Overview
This article helps you set up and manage job alerts on Access Volcanic to keep candidates engaged with your latest opportunities. Job alerts send automated emails containing up to 12 relevant jobs based on candidate preferences, applications, and saved searches, helping you maintain regular contact with your talent pool.
Key benefits
Maintain candidate engagement – Keep your talent pool active and interested between applications
Reduce manual outreach – Automated alerts save time while maintaining regular candidate contact
Improve job matching – Smart selection system ensures candidates receive relevant opportunities
Increase application rates – Regular exposure to new roles encourages more applications
Build talent relationships – Consistent communication strengthens your recruitment brand
Before you start
Before setting up job alerts, ensure you have:
Admin access to your Access Volcanic website
Active job postings on your site
Configured disciplines and job types for better matching
Decided whether to require candidate registration for subscriptions
📌Note: Click on the arrow ➤ to expand the section you're interested in:
Enable or disable job alerts
Enable or disable job alerts
Control whether job alerts are active on your website and available to candidates.
Log into the admin area
Click the Settings tab
Select Job Alerts under the Site heading
Toggle the Active switch to enable or disable alerts
Click the Submit button to save changes
📌 Note: Job alerts only start sending when your site is live. No alerts are sent before that point.
⚠️ Important: After disabling job alerts, there may be a delay before the
change takes full effect due to the platform's email scheduling system.
How candidates subscribe to job alerts
How candidates subscribe to job alerts
Understand the different ways candidates can sign up for job alerts on your website.
Job alerts form on the job search page
Candidates can subscribe using the form at the bottom of your job search page (/jobs). This form will either:
Ask them to provide an email address only
Require them to create an account or sign in (depending on your settings)
Create a basic account with just enough information to send alerts
📌 Note: You can edit the wording of this form via Theme Content in your admin area.
Automatic subscription through registration
When candidates create an account through your registration form or quick-apply process, they're automatically subscribed to weekly job alerts. They can then manage their preferences through the candidate dashboard.
🤓 Tip: Create a job alert legal document and add the options to include in forms, requiring candidates to accept before subscribing.
Configure job alert accounts
Configure job alert accounts
Choose whether candidates need to register before subscribing to job alerts.
Allow email-only subscriptions
By default, candidates can subscribe using just their email address. This creates a basic account with just enough information to send job alerts.
Require registration before subscription
To require candidates to create full accounts before subscribing:
Log into the admin area
Click the Settings tab near the top
Click Site under the Site heading
Scroll down to the Job Alerts & Notifications section
Tick the Require users to be logged in to sign up for job alerts checkbox
Click Submit to save changes
📌 Note: An account is needed for the platform to send job alerts, even with email-only subscriptions.
Manage candidate job alert frequency
Manage candidate job alert frequency
Control how often individual candidates receive job alerts through their dashboard or admin area.
Candidate dashboard method
Candidates can change their own frequency preferences:
Log into their website account
Click the Jobs tab
Select their preferred Job alerts frequency preference under the Job Alerts tab
Choose from:
Daily
Weekly
Unsubscribe
📌Note: Changes apply automatically once selected.
Admin area method
Admins can modify candidate preferences directly:
Log into the admin area
Click the Roles tab near the top
Click the view icon next to the Candidates row
Search for the candidate using the Find by email search bar
Click the Edit icon next to the candidate's details
Click the Job alerts frequency drop-down menu under Profile Information
Choose between Daily, Weekly, or Never
Click the Submit button to save changes
📌 Note: Weekly job alerts typically provide better results than daily ones, giving the algorithm a larger pool of jobs to select from.
Help candidates create saved job alerts
Help candidates create saved job alerts
Guide candidates to create personalised job alerts that improve relevance and matching.
Candidates can create saved job alerts to customise the jobs they receive:
Log into their website account
Click the Jobs tab
Find the Saved job alerts section
Configure their preferences using available filters:
Job title – Specific roles they're interested in
Locations – Preferred work locations
Disciplines – Relevant job categories
Job Type – Employment type preferences
Click the Create Alert button to save their preferences
📌 Note: Saved job alerts form part of the criteria when the algorithm selects jobs to include in email alerts.
🤓 Tip: Encourage candidates to create saved job alerts for more personalised and relevant job recommendations.
Understand the job selection algorithm
Understand the job selection algorithm
Learn how the platform chooses which jobs to include in each job alert email.
Selection process overview
The job alerts system uses a smart selection process to find a maximum of 12 recommended jobs using a hierarchy of priorities based on relevance. The system makes up to 4 searches and stops once 12 jobs are found.
Email sending rules:
0 jobs found – No email is sent
1-12 jobs found – Email sent with all identified jobs
More than 12 jobs – Email sent with top 12 most relevant jobs
Search hierarchy
The system performs searches in this priority order:
Search 1: Based on latest job applicationLooks for jobs similar to any applications the candidate made in the last month, matching on:
| Search 2: Based on saved job alertsUses candidate-created saved job alerts to find matching opportunities with their specified preferences for title, location, disciplines, and job type. |
Search 3: Latest featured jobsIncludes featured jobs if the featured jobs job alert setting is enabled and featured jobs exist on your site. | Search 4: Latest jobs on the siteAdds the most recent jobs posted if the latest jobs job alert setting is enabled and fewer than 12 jobs have been found. |
📌 Note: The job selection process cannot be customised for individual sites and works at the platform level for all customers.
