I frequently talk to potential clients who tell me they
have been conducting a job search for X months without any
success, or that they have sent out X number of resumes
with virtually no response. When I press for more details,
I hear stories about resumes posted in online resume
databases and resumes sent in response to ads found on
online job boards.
What is wrong with these job search techniques?
Well...nothing is fundamentally wrong with them. In fact,
they play an important part - a small part - in most
well-constructed job search plans. However, these are
extremely low-payoff job search activities, and if these
are the only techniques you are using, the chances are far
greater than not that your job search will generate
disappointing and slow results.
If you are unhappy with the results of your job search, it
is time that you took an objective look at your job search
techniques. Are you spending too much of your precious time
and energy on low-payoff job search activities while you
ignore those that will produce the positive results that
you want and deserve?
While the more effective job search activities - such as
networking -usually require people to step out of their
comfort zones, the returns generated by your investment of
your time and energy will almost always be worth it.
So, if you find yourself stuck in a stalled, ineffective
search for your next job, here are some high-impact tips.
1) Take a hard look at your resume. Like it or not, your
resume is your first introduction to most employers, and
your only chance to make a good first impression. Effective
resumes are focused marketing pieces that are strategically
written and designed to sell YOU as THE best solution to a
potential employer's needs. Your resume should be written
to illustrate your unique value proposition, with succinct
"stories" that differentiate you from your competitors in
the job market. Does your resume accomplish these goals? Is
it focused effectively? Does it accurately present you in
the way that you wish to be presented? If not, it is time
to rewrite.
2) Now, take a hard look at your methods. Do the methods
you are using in your job search convey professionalism at
every step? Is your approach courteous and does it
illustrate an understanding of common business protocol?
For example, do you always send at least a brief letter of
introduction when you send a new contact your resume? I
can't tell you how many times a prospective client tells me
he isn't getting calls on his resume, and when I quiz him
he will tell me that he has been sending his resume as an
attachment to emails, and then admits that he has not been
including an introductory note. In this day and age, when
everyone is concerned about viruses and spam, do you
honestly believe that a recipient will open an attachment
that arrives with a blank email? Of course not! Or...Does
the message on your answering machine make you sound like a
polished professional or a party animal? Is your email user
name a professional-sounding one or a cutesy one? You have
tough competition in the job market. Details matter!
Courtesy and business protocol matters! Everything you do
in your job search should convey an impeccably professional
image. My best advice: Apply some basic common sense and
remember your manners.
3) Ramp up your networking efforts. Of all of the possible
job search methods, networking is the most effective by
far, and yet it is the method that the fewest people use. I
know that you don't want to hear this, but no matter how
uncomfortable it might be for you, networking is absolutely
crucial and is the fastest way to your next position.
Remember that when you are networking you are not asking
people if they know of an opening or to give you a job, you
are just asking for referrals or advice. Would you be upset
if someone you knew contacted you to inform you of their
job search and asked if you might be able to offer any
advice or point her in the right direction? Of course you
wouldn't. In fact, you might even be flattered. This is the
same reaction that your personal and professional
networking contacts will have. If you don't have frequent
face-to-face contact with your network, the quickest way to
jumpstart your search using networking is to send your
resume and a brief letter to every single one of your
contacts, and then follow up with a phone call a few days
later. In most cases, people will be more than happy to
help you out. But whether they are able to help you
immediately or not, follow up with a brief handwritten
thank you card. This is a gesture that will make a lasting
positive impression.
4) Do your research; don't just blindly and
indiscriminately send out your resume. Research the
geographic and industry areas that interest you and
identify the companies and opportunities that seem most
promising and intriguing to you. With the vast quantities
of information available on the Internet, you really have
no excuse not to research thoroughly. Identify the hiring
decision-makers and learn all you can about them and their
company, their competitors, their challenges, and their
future potential. This is a great time to call on your
professional network. Who do you know who knows someone who
knows some else at the company you are interested in? Once
you have an "in" through a referral, it is time to make
sure you are absolutely clear on your value proposition. In
what way do you feel you could add value to the company?
How would hiring you be beneficial? What is the return on
investment that the company could expect if they hired you?
Once you have the answers to these questions clear in your
mind, it is time to approach the targets.
5) Consider a targeted e-mailing of your resume to
headhunter/recruiter firms. But don't just use one of the
cheap broadcast services that send your resume out to some
unspecified list of 1000s of supposed recruiters. If you
are going to do this, use a high-quality service that uses
an up-to-date database of recruiting firms that they can
break down and segment based on the firms' specialties.
Approaching the distribution of your resume to headhunter
firms in this way ensures that the recipients of your
resume are individuals who have a sincere interest in
learning about you and your credentials. They will try to
match you to their current searches, and if you are a fit,
you will get a phone call right then. Otherwise, they tend
to database your resume to search in relation to future
recruitment assignments. Of all the suggestions, this is
the most passive and the easiest for you to implement with
the least amount of work. But, passive or not, if you are
in a profession that is among those often handled by
recruiting firms, you should definitely make this a part of
your overall job search strategy.
Finally, I can't stress enough how important it is for you
to follow up. Be assertive and approach your job search as
if it is a job in itself. Schedule your activities, keep
track of the contacts you have made and the resumes you
have sent, and follow up regularly and consistently.
Yes, there is no doubt that job searching can be a highly
stressful time. But you do have choices about how you will
spend your limited time and those choices can have a
profound impact on the success of your search. Choose to
focus on the high payoff activities and you will find
yourself back to work, in the job you want, much faster
than you thought was possible.
----------------------------------------------------
Nationally certified resume writer and career coach,
Michelle Dumas is the director of Distinctive Career
Services LLC. Through Distinctive Documents
http://www.distinctiveweb.com and her Executive VIP
Services http://www.100kcareermarketing.com
Michelle has
empowered thousands of professionals all across the U.S.
and worldwide. Michelle is also the author of Secrets of a
Successful Job Search http://www.job-search-secrets.com
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