Top 3 Job Search Strategies To Set Yourself Apart

The job market may be improving slightly, but it's still ridiculously tough out there.

I often hear candidate frustration over hiring managers' extremely exacting criteria - criteria that seems impossible for any candidate to fulfill. It's not the employer's fault - there's an over supply of labor, so why not be picky from their point of view?

Often the reason for this frustration can be simplified to one of three major reasons:

1. "Me too resumes" - Your resume looks the same as hundreds of competitors, making it impossible for you to stand out
2. One size fits all resumes - Your fit may not be clear from the face of the resume
3. "Stretch positions" - The candidate realistically can fulfill less than 90% of the criteria

Today's article describes 3 strategies to help you stand out from the crowd.

Create A Resume That Differentiates You

Your resume is probably the tool you use most in your job search. But after you've written it once, how much time do put into the document yourself. If you're like most job seekers, you don't change your resume much after writing it. Most candidates use a static resume and customize with a cover letter - not a very effective tactic when your market expects customization.

A customized resume is the single most effective thing you can do to increase your chances in job search. Few candidates know how to effectively customize their resume to gain hiring manager attention - because few of us were ever taught. There are a few specific ways to customize your resume that will have the greatest impact on your job search effectiveness.

Here's how to get the biggest resume bang for your buck:

• Lose The Cover Letters: In http://recareered.blogspot.com/2009/12/is-your-cover-letter-obsolete-tradition.html I discuss how over 96% of hiring managers, HR reps and recruiters make their interview decision based on your resume, effectively ignoring your cover letter.
• Fishing vs Response Resume: Fishing resumes (when you don't know the hiring company) and Response resumes (when you know who the hiring company is) are great frameworks for structuring your resume in a clear form, delivering information for each of your resume's 4 audiences to easily find what they are looking for (see: http://recareered.blogspot.com/2009/09/differentiate-your-resume-with-winning.html).
• Subject Matter Expertise: Many candidates consider themselves generalists, but in today's hyper competitive job market, few hiring managers hire for generalist skill sets - because they don't have to. Hiring managers today have the ability to micro target skill sets, and have a universe of thousands of competitors from which to choose - why would a hiring manager choose a generalist when they can find subject matter experts? As a candidate, your search is more effective if you communicate wheat you do better than anyone else, rather than concentrate all 50 things you can do (see: http://recareered.blogspot.com/2010/04/subject-matter-experts-rule-best-of.html).
• Clear Branding Very few candidates do an effective job of clearly branding themselves in a brief sentence. Branding yourself concisely gives your audience a crystal clear idea of who you are and what problems you can solve for them. Create a relevant branding statement for your specific audience and you have a high probability of "hooking" their attention, and getting a through read (see: http://recareered.blogspot.com/2010/01/how-personal-branding-statement-can.html).
• Understand 3 things your next employer looks for: Can you solve my problems? How will you make money (or provide value if non-profit) for my company? Will you "fit"? See more details at http://recareered.blogspot.com/2009/12/3-things-your-next-employer-will-search.html.
• Have better information than your competitors: Most candidates wait until interview preparation to do much research. Those who do some research before sending a resume, on average spend less than 1/2 hour researching the company. The more information, and more non-public information you can gain about a company before sending a resume, the more likely your resume and communications will address the important issues the company, department, and hiring manager face. This gives the heavily researched candidate such a big advantage, because they can create the perception of being "the perfect candidate" (see: >http://recareered.blogspot.com/2009/11/guerrilla-job-search-tactics.html).

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Online Reputation Mgmt

Demonstrate Employer Value

Search Tips for Working Moms

Can social media rescue your career?

By Melissa Neiman • Bankrate.com

Highlights

• More companies turning to social media, away from classifieds.
• Workers without online presence "don't exist to the world."
• Twitter, LinkedIn cited as top resources for job hunting.

In today's competitive job market, social media has become the new jungle. Is a reluctance to sign up for a LinkedIn account keeping you from the job of your dreams?

Quite possibly, according to Dan Schawbel, personal branding expert and author of "Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success."

Increasingly, companies looking for workers are investing more resources into social ads on Facebook, Google AdWords, Craigslist, Twitter and blogs, Schawbel says.

"Social media is replacing classified ads," he says.

Having an online presence is essential for today's job seekers, "because if you aren't visible, you don't exist to the world," Schawbel says.

