There are a lot of discouraged job seekers out there and with good reason. The unemployment rate has remained relatively unchanged for quite some time. If you don’t have much of a network and you’re not getting any responses when you answer advertisements, here are six things you can do.
1. Get Active; Don’t Just Do What Everyone Else Does
Answering advertisements and going to recruiters are passive approaches. All you’re doing is throwing your hat in the ring with hundreds of other job seekers. The odds are high. Why limit yourself to them?
Answering advertisements and going to recruiters are passive approaches. All you’re doing is throwing your hat in the ring with hundreds of other job seekers. The odds are high. Why limit yourself to them?
Instead, take the initiative. Contact employers who have not advertised, but are most likely to need your talents. Jobs are often filled by referrals, networking, recruiting from competitor firms or a letter hitting the desk of a decision maker at just the right time. It could be yours, but simply applying to advertisements isn’t enough.
2. Make Enough Contacts
How many you need will vary. But whether it is answering ads or contacting employers, you need to beat the high odds by making a lot of contacts. Only one person will get hired out of 300 candidates and only two or three out of 100 employers will have a need at the moment you contact them.
3. Get Creative in Your Networking
Instead of just asking a few friends to let you know if they hear of anything, get creative. Develop ideas about how you can make contributions to employers, especially in light of trends in their industry. Then identify key people in companies in the industry, and write them, letting them know you’d appreciate feedback from a knowledgeable source as to whether your ideas would be beneficial.
Follow up with a phone call, and when you do, even if they don’t think much of what you proposed, you’ve added to your network! You can thank them and ask if there is anyone else they’d advise you to talk with or any actions they’d recommend.
4. Pay Attention to Events
When you read business news, ask yourself, might this signal an opportunity for me? Research companies making progress or changes and send a short note mentioning the event to a decision maker in the company with your résumé attached. It makes a positive impression and you might get in the door for an emerging job before there is any competition.
What kind of events? Almost anything – new products, new contracts, expansions, reorganizations, relocations, leases signed, profit increases or even problems can be a sign of a job in the formative stages.
5. Contact More Recruiters
Don’t limit yourself to just a few you know about or those who have advertised an opening. The chance of one recruiter having a job right for you the moment you contact them is very small. As with ads, events and employer contacts, you can increase your chances for success by contacting dozens or hundreds.
6. Contact Growth Companies
Why? Because they are adding people in many functions when other companies are not.
Don’t worry if you are not in their industry. They are often in newer industries, and can’t find enough people with industry experience. So they are forced to look elsewhere for people with the right skills. Just be sure to sell yourself to them about how you will contribute and how the skills you’ve honed in other industries can work for them.
One quick way to identify growth firms: find out its SIC or NAICS Code, then go to the library and look up all the companies in your area who are listed under that code. A reference librarian will guide you.
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