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SELLING YOURSELF
Innovative methods get employers' attention (in a good way)
When you're out of work and the traditional job-search methods of resumes and networking fail, you might be tempted to try desperate measures.
"Every so often you hear a story about a guy who prints 'Recent college graduate needs engineering job' on a sandwich board and walks up and down Peachtree Street. He gets his picture in the paper and calls from employers," said Tom Darrow, president of Talent Connections, an Atlanta-based recruitment, outsourcing and consulting firm, and president of the Atlanta Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management. "That may work once, but other marketing strategies are both innovative and more effective."
Here are a few recommendations from the experts:
Try blogging
In rural Alabama, Mack Collier was looking for a marketing job when the founders of Beyond Madison Avenue (www.beyondmadisonavenue.com) asked him to blog about marketing and advertising news for their Web site.
"Results from my traditional job search were flat, so I thought, 'why not?' " Collier said.
Collier not only has become an active blogger for BMA but also has started another popular site, The Viral Garden (http://moblogsmoproblems.blogspot.com). Its weekly ranking of the 25 best marketing blogs drives a lot of traffic.
"While starting a blog is not difficult, drawing attention to it and creating a community of people who read it takes plain, old-fashioned work and time to build," Collier said. He spends several hours a day blogging and commenting on others' sites but considers it worth it.
"A blog is a great way to showcase and promote your communication skills as well as your in-depth knowledge of an industry," Collier said. "Blogs are very active, which means that networking is easier."
Through blogging, Collier has gained contacts among top-level experts, authors and people he might never have met any other way, and he has become adept at networking online. An idea he had and posted to promote CDs brought calls from several major record labels.
"There is so much interaction among bloggers that you are constantly exposed to new ideas and opportunities," Collier said.
Blogging also raises your professional profile, puts your name higher on Google search results and levels the playing field with other candidates, he said. "I'd have to move to even say I was living in a small town, but it doesn't matter, because blogging shows that I stay abreast of trends and industry news."
Collier advises job-seekers to blog about subjects they are passionate about that are career- or industry-related and to avoid controversial topics, such as religion or politics. Remember that potential employers can read everything you write.
Collier has had several job offers from the West Coast, but he is waiting for an opportunity in the Southeast.
Gail Leary, principal of Atlanta Career Transition, has seen clients boldly and successfully showcase their unique talents. "A broadcast announcer wrote and left two recorded broadcasts on a station director's voice mail -- which clearly demonstrated her abilities," Leary said.
A designer sent a portfolio of his computer-aided architectural renderings out with his resume to potential employers.
"When he'd call for an interview, he always got through," she said. "For techies, there's a chip you can embed in your business card that carries a copy of your resume.
"What you want is to find a positive way to stand out from the competition that fits with the type of employer you want to attract."
Create an endorsement portfolio
Jay A. Block, career coach and author of 11 career guides, including "101 Best Resumes to Sell Yourself" (McGraw-Hill, 2002), wonders why Americans have the process of marketing themselves in a job search backward.
"You don't wait until someone has decided to buy a pair of sneakers and then tell them that Michael Jordan endorses them, right? No, the endorsement comes upfront -- that's called marketing," Block said.
Yet job-seekers will save their references for the end of the process and hope that the employer will be able to reach them.
"Instead, why not create an endorsement portfolio of four to six letters (or even four to six paragraphs on one page) from people who can affirm that your qualifications and achievements are accurate and that you bring significant value to the marketplace," Block said. "The endorsement portfolio makes the list of references a proactive marketing tool that will differentiate you from other candidates."
Block's endorsements, found on his Web site (www.jayblock.com), speak to his creative thinking, encouragement, professionalism and success as a career coach, consultant, trainer and author. The paragraphs come from individual and company clients, his publisher and career industry peers.
He suggests that applicants send endorsement portfolios with their resumes. "Put a P.S. on your cover letter to say that the endorsement portfolio is to assure him that the skills and accomplishments on your resume are accurate," Block said.
It takes thought and effort to compile a portfolio; you may need to write something that can be edited and signed by a busy reference source.
"It means going the extra mile, but I've seen it work miracles. You're giving the decision-maker a useful tool to help him make a decision," Block said. "When you're in a job transition, being willing to go the extra mile is the best investment you can make in your future."
Send a handwritten letter
"If you've been granted an interview, send a handwritten letter of thanks -- it's a lost art," Darrow said. "It gives you a chance to resell yourself by referring back to key requirements needed for the job and restating how you excel at those things."
In the recruiting field, Darrow says he talks with hundreds of people a week. He remembers those who send letters.
"Even more impressive is to include added value with your letter -- perhaps an article on a subject discussed or the name and phone number of a contact in a company that the hiring person mentioned wanting to meet," he said.
Instead of waiting to apply to a job posting in a targeted company, sending a letter directly to a top company executive or hiring manager can bring results, said Peter Bourke, former president of Spherion Outsourcing and volunteer CEO of Crossroads Career Network.
"Eighty percent of the [openings] for mid- and high-level jobs are never posted, so a direct approach may get you noticed for a job you didn't even know existed," he said. Briefly introduce yourself, say that you've learned a lot about the company and explain why you want to work there. Ask for a phone interview or say you're willing to come in and talk.
Network online
"Networking is the most important skill for anyone making a job transition," said Patti Dismukes, CEO of OnSite Recruit.
To take it to its full potential, she tells candidates to make use of online business networks, such as www.linkedin.com, www.jigsaw.com or www.networkingforprofessionals.com. Such sites greatly expand job-seekers' business contacts, and recruiters look at these sites when trying to find job candidates.
"If you tell people your skill set and put out the message that you're looking for a job or willing to listen to an opportunity, you never know when you'll get a call," Dismukes said. "As a recruiter, I will always take someone referred to me over someone I don't know."
Another way to attract a recruiter's attention is to help him or her find a candidate for a position he or she is seeking to fill, Darrow said.
"You may meet recruiters through networking or referral. In today's market, recruiters are inundated with requests to find qualified candidates," he said. "If you help them with their business by referring someone with the right skills, you're going to be on their radar screen when it comes to your job search."
Volunteer to work for free
"If you're intent on working for one company, volunteer to work a month for free," Bourke said. "Becoming re-engaged when you're unemployed is one of the best things you can do. One man told a hiring manager he'd work for nothing for four weeks. 'If you like me, hire me,' he said. 'If you don't, I'll continue my job search.' The company not only hired him but paid him retroactively.
"If you're clear on what you want to do and where you want to go, this could be a great way to spend your time."
A variation on that theme is the Georgia Works program, sponsored by the Georgia Department of Labor. The innovative training program allows laid-off workers to get on-the-job training from potential employers while receiving unemployment benefits. More than half of the workers get hired.
Just volunteer
"I'm a big fan of volunteering, whether it's in professional organizations or community groups like the United Way, Hands on Atlanta or Habitat for Humanity. It's an environment where you'll meet working executives," Bourke said. "The concept of giving before getting may help your job search, and it will give you a sense of value.
"When someone shakes your hand and says, 'Thanks; I couldn't have done it without you,' that's something you're not going to get sitting in front of a computer screen job-searching."
Darrow said that volunteering is a way to connect to people on a deeper level.
"When you volunteer, don't just sign up; become a leader," he said. "Volunteer to chair a committee or run an event. More people will know you, and your contacts will grow."
