While classified ads are a time proven method for employers in attracting applicants to their job vacancies, classifieds have the marked disadvantage of costing more. They are also limited to a newspapers distribution area and are limited in the amount of specifics you can place in your job advertisement.

The internet allows employers to advertise jobs for free online and expands the viewership of ad placements exponentially. Many online jobs boards now exist, offering applicants the opportunity to post their resumes. This has allowed the job boards to build up databases on prospective employees at a minimal cost. Employers who post a job and seek qualified applicants have had to pay to get access to the information that these boards have amassed. They have to pay per click on their advert or for the CVs sent to them. The problem that has emerged with this model is that employers are inundated with worthless CVs, or with what has been called Resume Spam. What has happened is that while employers are able to cast a wider net, a lot of unqualified applicants also end up in the employers inbox. Job boards need to look at next generation technologies, such as improved-algorithm CV ranking software, and methodologies to help employers automatically screen candidates that fit more specific job requirements.

Some sites have launched themselves as a sort of Google for job vacancies. These boards launch their own spiders, web crawling software, to trawl job boards and index the results. Job seekers can then search these job-specific search engines for vacancies that fit their particular skill sets. Job agencies or HR departments are also sometimes allowed to sponsor specified job vacancies so that they are displayed higher in the search engines results. Applicants who click on a particular employers posting are then charged. Depending on the site, employers are charged on a pay-per-click, PPC, or a pay per application, PPA, model. With both models the employer sets the maximum they are prepared to spend in total so that the cost can be controlled. PPC or PPA models could be built around providing sponsored links as well as other value-added services. The problem that crops up for employers or recruiters in these models is that they can end up paying for hits or applications and not for quality. This is a real worry, especially with the fact that resume spam is not just a concern but a real problem. Add to this the fact that some job vacancies, because of a fairly common skill set for example will naturally get a large response and the employer or recruiter will truly get swamped with CVs. This is especially true of job vacancies like typing clerks, administrative assistants or sales agents. Clearly a PPC or PPA model will not work in these cases. But if employers or recruiters are very specific and apply extra diligence on how they write their job advertisements, it will help ensure that only the most relevant candidates resumes pass through.

Pay for performance models are one of the newer developments in the online job advertising business. Lead generation on a cost per lead basis is a fast-growing segment of the job advertising business. These services are a step up from the PPC or PPA model as it is closer to the actual goals of employers, where the job boards are not paid for generating resumes but are instead paid for helping employer and recruiters hire well-qualified candidates when they post a job. In this model, employers define for the job board what they consider to be a qualified candidate. Based upon the attractiveness of the job opportunity and the fields that the employers require for the lead to be qualified, a price per lead is then set. Other procedures for the P4P model allow employers to review a summary or data scraping of applicants resumes for free. If or when the employer or recruiter clicks on a link to display the resumes full detail, then that is when the employer is charged.

Another model in job advertising that is a step above the lead-based model is a cost-per-hire model. Pay per placement would involve a close arrangement with the employers or recruiters who post a job. Both the employer and the job board will have to agree on a system which tracks the candidates once they have been recommended or accepted for placement. The big advantage for employers or recruiters in this model is that they get to advertise jobs for free while paying for actual results.