Unsubscribe candidates from job alerts
Unsubscribe candidates from job alerts
Learn about the different ways candidates can stop receiving job alerts.
Candidate dashboard unsubscription
Candidates can unsubscribe themselves by:
Logging into their website account
Editing their job alert frequency preference in the candidate dashboard
Selecting the Unsubscribe option
Email link unsubscription
Candidates can unsubscribe directly from job alert emails:
Open any job alert email
Scroll to the bottom of the email
Click the Unsubscribe link
Confirm that they want to unsubscribe
Admin area unsubscription
Admins can unsubscribe candidates by changing their job alert frequency preference to Never in the admin area (follow steps in the Manage candidate job alert frequency section above).
Customise job alert emails
Customise job alert emails
Personalise your job alert emails with custom subject lines, body text, and tracking settings to match your brand and measure performance.
While the platform automatically selects which jobs to include in alerts, you have complete control over how your emails look and what additional content they contain. This helps you maintain consistent branding whilst tracking how effectively your job alerts drive candidate engagement.
Customise email content
Follow these steps to personalise your job alert email templates:
Log into the admin area
Click the Settings tab near the top
Click Job Alerts under the Site heading
Use the content toolbar to edit your Subject line
Add or modify your email Body text using the editor
Insert dynamic content using the orange tags provided
Click Submit to save your email template changes
📌 Note: Dynamic tags like {{user.name}} will personalise emails when candidate information is available, otherwise they'll be left blank.
Using dynamic content tags
You can personalise emails by adding these custom attributes:
{{user.name}} – Displays the candidate's first name when available
{{user.email}} – Shows the candidate's email address
Other profile fields – Check the orange tags menu for additional options
Configure content and tracking settings
Control what appears in your job alerts and how you measure their performance:
Content display options
Show featured jobs – Includes your featured job postings in the alert email
Show latest jobs – Adds the most recently posted jobs to the email
User opt-in – Sends alerts to candidates who manually created saved job alerts
Candidate's preferred location – Filters jobs based on location preferences in their profile
Analytics tracking options
Track job alert performance by adding UTM parameters to all email links:
Source – Identifies where traffic originates (e.g., "job-alerts")
utm_campaign – Names the specific campaign (e.g., "weekly-alerts-march")
utm_medium – Specifies the marketing medium (e.g., "email")
utm_term – Tracks specific keywords or audience segments
utm_content – Differentiates between similar content or links
After configuring these settings, click Submit to apply your changes.
📌 Note: UTM parameters help you measure job alert effectiveness in Google Analytics or other tracking platforms, showing which emails generate the most applications.
📌 Note: This functionality is managed through your admin area's email template settings. Contact your Professional Services team for custom email template modifications beyond the standard options.
Suggestions for getting relevant job alerts
Suggestions for getting relevant job alerts
Follow these guidelines to ensure your job alerts are effective and relevant for candidates.
Content optimisation
✅ Do | ❌ Don't |
Review and optimise your disciplines regularly for better job matching | Use overly broad or unclear discipline categories |
Use consistent keywords across job titles, summaries, and descriptions | Create jobs with completely different terminology for similar roles |
Encourage candidates to create saved job alerts for personalisation | Rely solely on automatic matching without candidate input |
Recommend weekly alerts over daily ones for better job selection | Set all candidates to daily alerts by default |
Management approach
✅ Do | ❌ Don't |
Monitor job alert performance and candidate engagement | Ignore whether candidates are finding alerts relevant |
Disable job alerts if they don't suit your business model | Keep them running without considering their effectiveness |
Help candidates understand how to optimise their preferences | Assume candidates will figure out saved alerts independently |
Regularly review and clean up inactive subscriptions | Let unengaged subscribers accumulate indefinitely |
⚠️ Important: Job alerts require active job postings to be effective. Ensure you have a steady flow of relevant opportunities for your candidates.
FAQs
Q1: When do job alerts start sending to candidates?
Answer: Job alerts only begin sending once your Access Volcanic site is live.
Q2: Can I customise the job alert algorithm for my site?
Answer: No, the job alert system works at the platform level and cannot be customised for individual sites.
Q3: Is job alert reporting available on the platform?
Answer: No built-in reporting exists on the platform for job alerts. You'll need to track engagement through other metrics like application rates and candidate feedback.
Q4: What happens if more than 12 jobs match a candidate's criteria?
Answer: Only the top 12 jobs based on the relevance hierarchy will be included in the email alert.
Q5: Can candidates receive job alerts without creating a full account?
Answer: Yes, candidates can subscribe using only their email address if your site settings allow it.
Q6: How do saved job alerts improve the relevance of emails?
Answer: Saved job alerts allow candidates to define specific preferences that the system uses when selecting jobs, resulting in more targeted recommendations.
Q7: Can I require candidates to register before subscribing to job alerts?
Answer: Yes, you can enable a setting in the admin area that requires candidates to log in or create an account before subscribing.
Q8: How often should candidates receive job alerts for best results?
Answer: Weekly job alerts typically perform better than daily ones because they give the system access to a larger pool of jobs.
Q9: What should I do if job alerts aren't relevant for my business model?
Answer: You can disable job alerts entirely in the admin area if they don't align with your recruitment approach.
Q10: How can I improve the relevance of job alerts for my candidates?
Answer: Focus on optimising your disciplines, using consistent keywords in job postings, and encouraging candidates to create saved job alerts.