I recently discuss the practice of Searching online for a Job with the job seekers @ FPCJobs.

This is what they had to offern regarding their experiences on Job Boards

What Works?

Write a post about – what do recruiters look for on LinkedIN –

How to deal with resume & LinkedIn profile not jiving?

Since <20 percent of the jobs are listed on the normal job boards, spend about 1 hour a day (12%)

Even thought the aggregator sites (Simply Hired, Indeed & LinkedIn) pull from everyone, it’s still wise to search the individual boards & create a Search agent.

Don’t bounce around from site to site at one sitting. It’s a waste of good time to network and do informational interviews

Some of the better ways of finding a job opportunities:

• walk into the company
• call the HR Manager
• connect with people who can help you
• connect with hiring manager, employees, relevant people (ask them to tell you their story)

Find contacts thru the groups you are involved in

This includes your civic groups and charitable groups

Apply for the job – then network your way into a discussion about the business and then the job.

When networking for a job opportunity, ask, “Will you introduce me face-face or at least email my cover letter message and resume & copy me so I know who to contact afterwards?

WHen you apply for a job – make sure your resume is TIGHT & RELEVANT to that job

Don’t apply for jobs with non-specific resumes

Quote of the day “You have to go thru the internet” Yes, we always have to go thru the internet to apply for a job.

Connect with relevant people at the company you are applying for a job and ask them questions about the business.

Look for contact info and try to connect and send a resume to them – if you do, make sure they are aware that you want them to introduce you to the hiring manage

If I find a good job online – email it to yourself and review completely later on.

Keep all correspondence with Job code info – Keep all info regarding who you contacted, emailed, called, talked with about every job.

Setup Search agents on Monster.com, Careebuilder.com, Indeed.com, Simply Hired.com, (etc, etc)

Filter the job listings properly so that your Search Agents send you the best possible jobs

Search Agent Emails

Many are NOT relevant & even Crap – This is mostly your fault – clean them up and change the search criteria to get a better result.

It is best to distribute Focused resumes, never use a generic and/or OK resume.

Your Resume should be supported by what you Put on LinkedIn profile. (not an exact copy of your resume)

WHER DO Job Boards FAIL

Applying for search at-home jobs (NEVER PAY)

Watch fee based services –

Ladders tries to get you to pay

LinkedIn will encourage you to pay

You (generally) do not need to pay for any of these resources

Dups happen often – try to find a way to refine search to get rid of the dups

Otherwise you will have to Ignore the companies you don’t want to work at & the dup positions

If at all possible, DON”T apply thru Job Board – go directly to the company page or recruiter page. However this is not always possible – just try to when you can.