Growth of LinkedIn membership

Source: LinkedIn

"If I search for your name, or someone with expertise like yours, and you don't come up, you will lose an opportunity each time that occurs. If two candidates have the same background, but one has a popular blog, the blogger will be hired," he says.

The new rules

Marci Reynolds, CEO of J2B Marketing in Boston -- which helps job seekers with "social media and job search" -- agrees that companies are turning away from job boards and toward social media when hiring.

In some cases, companies post jobs exclusively on social networking websites, especially when targeting candidates who are "social media savvy," says Reynolds, who is also a sales and marketing consultant, blogger and author.

Schawbel says some job seekers, such as those in the service industry, still may have luck pounding the pavement and scrutinizing the Sunday classifieds.

However, others -- especially those who set their sights on executive level positions -- need to establish a strong online presence.

"You should disregard classified ads from your job search if you're a serious job seeker," Schawbel says. "The best jobs in the world aren't advertised, and if you make a phone call or submit your resume to a classified ad, you'll be one of hundreds, if not thousands, to do so."

Instead, job seekers should use social media to build relationships and help make themselves "one of one," he says.

"The only way to do that is to build a relationship with someone who works at the company that's advertising," he says, adding that social media allows job seekers to skip job boards and corporate websites and to "connect directly with hiring managers."

How to do it

So, how can job seekers put their best foot forward in cyberspace?

For starters, it's crucial to maintain a professional online presence that reflects the position you want and the skills companies are looking for, Schawbel says.

A growing number of companies rely on search engines like Google when scouting for potential candidates, he says. However, too many job seekers use keywords and job titles from previous positions when branding themselves, even if they hated their old jobs.

"Brand yourself for the career you want, not the job you have," Schawbel says.

Reynolds agrees that Googling candidates "has become a normal part of the employer research process." She says job seekers who do not have an online presence may hurt their career prospects.

"If you are in a marketing or technical profession and don't use the Internet, it may look like you are not up-to-date with trends and tools," she says. "Plus, you will miss out on job postings, learning opportunities and so much more."

Although it's never too late to establish a social media presence, the best time to do so is long before you receive a pink slip or decide to pursue new career opportunities, Schawbel says.

"All of the job seekers that are scoring interviews and jobs now have already built their online following when they were employed," he says. "The people that are just starting to network are perceived as desperate and are begging for jobs, instead of building genuine relationships."

Best places to start

Schawbel recommends Twitter as the best place to start actively networking because it's in the public domain and allows you to follow a stranger in an unobtrusive manner.

"After a few weeks networking on Twitter, you can turn your public conversations into private ones by sending a direct message or e-mailing the hiring manager," Schawbel says. "Then, you can set up an information interview and take it from there."

He also recommends LinkedIn because it "was built as a professional network, which means that it's much more valuable than Facebook or MySpace for finding a job."

A LinkedIn profile offers potential employers a thorough understanding of your work experience and educational background. In addition, employers can view recommendations from your previous managers, Schawbel says.

"You can search for jobs on LinkedIn too, and see who in your network can introduce you to hiring managers," he says.

Reynolds agrees that LinkedIn can be a powerful resource.

"LinkedIn is the most important job-search social media tool," she says.

Regardless of which type of social media you choose to explore, it's important to create a presence that lifts your brand above the rest of the job-seeking crowd, Schawbel says.

"You want to have a positive and professional online image, so that when employers are searching for you, you don't give them a reason to move to the next candidate," he says.

Original Article

10 suggestions to help change your job search results for the better

Just as sure as springtime is a new beginning and April showers bring May flowers, a creative, well crafted resume and a job search strategy that is focused on the prize and monitored on a regular basis will go a long way towards getting a stagnant career to blossom once again.

Recently a HR client of mine referred a good friend of his to me, a world-renowned Organization Development consultant who needed help revising his $699 ‘The Ladders’ resume that was barely getting traction in his job search.

In getting to know one another I asked him to describe what an OD does in one sentence. Without flinching he told me, "I help companies, teams and individuals to change their present state into a desired future state."

When I heard this it struck a chord in me that what he does for his clients as an OD is what I do for my clients as a resume writer and job transition coach.

And how does an OD get results. By conducting a case study talking to the parties involved from the CEO on down, and asking them to take off their rose-colored glasses for a few minutes and take an unbiased look at their goals, their strategy to meet these goals, and the tools they are using to reach them. The key to their success is in knowing how to ask the hard question - do you feel you will reach your goal doing what you’re doing, or is it time for a change? Once they establish a rapport and obtain the information they need, they collaborate to make the necessary changes to either reach or reassess the desired end results.

