New Job Prospecting Techniques

The best method for getting a job is identical to the sales process followed daily by millions of people in the sales profession. Learn from them and get a great job (Sale!). A good salesperson will use a multitude of prospecting methods in order to make a sale. Each has its pros and cons, but if multiple methods are utilized, one of them will come through, every time. Even poor products in a down or competitive market get bought and sold every day if a salesperson prospects often and use multiple techniques. You should consider taking the same diverse prospecting approach with your job search.


Research Employers: This is the number one prospecting method that is not adequately utilized by job seekers. Job seekers often believe that all jobs must be on job boards, but they are not. It is a very small percentage of employers in the U.S. that use job boards. You need to search everywhere for possible companies and employers to approach, and then keep searching some more. A big mistake is to think that because a company, especially a large one, is based somewhere else that it does not have a location near you. Companies often have a presence in multiple locations. To find companies to research and send your resume to visit places like: The Better Business Bureau, associations and organizations, online yellow pages, financial websites, local / city government offices and sites, and even drive around an area and write down company names to look into. Get creative.

Networking: You have heard this advice before, and it is the case that networking can produce. A typical network includes: Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, industry colleagues, people you met at industry events, trade shows and conferences, and former co-workers, bosses, teachers, recruiters, and just about anyone. You can locate an amazing number of names and companies by joining networking sites like linkedin, Plaxo, myspace, facebook, etc. There is a multitude of ways to extract useful information from these sites. Do not be shy while networking. Let people know you are looking and available for a new opportunity. Like all prospecting methods, networking may not come through on the first attempt, so you need to keep on trying.

Job Boards: We estimate there are 2.3 million job boards, okay, but it seems like it. You need to get very good at using job sites efficiently, considering there is a large amount of garbage on them that will waste your time. A good way to eliminate many bad job boards is to not use those that require you to create an account or give your resume in order to search jobs or see the results. Never apply for a job through a job board, to a job board. You need to apply directly to companies. Stick with a couple job sites which search multiple job boards and employer's sites directly. You will rarely miss a job opening by not searching 20 to 30 job boards considering most are just reposting positions. Do not forget to review classifieds in the newspaper. There are companies still utilizing this source, so you just never know.

Resume Posting: Resume posting can certainly produce a new job, and should be part of many job seekers game plan, but know that many employers do not pay for resume databases, but many do. In general, do not invest your time posting your resume to obscure or lesser known job boards as this will not be a good use of your time, and can even be risky. Only posting on one or two sites will not be enough if you want to make a big impact since no career site has the market cornered on jobs listings.

Recruiters: Executive and direct hire type recruiters can be a good option in the appropriate situation. If you have a unique skill set, valuable experience, and a strong work history, then this may be a possibility. However, you can have all of these, but if you do not work in the type of industry that utilizes recruiters, then do not invest your time with them. Temporary Staffing type recruiting firms are an option for almost all industries, but you need to be interested in that type of employment. A large percentage of job postings are from all types of recruiting firms.