Getting Noticed
One of the unfortunate realities of the job search process is that it's not perfect. The perfect candidate does not always get matched up with the perfect job for them. Very often, a candidate that would be a great fit for a position goes unnoticed. How can you prevent this from happening to you? I'd suggest you think about everything you're doing to find a job and figure out how you can make yourself more noticeable.
As I've mentioned in previous newsletters, one of the most basic steps someone can take when searching for a job in this digital age is to get their resume posted on all the job boards. Of course you should have your resume posted on Monster, Job.com, CareerBuilder and DirectEmployers. But there are many other job boards that recruiters use for one reason or another. Some recruiters only search job boards for the specialty they work in - like FINS.com for finance or Dice.com for IT. I'd recommend visiting ResumeDirector.com to find out more about resume posting. If you want to save time and get it done fast, you can pay them to post your resume on all the job boards for you. Plus they have a list of the most important job boards available on their site in case you want to do it yourself. Visit their site at:
http://www.jobsearchinfo.com/rd.htm
Another consideration is the text of your resume itself. Take a look at your resume and try to think about it from the perspective of someone who has 300 resumes to look through in the next hour (as many recruiters do). Is it formatted in an easy to read way that would make you want to read it? Many recruiters will skip over your resume if they can't figure out what you do within 10-15 seconds. How can you accomplish that if you have a long career history? Simple - start off your resume with a one or two sentence summary explaining what you do and key accomplishments. For example, "Senior Accountant with 10 years' experience auditing Fortune 500 corporations. A seasoned professional having work in both internal and outside auditing functions." With the rest of your resume, consider using a bullet point format and either leave out or make brief any sections of your resume that don't pertain to the type of job you're seeking now.
For example, if you're looking for a job as a computer programmer, it's probably not important to list that you were a file clerk 15 years ago. We have found a site with a good collection of sample resumes you can review to get ideas on how to make yours better. To find out more about ResumeEdge or to get to their site, check out our resource page at:
http://www.JobSearchInfo.com
So assuming you have a well-written resume and you're on the critical job boards, what other steps can you take to find a job? Well getting noticed is often about thinking "outside the box" and doing things other job seekers aren't doing. The multimillionaire Aristotle Onassis came to this country as a poor immigrant from Greece who couldn't speak English very well. He didn't think he had a good chance of getting a loan if he followed the normal protocol and filled out an application at the bank. So he decided to follow the bank's loan officer around. He didn't say anything to the man, but wherever he went, Onassis was not too far behind. One day the loan officer was coming out of a restaurant after finishing his lunch and noticed Onassis standing across the street. He went up to him and asked, "Who are you and what do you want?" To which Aristotle replied, "I'm Onassis and I want a loan." Sure enough he got one and the rest is history.
Does this mean you should follow recruiters around? Probably not. But keep in mind anything you can do to distinguish yourself from the other job seekers they hear from is to your benefit. Most job seekers these days send their resume to recruiters by e-mail. A good recruiter can receive hundreds of e-mails per day, which can make it difficult for your resume to stand out. On the other hand, recruiters receive far fewer faxes. Plus, faxes are often delivered to the recruiter's desk personally by an assistant, giving the fax a higher priority.
Using FaxMyResume.com, it is now possible to fax your resume to recruiters from the Internet. FaxMyResume provides links to recruiter directories so you can look up recruiters in your area and fax your resume directly to those you feel could help you. You can also type in the fax number of any recruiter or employer in the U.S. or Canada and the service will fax your resume there as well. To find out more about FaxMyResume or to get to their site, check out our resource page at:
http://www.JobSearchInfo.com
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