For those of you who can not afford a coach or have yet to see the value of an unbiased outsider’s professional opinion I suggest you honestly reassess your resume and search strategy and ask yourself the hard question – “Am I getting the results I want?” If you are not, here are 10 suggestions to help change your less than sought-after present into the bright future you eagerly desire.

1: Stop wasting precious time on job boards and start networking for 25 hours or more each week. The bottom line is unless you’re in the Top 15% of the available talent in your field, or supply & demand in your line of work lies in your favor you are likely to be lost in cyberspace; especially if your resume shows you to be much less talented than you are.

2: Stop sending emails, texting and reaching out to people electronically. To truly communicate with people and showcase your skills and your passion you must use the phone or Skype and start a verbal dialogue. There is a place for email, texting, blogging, twittering and making new friends on Linked-in, Facebook and other social media sites. Nothing replaces a 1-on-1 conversion for making a lasting impact and getting others to advocate on your behalf.

3: Look objectively at your current resume and see if it is the resume you truly desire, or is it just the best that you could write. If you find it lacking reach out to trusted colleagues in your field and get in contact with professional resume writers, HR people and business decision makers you may know and ask them for their opinions and suggestions.

4: Color code job postings of jobs you are interested in before you submit a resume. This will help you customize the resume for that job and double your chances of being called for an interview. If you don't know how to do this you can email me at Perry@perrynewman.com for a PPT presentation on this topic.

5: Whatever you do in your job search, give it your all. Don’t depend on others to do the hard work for you. My mother told me, and I sure she was not alone in giving this piece of advice, “If you want something done how you want it and when you want it – Do-It-Yourself.”

6: Throughout your job search you must honestly assess your motives, goals and efforts, and decide whether you need professional help or if can go it alone. For some job searches are like a common cold that will cure itself in a week or in 7 days with some aspirin or OTC medication that is easily accessible. For most people today it is like a torn ACL or severely pulled hamstring that needs to be diagnosed and treated by a physician or physical therapist, and if left untreated it will only get worse and take up to 10 times as long to properly heal, if it heals properly at all.

7: If you don't feel it is worth making an investment in yourself, how can you justify thinking an unknown employer should make an investment in you?

8. If you are seeking job in a profession that appreciates creativity and your resume is not performing up to expectations, I suggest you look into what I call a Bio-Rez format. You can view a few sample resumes at http://www.perrynewman.com.

9: Stay positive and realize that your being out of work has more to do with the state of economy than your abilities

10: If you want a free coaching session you can contact me. Offer is good until May 31, 2010.

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Author:

Perry Newman, CPC CSMS is a nationally recognized executive resume writer, career coach, AIPC certified recruiter and SMMU certified social media strategist known for his ability to help his clients get results. You can view sample resumes at http://www.perrynewman.com and email him your resume at perry@perrynewman.com for FREE telephone resume critique.

Original Article

Making an online campaign of your job search process

Early in March this year, I had blogged about a girl’s job search approach and had termed it job search, version 3.0. If that was 3.0, here’s an another interesting approach that could be well be 4.0.

A former (since he’s on the lookout for a job) ad. agency guy, Manoj Kandhaswamy has made his job search into a campaign of sorts, online! Called ‘My Next Boss’, it is an interesting way to seek contacts and connect with relevant people in an industry that Manoj seems to be interested in.

In a blog post, Manoj explains the idea:

After 4.8 yrs. I am perfectly bundled with learnings from my advertising career and great exposure to mobile marketing and social media. Having realized that I believe that I can be a value-add for any communication outfit where there is a need for brand communication with the consumers, I am open to explore opportunities in advertising, digital communication, brand management etc.

So now: My next boss. Is it you? Or the one you know?

Unlike Ankita Satija (of my job search 3.0 fame!), Manoj has all the goods ready.

