Top 10 Ways to Job Search Successfully

Anyone who has conducted a job search in the past few years will understand the frustrations of doing so. A job search is often one of the most stressful events in an American’s life. People who are not knowledgeable about the best ways to job search may not know about modern techniques and practices that could give them an advantage over the competition. Before you begin your job search, consider the following 10 tips and how you can put them to use as you search for your next job.

1. Find Resume Help – When putting together your resume, make sure someone else looks over it with you. You never want to send a resume to potential employers without carefully editing it. Many people in the process of a job search make the mistake of sending out a resume with grammatical errors, an immediate cause for a potential employer to throw your resume in the garbage. Employers want to see carefully edited resumes with clear, concise language and lots of description of actual achievements. Be as specific as possible, and make the resume visually appealing before you send it out.
   
   
2. Use the Internet – To find potential employers to contact, conduct your job search online. The traditional job search method of looking through the local newspaper to find jobs has adapted to new technology. Job seekers use sites like Careerbuilder.com or EmploymentSpot.com to find job postings that relate to their skills and experience. These sites also offer helpful job search tips and advice that will help your job search be successful.
   
   
3. Phone a Friend – The use of contacts has increased in recent years as employers try to find quality candidates via networking. The more an employer knows about someone before he or she is hired, the better, as long as the information is positive. If you can, enlist friends or business contacts to help you find your next job. Even if these contacts do not find you your next job, they will at least provide guidance throughout your job search.
   
   
4. Consider an Internship – College graduates often launch themselves into an extensive job search only to find that they lack the one requirement of many entry-level positions: experience. To get this experience, college students or recent graduates should consider finding an internship, which can give them the necessary industry experience to get ahead. An internship could also cut your job search short by helping you to find a more permanent position via contacts or a full time job.
   
   
5. Always Send a Cover Letter – Employers know how long it takes to email a resume. Not very. They therefore appreciate receiving a cover letter with a resume, as it shows dedication and a desire to be taken seriously by the job seeker. Make sure your cover letter is specifically tailored to the position and company, and ask a friend to edit all cover letters before you send them out. This gesture, though time consuming, is well worth the boost it will provide to your job search.
   
   
6. If It Does Not Work, Try Again – If your resume does not produce results, take a step back and reconsider what it says. You may want to try to tailor your experience and skill set in a different way, depending on the type of jobs you search for. If your resume does not get you an interview after submitting it to a dozen potential employers, try to reword it. Your job search will be most successful when you diversify your strategies.
   
   
7. Say Thank You – Always stay in contact with potential employers. If you send a thank you letter, note or email to a potential employer after contact or an interview offer, this gesture will help keep you fresh in his or her mind. You want to stand out from the crowd in your job search, and saying thanks is one way to do so.
   
   
8. Visit Career Fairs – Sometimes sitting at home and sending out resumes is not enough. To get face time with potential employers, you may want to consider attending a career fair. A career fair is an especially good idea for college seniors or people with little experience who are looking for entry-level positions, as these positions tend to be well represented at career fairs. Always look your best when attending a career fair, and have several different resumes on hand to distribute, depending on the position and company. Shake hands firmly, make eye contact and send follow-up emails to anyone who hands you his or her card.
   
   
9. Get Additional Training – If the job search just is not going well, you may want to reconsider your goals. People who begin a job search mid-career may not be prepared for the types of positions they desire. Consider additional courses, programs or training to help give you a needed boost. Potential employers want to see people who take initiative and make themselves attractive candidates.
   
   
10. Be Creative – Modern job searches are beginning to incorporate technology that has not existed in the past. For example, video resumes are becoming popular with the advent of video web sites like YouTube.com. Consider stepping outside the box and try some unconventional alternatives. Post a video resume on a site like CareerBuilder.com or create an interactive portfolio on a site such as CBworkspace.com. Employers are looking for candidates who know how to adapt to technology successfully. You could boost your job search by using some of these new techniques.