This isn’t your parent’s job search. Running your job hunt like you did even 10 years ago is practically guaranteed to keep you unemployed for much longer than you want to be. What do you need to get a job now? Learn these job search hacks that will get you hired fast!
Update Your LinkedIn Headline and Summary
Don’t just use your job title and company name in your headline. Be more descriptive. Describe what you do and what you bring in your headline and summary. Put your contact information right up front in the first few lines of your summary so that it’s very easy for employers to contact you.
Write Your Resume with Quantification
Look at every part of your job history and see where you can describe what you did using numbers, dollars, or percentages. Ask yourself questions: How much? How many? How long? Use numbers to answer those questions. For example, you could change “Managed marketing needs for all clients,” to “Managed $850,000 marketing campaigns for 3 clients last year.” Whatever your numbers may be, adding them makes your accomplishments more powerful and compelling to hiring managers.
Let EVERYONE In Your Network Know You’re Job Hunting
You never know where your next job lead could come from, and your friends know people you won’t typically have a chance to meet. What’s more, your best job leads will come from networking. That’s because people like having those recommendations from friends and trusted business associates.So make sure everyone knows you’re job searching.
Get More Interviews
To get more interviews, stop filling out online applications. You’re just releasing your resume into a black hole that rarely generates interviews, even if you’re very qualified for the job. You’ll have a much better success rate by going straight to the decision-maker: the hiring manager. This is the person who would be your boss and this is the person who can best see your value to the company. Contacting the hiring manager is the most effective way to get job interviews.
Set Yourself Up to Get a Bigger Salary
Never, ever bring up salary or benefits until you have a job offer in your hand. When they’ve decided they want you, then you have the best negotiating power. If they ask you about it in the interview, try as much as possible to deflect and avoid answering.
What if you have to fill out an application that asks about past or desired salary? Liz Ryan of Forbes has a good strategy for answering current or past salary. She says to fill out all past salary fields with the salary you want for this job. Indicate what you’re doing in the comments: “All salaries indicated in this form represent my current salary target.”
What should your current salary target be? Do your research to find out and learn how to negotiate salary.
Learn Stronger Interview Answers
Do some studying and practice before your interview. Learn what typical interview questions are and how to answer them. Think about your answers in a strategic way. How can you answer common interview questions in the most powerful, positive way? Start with our 101 best interview answers. Then practice giving your answers with a friend or interview coach so that when you’re in the actual interview, you seem more confident.
Help Them ‘See’ You in the Role
You can nudge the hiring manager along the road to offering you the job by helping them to visualize what it would be like with you in that role. The best way to do this is to create a 30-60-90-day plan and go over it with them in the interview. A 90-day plan is simply an outline of what you’d be doing in that role to get yourself up to speed and contributing as fast as possible. When you discuss it and ask questions and get feedback, it strengthens your entire interview conversation and makes you stand out.
Learn to Close for the Job
Closing is a sales technique that all job seekers should borrow. Closing means to ask for the business. In an interview, it means asking for the job. How does this work? For instance, you could say, “Based on what we’ve talked about today, can you see me being successful in this role?” If they agree, then you’ve gained an advocate for hiring you. If they don’t agree, you can find out why right then and have a chance to correct any issues or problems.
Use a Smarter Follow Up Strategy
Before you leave the interview, ask about next steps. Know when they expect to make a decision (even a general timeline is fine). In your thank you email, tell them that if you haven’t heard from them, you’ll call after that time to follow up. And then make sure you actually call. Don’t feel like this is too pushy; this is actually just good communication. And it shows that you care about the job.
Learn More Job Search Hacks
Get more job search hacks, advice and tips to help you with your job search and interviews in one of Career Confidential’s Free Job Search and Interview Training Webinars. I hold free, 1-hour trainings for job seekers every week and I’d love to share my tips and strategies with you. See our webinar schedule and sign up here.