How to write a job ad that good technicians actually answer

Most help-wanted posts for trades read the same: "Looking for a motivated self-starter to join our growing team. Must have a great attitude. Pay DOE." A skilled tech reads that and learns nothing they need to decide. A good job ad works like a good service page: it answers the questions the reader actually has, in the order they have them.

This guide covers what to put in the ad, a template you can adapt, the federal anti-discrimination basics from the EEOC, and how to handle the replies. It is general information, not legal advice. State and local rules on job postings differ, so check yours through our state start pages.

Write down the job before you write the ad

Most weak ads come from a fuzzy role. Before drafting, answer four questions on paper. What will this person do on a normal Tuesday? What must they be able to do on day one, and what can you teach in a month? Who will they report to on the job site? What does good performance look like after 90 days: calls per day, callbacks, reviews, upsells? If you cannot answer, the applicant cannot either, and you will end up hiring on personality alone. The answers also become your interview questions and the first page of your onboarding plan, so the work is not wasted.

What do good technicians look for in a job ad?

Experienced techs are not short on options. When they scroll past your ad, they are checking a short list:

• Pay. A number or a range, and how it is paid: hourly, salary, piece, commission or a mix. "Competitive pay" reads as "below market".
• Hours and season. Start time, typical end time, Saturdays, on-call rotation, and what happens in the slow months.
• The truck and the tools. Take-home vehicle or shop pickup, who supplies hand tools, what equipment they will run.
• The work itself. Residential or commercial, service or install, how many calls a day, how far they drive.
• Whether you are organized. Do jobs arrive on a phone with notes and photos, or as a scribbled address? Are paychecks on time? Many techs leave shops over chaos, not pay.
• Room to grow. Training, a path to lead tech or crew lead, help with certifications.

Everything else, your mission statement included, can wait for the interview.

Should you put the pay in the ad?

Yes, for practical reasons, and in some places because the law says so. Colorado's Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, for example, requires employers to announce job openings and the pay range for them. Other states and cities have their own posting rules, so check the official labor agency for every place you hire.

To set a defensible number, look at what your market pays. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for about 830 occupations, by state and by metro area; the most recent data on the site as of October 2026 is for May 2025. Look up the closest occupation for the role, then adjust for experience, your benefits and what local shops actually offer. Your own numbers matter too: the hourly rate calculator shows what a tech's hour has to bill at once labor, vehicles and overhead are counted.

A job ad template for a field technician

Adapt this to your trade. Keep it under 400 words; techs read on phones.

Two notes on the template. Keep "you need" short and honest; every extra requirement filters out people who could do the job. And if you list physical demands, describe the task ("carry 60-pound equipment up ladders") rather than describing the kind of person you picture doing it.

Which wording can get you in trouble?

The EEOC says it is illegal to publish a job advertisement that shows a preference for, or discourages someone from applying because of race, color, religion, sex (including transgender status, sexual orientation and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. Its own example: an ad seeking "females" or "recent college graduates" may discourage men and people over 40 from applying.

Federal coverage depends on size. The EEOC says equal pay rules apply from one employee, most of its other laws from 15, and the age law from 20, counted over at least 20 calendar weeks. The EEOC also notes that state and local laws may apply to smaller businesses. Write every ad as if all of these apply; it costs nothing and the ad reads better.

Recruiting channels count too. The EEOC gives an example of a company relying on word-of-mouth referrals from a largely single-ethnicity workforce, which can produce an unlawful hiring pattern. Referrals are a fine source of techs; just do not make them your only one.

Where should the ad go?

Post it where techs already look, and on assets you own:

• A careers page on your website. It is the one listing that never expires, it gives search engines and AI assistants something to index, and every other post can link back to it.
• Your Google Business Profile. A post about the opening reaches people already looking at your company.
• Job boards and trade-school job boards. Useful for reach; repost on a schedule so the ad stays fresh.
• Supply houses and local trade groups. Where working techs actually stand around and talk.
• Your trucks. A short "Now hiring techs" line and a text number on the tailgate.

How do you handle the applicants?

The speed rule that wins customers also wins techs. A good applicant who hears nothing for three days has taken another job. Reply within a business day, even if only to book a call.

1. Five-minute phone screen. Confirm pay expectations, schedule, license and the one or two must-have skills. Ask the same questions of every candidate.
2. Working interview or ride-along. Paid, if the person is doing real work. Under federal law, work you suffer or permit is work time.
3. Background or driving checks, if you use them. If you get a report from a screening company, the FTC says you must give a standalone written notice and get written permission first, and follow specific notice steps before and after any adverse decision based on the report. See the FTC's employer guide.
4. Offer in writing, with pay, schedule, start date and the first-week plan.

Track applicants the way you track leads: source, date, stage, next step. A spreadsheet works for one opening. If you hire every season, the same CRM that tracks customer leads can track applicants, so a good tech who said "not this year" gets a call next spring. Once someone accepts, our guides on hiring your first employee and onboarding new field employees cover what comes next.

Frequently asked questions