Posted by ResumeHelp on December 23, 2009
Mary Berman, from Farmington Hills, Michigan, had been looking for work since February 2009 before starting a “Guerrilla” job search, in late September.
Up to that point, 20 weeks of job hunting had produced zero job interviews.
Just 7 weeks later, she accepted a job on Thursday, November 12, as a marketing executive assistant.
How did she use Guerrilla job hunting tactics to find work 65% faster?
“I saw a job advertised online and applied by mail. I sent a box with a paper Starbucks coffee cup, my cover letter, and resume inside. On the side of the cup, where it has boxes for the type of coffee, I made my own box that said, ‘Hire Mary’ and checked it with a black marker. I heard back a couple days later to get my first interview,” says Berman.
After her first job interview, which went well, Berman followed up with panache.
“It was Halloween time, so I decided to send them a chocolate covered apple with my hand-written thank-you note in a bag. I had a friend of mine, who was off work that day, take it over and deliver it to [the employer]. That was a big hit — they were thrilled — and I got the second interview out of it.”
Berman’s second job interview was with the executive vice president. Afterwards, she followed up diligently. “When I came home, I wrote a 30-60-90 day plan. I had taken copious notes during the interview and used that information to create suggestions for what I would do in my first 30, 60, and 90 days. I sent that to them via FedEx with another thank-you note. And I got a job offer.”
Now. Let’s break this successful Guerrilla Job Search down …
1. Start smart
The Coffee Cup Caper — a paper Starbucks cup, full-color Guerrilla Resume, and a cover letter (asking to meet for coffee), shipped in a box — gets extraordinary results. By contrast, ordinary resumes and cover letters, sent by email, get ordinary results.
2. Follow up with style
Delivering a Halloween treat with her thank-you note was correct seasonally, if not politically. Use good judgment before sending items that might be perceived as bribes by employers sensitive to such things, such as universities or public-sector organizations.
In Berman’s case, however, it worked like a (chocolate-covered) charm.
And, leaving out the gift, think of the impact a hand-delivered thank-you note can have on an employer, versus standard U.S. Mail or email. Could you arrange to have your thank-you note delivered by a courier, or a friend acting as one? Of course you could!
3. Give employers another reason to hire you
Mary did this in spades after her second interview, when she sent a written plan of action that outlined her first three months on the job.
A 30-60-90 day plan is a way of proving you can do the work — before you’re even on the payroll — by describing how you would learn the job, build rapport with employees/customers, and contribute to the bottom line.
Mary’s plan was 8 pages long and took the better part of a Friday night to prepare. (Before you balk at spending an entire evening at home researching and writing a 30-60-90 day plan, ask yourself if you wouldn’t trade a night out for getting a steady paycheck again.)
4. Score style points with your delivery
Mary’s first follow-up, the chocolate-apple-thank-you note, was delivered by a courier, not by email. Her 30-60-90 day plan was delivered by FedEx, not by email.
Do you not see a pattern? Email should NOT be the delivery method for your career documents. Because you can’t delete a courier, and a FedEx envelope can’t get caught in a spam filter.
Bottom line: This smart Guerrilla had failed to get even one job interview in 20 weeks of job hunting with conventional tactics.
After adopting unconventional Guerrilla tactics, she found work in only 7 weeks.
If Guerrilla job search methods can work in Michigan, where the unemployment rate tops 15%, they can work where you live. The only thing stopping you from thinking and acting like a Guerrilla is you. Why wait another minute? To get started with your own Guerilla search plans here’s where to start!
About Kevin:
Kevin Donlin is contributing co-author of “Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters 2.0.” Since 1996, he has provided job-search help to more than 20,000 people. |
Posted by ResumeHelp on November 2, 2009
Important Skills to Have in this Economy
In a brittle economy, job losses and underemployment are common. A sudden layoff might drive you to look for employment outside of your area of expertise leaving you wondering what skills are needed by the employers who are hiring. Outside of the work experience that employers need for their industries, there are skills that everyone should possess in this economy. Effective communication, marketing, LinkedIn, and social media aren’t just buzzwords in the employment arena. They are skills that you can strengthen to boost your marketability among potential employers.
Getting By and Doing Well Without a College Degree
Although many employers require a college degree, there are hundreds more that do not. When you find yourself in the job market, it is important to focus on your expertise and specifically target the position by accentuating experience and/or training that parallels what the company or organization is advertising for. Searching for a new position without a degree can be difficult, therefore, a strong resume is imperative and a pointed cover letter can give you the visibility you need.
Update your Skills for the Current Job Market
If unemployment or underemployment has given you more free time than you would normally have, take advantage of that time to make yourself more marketable in the current job scene.
Ref. ResumeEdge
Posted by ResumeHelp on October 22, 2009
Job Seekers who believe that they have an ideal educational background and job experience for a particular job, when later find out that another applicant has been selected, should know that they are not alone. Even with a perfect resume, excellent skills set and brilliant interview talent, things can go twisted.
This article contains some of the basic reasons of why job seekers miss out on good job opportunities. We have also included some key solutions that will help our job seekers minimize their chances of losing one of their dream jobs.
1. Importance of a Cover Letter
A well-presented Cover Letter definitely creates a good impression on the employers. Getting the basics right, easily makes a difference and allows an application to stand out in the competition. The cover letter is your first sales pitch to a potential employer. A good one introduces you to the employer and explains why you are superior among other candidates applying for the same job.
2. Make Your Resume Precise and Attractive
We have all read novels and stories that take forever to get going, which insists on recounting every single insignificant detail of the central character’s existence before finally getting to the heart of the account. This is not a luxury affordable for your resume. First impression really matters! Your resume is a marketing document, and hence, must attract the readers’ attention.
3. Shortage of Time at the Employers’ End
Employers get to see loads and loads of resumes during their recruitment period. Applicants can make the employers’ life easier by keeping their resumes’ content short and accurate. It is essential that you set fire to the readers’ attention in the very beginning or within thirty seconds/less.
4. Incorrect English
Why risk a dream job on poor English writing? Only job applications written in grammatically correct and fine English are given importance by busy employers. The rest go to the bin.
You might be well-qualified and perfect for a particular job, but the employer may disqualify you if your resume contains incorrect sentences and wrong use of vocabulary. We can’t stress enough just how important this is. Don’t depend on the spell checker because they miss grammatical mistakes.
5. Proof Reading
Nothing looks worse on a job application than spelling errors. It shows that you didn’t take enough care or time to look over your application. Spelling errors can result in depicting your wrong impression on an employer. Check and recheck your curriculum for spelling and grammatical errors prior to sending it off to the employers. Small catches make a big (and bad) impression, silently implying that you are careless, linguistically challenged, or both.
6. Highlight Your Achievements
You need to highlight your achievements. Remember your resume is your sales document, if it does not say clearly and unequivocally why you should be employed then it has failed.
An employer will only want to hire you if they can see a benefit in it for themselves. So, do tell them that you are beneficial for the company.
Listing your achievements in your resume can also benefit you, in case the employer you have applied for uses some application to filter candidates from his resume database. Such applications are useful for employers, as they can filter candidates using their desired keywords. Honing your Interview skills can help also. You may have the best resume in the world yet fail with the interview. If you need help interviewing, here’s where to get help.
Reprint from http://blog.rozee.pk
