable. It gives you a first-hand view of how your site is performing and can surface issues you might not have noticed before. And if you need to take it further, you can always bring in a marketing team. Think of it like checking your car before a road trip. You can top off fluids and spot a flat tire, but a seasoned mechanic will catch the deeper issues you’d likely miss, like brake wear or alignment problems – and be able to fix them.  

Ready to take a look under the hood? Let’s get into it.

Part 1: Words That Work

Speak to Humans. Search Engines Will Follow.

Messaging, for better or for worse, is the first thing people absorb and react to when they interact with a brand. Taking the time to audit and refresh your brand message is more than just necessary maintenance – it’s a wise investment of time and energy to ensure your website is positioning you for success in awareness, consideration, and engagement with your target audience. “The curse of knowledge” is an easy trap to fall into so be sure you’re reviewing your content with the lens of a candidate or prospective client.

Your website has two jobs:

1. Make it crystal clear what you do
2. Get the right people to take action fast

Start with your messaging. Most staffing websites sound like they were written by a committee of consultants in 2011. The key? Make sure your copy resonates with both clients and candidates and actually reflects how your business operates today.

Headlines

Your H1 is your handshake. Make it count.

Would your main headline pass the “cocktail party test”? If someone asked what your firm does, would your answer be:

• Clear
• Specific
• Memorable

The H1Tag Is Where Competition Starts. You want that Header <h1> tag to allow you to compete on high volume searches and narrow in on the searches that are winnable for your company.

Examples:

• Bad: “Staffing Solutions for Today and Tomorrow”
• Better: “Top-Tier Financial Services Staffing in the Midwest”

Ask yourself:

• Does your H1 make sense to both a hiring manager and a job seeker?
• Does it clearly state your niche, or could it apply to any agency?

H2s should reinforce and build context

Your subheaders (H2 tags) do heavy lifting for both engagement and SEO. They help visitors scan and understand your offerings without committing to full paragraphs, while also signaling to search engines what’s important on the page.

Use subheadlines to:

• Add SEO relevance (think: keywords like “IT recruiting services” or “niche staffing firm in healthcare”)
• Reinforce your authority and unique value proposition
• Guide readers deeper into your site

Example: “40 Years of Providing Bondable, Vetted Talent to Financial Institutions.”

Ask yourself:

• If someone only read your H2s, would they understand your strengths?
• Are they compelling enough to make someone scroll further?

Body Copy

Body Copy is Where Brand, SEO, and Service Selling Come Together.

And too often, it’s either overloaded with jargon or thin on details.

Your copy needs to:

• Reflect your current services, team structure, and brand personality
• Include phrases and questions your prospects and candidates actually search for (e.g. semantic search)
• Drive users toward the next logical step in their journey

Ask yourself:

• Is there outdated language or service descriptions that no longer apply?
• Are you speaking to real problems and goals—or just listing features?

CTAs

“Click here” is dead. Instead, use short, punchy CTAs that drive urgency and highlight benefits.

Your CTA buttons and links should be:

• Clear and specific (e.g., “Start Hiring Now,” not “Submit”)
• Action-oriented and benefit-driven (e.g., “Access Top Tech Talent” or “Schedule Your Free Strategy Call”). Need more inspiration? See our mini reference guide at the bottom of this article
• Placed where users are ready to act—above the fold, mid-scroll, and at the end of every page

Examples:

• View Open Roles
• Book a Strategy Call
• Access Our Exclusive Talent Roster

Ask yourself:

• Are your CTAs aligned with each audience’s next logical step?
• Are any of them too generic or vague?

Part 2: Visuals That Tell Your Story

Make an Impression Before They Bounce

According to Forbes, users form an opinion about your website in 0.05 seconds. That first impression? It’s almost entirely visual. And on top of that, 40% will leave if the site takes more than three seconds to load.

And guess what? Video and photography increase the load time, but video in particular, increases the time a visitor spends on page. So, it’s a delicate dance: capture that nanosecond of an opening in the visitor’s attention span with amazing visual content, but don’t take too long to load. As you run through the audit, be mindful of load time, look for any particular video or image content that is dragging the experience down.

Your visuals should:

• Build trust – Feature real team photos, office shots, and testimonial quotes with headshots
• Reflect your brand – Use a cohesive palette, typography, and image style that align with your brand guide
• Break up the text – Use imagery and icons to create visual rhythm and prevent “wall of text” syndrome
• Highlight your niche – Show your specialization, whether that’s lab technicians in PPE or tech consultants on-site with clients

Bonus Tips:

Show and Tell. The combination of photograph or videography with data visualization in balance can help convey your key messages while minimizing load time. Check your most recent competitive data points (as a starting point, review the stats that clients ask you for in the request for proposal process – like referral stats, client tenure, hire class fill-rates, etc.)