* A prezi link to explain what he learnt in his past jobs. But yes, in slide 3, it is odd that the word ’successive’ is used in the possible assumption that it means ’successful’.
* A detailed blog post about the whole process which has LinkedIn profiles to some of his ex-bosses – an interesting way to dish out referrals, I guess!
* A resume posted on Scribd
* Contextual call-outs on Twitter where Manoj seeks help to spread the word around, all collated with a hashtag #mynextboss, which, on last count has reached 34,000+ people via 31 tweets, as per Tweetreach!
* Manoj’s Twitter profile links to a card.ly URL that holds all his online profiles, including his LinkedIn page and his blog, Paperwork.

mynextbossIf the main issue with Ankita’s approach was the complete lack of any context beyond a big idea – of using Twitter to reach relevant people within organizations where she seems to be interested to work – Manoj’s approach seems more like a 360 degree campaign for a brand. Considering I’ve an email too, from him, this indeed seems like a 360 degree approach, online.

Where it does look odd is the fact that it all seems a bit gimmicky. But again, are such campaigns appropriate only for brands? And, should they not work equally well for individuals seeking an employment?

There is an opinion in India that if you add your profile/CV on job sites (Naukri, Monster, Dice, Jobstreet and the likes), it means you are desperate and hence, good employers/HR managers may not take you seriously. I personally do not subscribe to this opinion – having a profile on a job site isn’t very different from having a Facebook profile or a LinkedIn page these days, even if the intent is specifically different in each case. At least in case of LinkedIn, the content would be exactly similar to the profile on a Monster, for instance.

Also, a profile on a job site is intended to give a person visibility from a professional perspective – on what he/she says is the body of knowledge gained in previous/current roles. How different would that be from…say, a blog of the same person, on a topic related to his/her current/previous roles? The blog would be a showcase of his/her knowledge too, without the explicit call-out that the blog owner is up for a change of job.

Given such blurring lines online between personal and professional profiles/networks, the idea that having your CV on a job site makes you desperate seems outdated. It is all about exposure…contextual exposure at that. If a job site profile, along with your personal blog helps in giving you that exposure, so be it! From this perspective, I suppose Manoj’s campaign approach is a quite a well thought-out and intelligent idea.

A could of other friends with whom I discussed this felt that he may be selling himself too aggressively and hence, seems desperate. I’m not sure about that – I see whatever Manoj is doing within the context of seeking a job in the social media space. What better way to achieve that than by making an online campaign of that search process itself?

Original Article

‘I’m in a Job Search–Now What??

Product Description
In the book, ‘I’m in a Job Search–Now What???’ you will have a step-by-step guide for the job searching process. The book not only covers job searching strategies, but additionally gives information on how to be in a continuous process of career management. No longer are people climbing ladders in employment. Instead, they are on a ramp and need to constantly make strides to progress and maintain their position.

The book provides 100+ resources and tips to guide you through the job searching process to help you stand apart from your competition. Included in the book:

Goal Setting

Personal Branding

Five strategies for building visibility on Google to accelerate your job search since recruiters, employers, and companies Google potential candidates prior to contacting them for an interview.

Using Social Media platforms (i.e. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.) in the job search process

Interview with Erin Blaskie on how to develop compelling content and capture quality videos for the new, emerging platform for video biographies, Google visibility, etc.

Interview with Jeff Lipschultz, Principal at A-List Solutions and a recruiter, on tips for working with recruiters, getting your resume’ to the top of the pile, etc.

Developing a targeted list of companies where to work

Research tools to help in interviewing

Interview strategies, including the questions you want to research BEFORE an interview to stand out in the interview process

Networking

Tips on how to customize your resume’ for different positions to demonstrate to the employer why YOU are the best fit for the position

and much, much more!

How to make LinkedIn help you find a job

Susan Adams, Forbes.com

Call me old-fashioned. At age 51, I still struggle with, and sometimes resist, 21st-century technology. When I first started getting invitations to connect on LinkedIn a few years ago, I winced. Do I have to do this, I wondered.

But I begrudgingly spent a hasty five minutes clicking through one of those invitation e-mails and filling out some basic information about myself. Then I left the site.

From time to time after that I'd get invites and messages. Often I ignored them, or put them off for another day. Since Facebook seemed more fun, with its photos and games and fan pages, I spent much more time there, accumulating more than 200 "friends," revising my bio several times, and posting my article links.

Then 10 months ago I started covering leadership and careers, and every career expert I interviewed, from coaches to headhunters to campus recruiters, told me that LinkedIn was an essential job search tool. Not only can you instantly get the word out to hundreds, if not thousands, of colleagues, bosses and potential employers about your latest accomplishments, ambitions and changes in employment status, but your LinkedIn profile can serve as a passive job magnet, since recruiters and hiring managers use the site as a gold mine for locating candidates.

