Here’s what you don’t do

Immediately click ‘Apply.’ Fill out the form. Attach or paste your resume. Then you wait, and wait, and wait, and… well, you get the idea.

Instead, try these 3 job-landing tips:

#1 Do your homework

Be an A+ candidate! Just 15+ minutes could pay you big bucks in a new job. Start by going to the employer’s website and clicking key tabs:

About Us – Check out their services, products, and markets. Learn how big they are: annual sales or budget and the number of employees. Find out whether they are local, regional, national, or global. Review their vision, mission, and values. If you are still interested, make a list of what you like, as well as the questions you have.
Press or Newsroom – Look for recent news about financial reports and special announcements. Is their growth up, down or sideways? What are their plans for the future? Are there new executives that recently joined (who wants to make changes in their departments)? Are there special opportunities you see for you?
Career or Jobs – look for the job you found online. Look for other jobs that interest you. Check out their benefits and training.
Go to Google. Type in the employer’s name to search ‘Web and News’ for more information.
Print most relevant information and put in a file folder marked with employer name. Very handy for resume writing and interviews. Make notes on key people related to the job you want.
Beware: If the job posting you find does not identify the employer, type keywords from posting in Google, and see if the employer name pops up. If not, then drop it. It may be a scam!

#2 Rewrite Your Resume

Based on your homework, you can hook employers by customizing each resume for each job and employer. It might be another 15+ minutes of extra work per resume… but worth it when you get the call for interviews.

Copy keywords from the job posting that are true of you. Paste them in your resume.
Connect what you do and like best with what the employer seems to need most for the Objective or Summary section of your resume.
Resumes that get results show results. Highlight accomplishments on page 1 of your resume that are most relevant to the employer and job.
If you saw news or special announcements related to your experience, abilities or interests, mention them in your cover letter.

#3 Network for Personal Referrals

Ask everyone you know and new people you meet. Keep an active list of employers with jobs and names of key employees. A private corporate study revealed that if job seekers had a personal referral into the company, the odds of them getting hired was 42 times greater than those with no referral. Try networking every day for at least 15+ minutes at least a couple of weeks. It’s like mining for gold. You shovel a lot of dirt to find the golden nugget. But it is worth it.

Ask appropriately and politely “do you know who is or was at (name of employer)?”
Search LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter for employers and names of key employees.
Follow up with referrals with phone calls using names of referring people. Remember, it is the personal referral that reels them in.
Your ultimate goal is to find the hiring manager for the job in which you are interested. When you all-of-a-sudden find them, you will be ready with your customized resume.

By the time you make the right connections in the employer’s organization, you might be asked to submit your resume through their website job posting. That’s the perfect time to click ‘Apply’ because now someone is looking for you.

Looking Ahead

That’s how you increase your chances of getting the job you find online – by connecting in-person.

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