• Clean infographics showing fill rate, time-to-hire, and client retention
• Charts comparing your firm’s performance against industry benchmarks
• Client logos, case study highlights, or trust badges (certifications, awards)

Reinforce Branding: A key outcome from a regular audit is ensuring any minor changes to your brand standards that evolve over time are reflected in the site. As you review, have your latest brand standards at hand so you can ensure your site has consistent visual themes, colors, and styles. It’s also easy to overlook dated content in stock photography when you’ve had the same image on your site for a few years, but often that sticks out like a sore thumb to fresh eyes and detracts from your brand, so ask yourself a couple of questions:

EVOKE EMOTION:  When your audience consists of both job seekers and hiring managers, your imagery should evoke positive reactions and feelings in both.

Ask yourself:

• Are you showcasing your strongest proof points visually?
• What could a first-time visitor learn about your success just by scanning your imagery?

Part 3: User Experience

The Make-or-Break Element of Your Web Site

User design has more to do with the success of your business than almost any other element of your marketing plan. Sure, that’s a dramatic statement, but it’s not hyperbole. We have the receipts: almost half of people polled in Forbes’ recent web statistics report (48%) say “the number one way they decide on the credibility of a business is determined by the web design” and 57% won’t recommend a business if they feel their web site is badly designed.

Most of a visitor’s time is spent “above the fold” or the upper half of your landing page and almost ¾ of visitor time is spent in the first two “screenfuls.” As a staffing business, you have your dual audiences’ competing interests to manage. Both sides of the equation need to be able to navigate and convert on your site with ease. There are therefore a couple of key things to focus on as you audit your site, bearing the needs of both types of visitors in mind.

Make it easy for both candidates and clients to:

• Understand who you serve and how
• Find what they need in two clicks or less
• Trust that they’re in the right place to take action

Evaluate Navigation and Structure

Audit for:

• Simple, consistent menu structure
• Clear links to services, jobs, FAQs, and contact pages
• Logical site flow—grouped by audience when appropriate (e.g., Job Seekers vs. Employers)

• Test your job search functionality yourself. We highly recommend applying as a candidate each time you conduct an audit.

Ask yourself:

• Can users tell where to go without thinking?
• Does your navigation feel overwhelming or confusing?

Candidate Experience

Test the process by applying to a role yourself. Look at:

• Mobile responsiveness—are you optimized for applicants on-the-go?
• Search filters—can users narrow by industry, location, and type of job?
• Application steps—how many clicks does it take? Are resumes easy to upload?

Ask yourself:

• Would you complete your own application process?
• Are there any unnecessary steps that could be eliminated?

Client Experience

Check:

• Do hiring managers know what roles you fill within 10 seconds?
• Is there an easy way to contact someone—form, phone, calendar link?
• Are lead forms short and inviting—not overly detailed?

Ask yourself:

• Do your contact points inspire confidence?
• Are you asking for too much too soon?

Accessibility

Don’t leave users behind. Confirm:

• Alt text on every image
• High-contrast colors and large enough font sizes
• Forms and navigation that work with keyboard-only and screen readers

Ask yourself:

• Have you tested your site with an accessibility checker?
• Could a visually impaired visitor navigate your site with ease?

Final Thought: Audit Twice a Year. Optimize Continuously.

Your website isn’t a billboard—it’s your top-performing recruiter, available 24/7.
When it’s optimized, it:

• Attracts qualified candidates
• Generates warm client leads
• Reinforces your credibility in a competitive market

Run a review every six months. Go deeper by tracking:

• Bounce rates (why are visitors leaving?)
• Session times (what holds their attention?)
• Conversion paths (where do leads originate?)
• Heatmaps and click maps (how are people engaging?)

Need help turning your audit insights into action? Explore our staffing website design services at echogravity.

Need more CTA inspiration? Here’s a quick-reference list of high-converting words to boost action, emotion, and urgency across your site.

Action-Oriented Words

• “Get” (e.g., Get Started, Get Your Free Quote)
• “Discover” (e.g., Discover More, Discover Exceptional Talent Solutions)
• “Learn” (e.g., Learn More, Learn How to Access Our Talent Roster)
• “Start” (e.g., Start Your Journey, Start Reviewing Candidates Now)

Benefit-Driven Words

• “Free” (e.g., Download Free Guide, Claim Your Free Trial)
• “Now” (e.g., Subscribe Now, Shop Now)
• “Save” (e.g., Save Your Spot, Save Time and Money)
• “Exclusive” (e.g., Access Exclusive Offers, Join Our Exclusive Community)
• “Limited” (e.g., Limited Time Offer, Claim Your Limited Spot)

Emotional Words

• “You/Your” (e.g., Transform Your Business, Secure Qualified Staff)
• “Easy” (e.g., Make It Easy, Easy Steps to Success)
• “Fast” (e.g., Get Results Fast, Get Started in Seconds)