Writing a job ad on a budget in NZ means being clear about pay, hours and duties so the free listing works the first time. A specific, honest ad reduces unsuitable applications, which matters most when you can't afford to repost repeatedly.
Why does the first draft matter so much when you're on your own?
If you're the shop owner doing the roster, the ordering and now the hiring, you don't get a do-over without cost. You get one free listing live for 15 days on a free employer account, and if that ad is vague, the 15 days gets eaten by phone calls with people asking what the job actually pays or what days they'd be working. Every one of those calls is time you don't have. The fix isn't a longer ad, it's a more specific one, written once, properly, before it goes live.
What actually needs to be in it, if you're writing this between customers?
Start with the shift pattern in real terms, not a category. "Two weekday closes and one Saturday" tells someone exactly what their life would look like, whereas "flexible hours" tells them nothing and invites a dozen people who can't actually do Saturdays. Say the pay rate or a genuine range rather than "competitive", because the person reading it is trying to work out if it covers their rent, not admire your discretion. List the actual duties of the job, the till, the stock, the closing checklist, rather than a paragraph of adjectives about being a team player.
How specific is too specific?
It isn't really possible to be too specific here. An ad that says "barista role, six staff, $24/hr, Tuesday to Saturday, no Sundays, must be able to do a 6am start twice a week" will get fewer replies than a vague one, and that's the point. Fewer replies, all of them from people who read the ad and decided they could actually do the job. That's the outcome you want when you only get one free listing to work with and no budget to run it twice.
What should you leave out?
Drop the corporate throat-clearing. Nobody applying to a six-person cafe needs a paragraph about your values statement or your mission. Say what the job is, what it pays, when it happens, and what you need from someone in the first month, then stop. If you want to see what the free listing itself covers before you write anything, you can advertise a role at no cost and use the form fields as a rough outline for the ad itself.
Key takeaways
- Name the actual shift pattern in the ad, not a general description like "flexible", so unsuitable applicants filter themselves out before they apply.
- State the pay rate or a real range rather than "competitive", since that word answers nothing for the person reading it.
- List concrete duties instead of personality traits, it tells a first-time applicant what their day would actually look like.
- A specific ad gets fewer, better-matched applications, which matters when you only have one free listing and no budget to repost.
- The free plan gives you one active listing live for 15 days at no cost, through a free employer account.
Frequently asked questions
Does it cost anything to post a job ad in NZ?
No. FindMeAJob's free plan lets you run one active listing for 15 days at no cost, through a free employer account. There's a paid PRO option at $29 one off if you want 30 days and priority placement.
How long does a free listing stay live?
A free listing runs for 15 days. If your NZBN is verified it goes live instantly, otherwise listings are reviewed first, usually within 24 hours.
Should I include the pay rate if I only have a rough range?
Yes, a genuine range is far more useful to an applicant than no figure at all. Vague or missing pay tends to bring in people who aren't actually matched to what you can offer.
What's the minimum I legally have to pay?
The adult minimum wage is $23.95 per hour, or $19.16 per hour for the starting-out and training rate where it applies. Source: Minimum wage
Do I need to write a full job description before the ad?
Not a full formal one, but jotting down the actual duties first makes the ad itself much faster to write, since you're just trimming it down rather than starting from a blank page.
If you're ready to put the ad together, you can create your free employer account and post the role and get it in front of applicants without spending anything to try it.