Maybe you’re just not looking in the right places
If the only responses you’re getting to online job applications are advertisements for quick college degrees, safe teeth whiteners, low interest loans, and work-at-home schemes for fast cash, maybe you’re just not looking in the right places. Because of the overwhelming number of people applying for jobs, employers who are serious about hiring often bypass online job boards and placement agencies and try to fill the openings directly.
It’s an employers’ market
When unemployment rates are high, as they are right now, employers don’t have to look hard to find qualified employees. Sorting through a big stack of resumes is a time-consuming process many employers aren’t willing to undertake. Many companies rely on their current employees to network job openings. Other companies advertise only in small, specialized job pools to avoid a flood of unqualified candidates.
Most jobs aren’t advertised
Recent Labor Department statistics show that there are nearly 14 million unemployed people in the United States and about five job-seekers for every job opening. According to Epic Development and Evaluation, a human-resource company, more than 80% of available jobs aren’t advertised to the public, at least not initially.
Some job postings eventually make it onto conventional job boards, but only after word-of-mouth networking fails. Even then, employers prefer to use specialized job boards because the big boards have so many users who are outside the employer’s geographic area.
Limit your online searching
If you’re an employer with a job opening in a sea of hungry job-seekers, keeping your cards close to your chest is easy to understand. But it’s frustrating if you’re a job-seeker doing everything conventional wisdom says you should, and getting no response.
If you’re inclined to keep searching online, try a Google search for job boards specific to your home town. Or search for professional associations and societies that might have specific listings for your profession or industry. Some job-seekers swear by the local job listings on Craigslist. The free postings on Craigslist may be somewhat more on target than many of the professional job boards. But if you use Craigslist, you can also expect a fair number of hoax and promotional listings.
Go back to knocking on doors
If you’re serious about finding a job, the most effective job-search methods may be the most old-fashioned:
1. Check the want ads in your local paper every day.
2. Get your foot in the door, literally. Walk in to businesses that interest you. You can check online first to see if the company has a job board with any openings, but whether or not they do, go to the office in person. Dress for success and be confident. Remember, employers are not trying to keep job openings secret; they just don’t want to be inundated by applications and resumes from hundreds of unqualified job-seekers.
If you’re serious about landing a job, you will eventually find one. Keep in mind that we are still in a recession and finding a good job can take some time. However, don’t allow that to discourage you. Stay consistent, meet new people and broaden out. People who land the most interviews are the ones who will most likely get the jobs. Consistency and patience is the main key.
Job searching should be treated as a job. Get up in the morning, get dressed for you profession, and spend a pre-determined amount of time searching and interviewing. Do it everyday and don’t give up.