I figured I would draw on my expert sources for advice on how to best polish up my LinkedIn profile and do whatever I could to make the most of the service. Then I'd offer my experience to you, my readers, as a kind of how-to guide. If I can do it, anyone can.

As a journalist, I was lucky enough to be able to start by talking to a LinkedIn staffer, career expert and spokeswoman Krista Canfield, who spent two patient hours with me on the phone, walking me through LinkedIn's most essential steps. I quickly discovered that the site's tools are so deep and rich that I ought to write more than one article about how to use it.

Consider this the first entry in a series, a kind of LinkedIn 101, or LinkedIn for Dummies.

First up: your URL, which stands for uniform resource locator and is the address of a page on the World Wide Web. I had no idea that you could alter it. But on LinkedIn, you can tweak your Web address to drive it further up toward the top of a Google search.

If you have a common name, as I do, it's not so easy. But if you have a distinctive name, like my husband, Clive Helfet, you can give yourself a LinkedIn Web address that's an elegant first and last name, with no space in between, right after the words "linkedin.com/in/."

Just scroll down to where it says "Public Profile" in your profile, and edit the URL. Canfield recommends trying your first and last name, then your last name and first name, and then adding middle initials if you must. The site will tell you if your first choices are already taken. Because of my common name, I wound up writing a URL that's my first name, middle initial (C) and last name, no punctuation and no spaces. If you want to check me out, go to http://www.linkedin.com/in/susancadams.

Next it was time to add websites that showcased my work. This is probably easier for a journalist than for other types of workers, since our work gets posted online with ready Web addresses. Canfield suggested putting in the general Forbes site and two stories I was especially proud of. For a designer or photographer, this is an opportunity to include a link to a personal website that showcases your work. If you're in sales, you can link to customers.

Keyword are critical

Then it was time to write a summary of my career. This seemed daunting at first, but Canfield helped by advising that I list the topics I currently cover in my writing and emphasize the kinds of stories I most like writing and editing. She said I should include a broad range and throw in as many keywords and phrases as I could muster, even if I didn't have direct experience in those areas. For instance, a headhunter might consider me for a job in media training, since I have broadcast experience, so on the end of my summary, I tagged on the words, "I'm interested in media training." I wanted to know how long my summary should be, and Canfield said it's a question of quality over quantity. When I pressed her on word count, she suggested 100 to 300 words. I wound up with 133 words and the feeling that I might have gone on too long.

Next up: recommendations. Canfield gave me a mini-lecture about this. Positive stuff that people say about you can spread "virally" through the Internet, she told me. I got confused about what she meant at first, but it's simply that if my boss writes me a recommendation, his 138 connections will be able to see that he's done so, and so will all of mine. Once I was ready to get those recommendations, I should make sure they included plenty of meaty specifics about my skills and accomplishments. Canfield said it's kosher to offer to write a recommendation myself and have a contact vet it and post it.

Making connections

But first I needed to beef up my connections. I had a measly 39 at the beginning of last week, when I first called Canfield. That haphazard list of people included my friend's 23-year-old computer scientist son, a smattering of college acquaintances and only a few honcho journalists who might be in a position to hire or refer me for a real job. This was the time-consuming part, because Canfield suggested, reasonably, that I should write a personal note with each invitation to link.

I related to what she said, because I bristle every time a friend or colleague sends me a canned e-mail that says, "I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn." But writing personal notes, even short ones, takes time and emotional energy that can wear you out after the first dozen or so. Lots of people responded to my queries, but some wanted to chat or to get together. I've upped my contacts to 87 and gotten two lunch appointments and a drinks date in the process.

One tip Canfield gave me about finding connections: In the upper right hand corner of the screen, there's a search field and the word "Advanced." Click on "Advanced" and put in your job title on the upper right corner of the screen. On the left, there's a "Location" field, with which you can, say, search within 25 or 50 miles of your postal code. That will bring you to your competition in your area. Canfield says you should link with as many of those people as possible.

While working on my connections, I fleshed out my "Experience" section, adding a job and including descriptions of every job I'd held. I wound up pulling out a résumé I drafted 15 years ago and using many of the finely honed descriptions I'd written back then.

I'm getting ready to ask a couple of bosses to write me recommendations now. After that, I'll keep working on expanding my network and gearing up for my next session with Canfield. That will lead to a next installment in what I hope will become a miniseries on perfecting your use of LinkedIn as a career tool.

Original Article