Market
Your CareerFolio
Use
Your CareerFolio to Drive
your Career Marketing Efforts
With more employers using sites like Google and LinkedIn to
source candidates and "check out" potential
employees online, it's become critically important for job seekers
to build and maintain a positive Web presence. The Web has become
the medium of choice for candidate sourcing and recruiting and
can be equally effective as a platform for job seekers.
Use Your CareerFolio as a
Personal Marketing Tool
Promote Your Candidacy During
an Active Job Search
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Cover
Letters
Be
sure to add your CareerFolio URL (Web address) to your cover
letter. Here are some examples:
- Add
the URL to your letterhead.
- Include
the URL in context within the letter. Point out a specific
fact or project that is detailed in your CareerFolio.
- Include
the URL in a P.S. at the end of your cover letter.
Why
You Should Build a Web Presence
In
short, you need a Web presence because 25-75% of your potential
employers will use Google and networking sites such as LinkedIn
or FaceBook to glean information about you.
What
they find – or don't find – can play a key role
in whether you are perceived as a "credible" candidate.
| 5
Steps for Building a Web Presence
- Google
Yourself: What
will potential employers find out if they Google you?
Find out!
- Create
a Careerfolio Web Resume: CareerFolios
are indexed by web spiders – and can be found
by recruiters and employers who use keyword searches
to find candidates.
- Define
Your Target / Optimize Your Keywords:
Research
your job target to determine the proper "keyword
mix" for your job level and targeted industry;
strategically incorporate critical keywords into your
resume. Learn
How
- Get
Connected Through LinkedIN: Set
up a free profile on a "social networking"
site such as LinkedIN.com and actively build
your network.
- Blog:
If
you have excellent writing skills (and are willing
to take the time to do it right), consider blogging.
A well-written, topic-appropriate blog can
improve your marketability by 'validating' you as
a leader in your field.
WARNING:
Carefully consider your "message" when you
use Web media (photographs, audio/video, etc). Many
web mediums are NOT appropriate for the average job
seeker. |
Promoting
yourself online is
one of the best, easiest, and
fastest ways to build
your personal brand.
Boris Mann, Web 2.0 and
Personal Brand Development
Candidates
with a high number of "contacts" on LinkedIN
find jobs more quickly than those with a low number
of contacts.
According
to a Harris Poll,
23% of people search
the names of business
associates or colleagues on
the Internet before
meeting them.
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The
CareerFolio can be used as a short-term job search tool
(to supplement traditional resumes), but for many, the
CareerFolio provides maximum value when used
as a "long term" personal marketing tool.
Apply
for Posted Jobs
When responding jobs that are advertised online:
Always
supply
your resume in the requested resume format.
Never supply your Web resume or URL in lieu
of a requested format.
What to send when a text or Word resume is requested by email:
-
Add your CareerFolios' URL (Web address) to the cover letter
as shown
here.
- Paste
your text cover letter into e-mail window.
-
Paste text resume below cover letter and/or attach your
MS Word file.
CareerFolios’
Checklist for Success
To
optimize your CareerFolio Web Resume as a personal marketing
tool:
- Include
a Text Download: This will increase the likelihood
that your resume will make it into employers' and recruiters'
databases
- "Keyword
Load" your
Resume:
If your resume speaks the same language (i.e., keywords)
as your potential employers, your CareerFolio will attract
the kind of attention you want. See Keyword
Loading
- Actively
Promote Your URL: See
Career Correspondence
- Manage
Your CareerFolio as a Long Term Marketing Tool:
Keep it updated, adjust content as your career progresses...
and remember, it's always showtime!
- Include
a Link to Your LinkedIn Profile
- Publicize
Your URL: Add your CareerFolio Web address to:
- Your
LinkedIn or FaceBook Profile
- Your
text resume (add to contact info at top)
- Your
text cover letter (mention Web resume in first paragraph
of cover letter)
- Hard
copy resume and cover letters (add URL to your letterhead)
While
the CareerFolio can be used as a short-term job search
tool (as an adjunct to traditional resumes), for many,
the CareerFolio provides maximum value when used
as "long term" marketing tool, along with
other personal marketing / brand building activities.
Career
Correspondence
During
a non-confidential job search, here are some ways to promote
your CareerFolio Web resume when communicating with networking
contacts, responding to inquiries from employers, or forwarding
your resume to recruiters:
- Regular
Mail:
Include your CareerFolio URL on the "letterhead"
portion of your hard copy resume and cover letter.
- Fax:
Include your CareerFolio URL on your fax cover sheet.
-
eMail:
Add the CareerFolio's URL to the signature line at the bottom
of your e-mail:
- Text
Cover Letter: Create a hyperlink from your e-mail
to your CareerFolio web resume. Ideally, this link is placed
near the top of the cover letter so that it is immediately
visible to the recipient. Additional
Information...
Cover
Letter Writing Strategies
Cover
Letters for the Wired Job Market by Pat Kendall, NCRW
This "How to" article includes text cover letter
templates, samples with hyperlinks, strategies for keyword-loading,
and examples of text cover letters with links to Web resumes.
HOT
TIP: Entice
the reader! In your cover letter, briefly refer to "additional
details" or "relevant projects" that are fleshed
out in your CareerFolio web resume. Motivate the reader
to follow the link and read further!
Direct
Contact the Electronic Way
Check
the employer's web site to see if they provide instructions
for resume submission. Carefully follow any instructions
listed on the web site.
When
submitting your resume, consider sending multiple formats,
as this approach allows the recipient to view or capture whatever
version of the resume they need:
-
Text Cover Letter: Paste your text cover
letter into email.
- Text
Resume: Paste your text resume below the cover
letter.
- Word
Resume:
Attach your MS Word file.
- CareerFolio
Web Resume:
Include a live link from your text cover letter to your
CareerFolio Web resume.
Keyword
Loading
Before
launching any kind of personal marketing campaign, you should
take steps to make sure that your resume is market-ready.
In short, to work effectively your resume must speak the
same language as your potential employers.
Since
most resumes are scored and ranked based on their keyword
content, your objective is to find out which keywords employers
want to see, and then build them into your resume. How
to Research Your Job Target Keywords
Recruiters
and employers use various approaches and systems to find candidates
and most believe that Web resumes are the best source for
"untapped" candidates - i.e., passive job seekers.
Maximize Your Keywords = Maximize Your Results
Use
a Search Agent
If
you sign up for a Personal Search Agent or Job
Agent (free on most sites), keyword-matched jobs will
be delivered to you by e-mail. For example, on Indded.com,
click on ADVNACED JOB SEARCH take a look at the search agent
on Indeed.com
You
should always respond to advertised jobs by submitting the
requested resume format - typically Word or text.
To
promote your careerFolio, include a live link in the opening
paragraph of your cover letter as described here: How
to Respond to Posted Jobs
Guard
Your Privacy
If
you have privacy concerns – or need to ensure that your
job search is not discovered by your current employer –
you should remove identifiers from your resume, change the
document name and title, and follow the instructions provided
here: Confidential Resumes
View
Confidential CareerFolios
Once you've taken these precautionary steps, you can start
marketing your resume.
Caution:
Unless you have a password protected entry page, search engine
"spiders" will find the text in your CareerFolio
and index it.
