The fight for your time networking and job searching on Facebook is about to get heated. Two companies want you as their clients - and they are going to have to go to blows to get you! Imagine a Facebook Career App boxing ring...“In this corner, weighing in at 500 lbs, with a 15+ year record in the online job search business, a purple monster ready for a big come back.And in this corner, a 150 lbs sprite newcomer with little experience in job search, but plenty of VC funding and the power of a West Coast technology pedigree.” Welcome to the boxing match of the century – and it’s going to take place on the #1 social network in the world: Facebook. As a career coach, I advise you to pay attention. Here’s why... Monster.com makes a legitimate BIG announcement. Last week, I was contacted by the PR folks at Monster.com and told they had a top secret project they wanted me to know about before it went live. I must admit, I was intrigued and took the bait. You see, they asked me to sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) and attend a private webinar explaining what was about to happen. Being from the East Coast (Monster.com was founded in greater Boston), and knowing their up and down business history, my immediate thought was, “This better be good Monster.com. You haven’t been in the limelight for a while. If all this hoop-jumping is for a big nothing, you could be nailing your coffin.”Well, they delivered. In the meeting, I learned of a very robust, easy-to-navigate career networking tool that bridges LinkedIn and Facebook. Where does the fight come in? There is already a somewhat established app in this area. Monster’s new BeKnown Facebook app is a direct competitor to the BranchOut Facebook app that does the same thing. Which means, the battle for market share is on. Ironically, I did a webinar on how to use the BranchOut app for our readers awhile back because I was truly excited to finally see someone recognizing the career networking potential of Facebook. At the time, BranchOut was dealing with some negative publicity around what some of their new users felt was spam-like activities on their Facebook wall when they signed up to use the BranchOut app. They’ve since resolved that, but not without leaving a really sour taste in many former users mouth. That hasn’t stopped BranchOut from securing a huge round of VC funding recently. I’m not sure if they intended to use that money on PR and marketing campaigns to build awareness, but candidly, I don’t see how they can afford not to now that Monster.com is on the scene with BeKnown. From what I’ve seen in the demo, the BeKnown app is far more advanced. Couple that with Monster.com’s established relationships with job seekers and corporations and you’ve got a potential comeback the likes of John Travolta after Pulp Fiction. BranchOut deserves credit so you shouldn’t underestimate them. That being said, it should be noted BranchOut was first on the scene with this type of Facebook app and deserves major kudos for its vision and time to market. I guarantee the BranchOut team has learned a lot about functionality and user-experience that is helping them move forward in their app’s effectiveness. Moreover, as a start-up, they have the business advantage of a smaller, more agile management structure that can make decisions and course corrections a lot faster than Monster.com. I expect to see them throw some quick jabs and upper-cuts in this fight that will make it very interesting. And, let’s not forget all that VC funding. They’ve got the fuel to last all 12 rounds – and then some. My advice: test and choose only one. The BeKnown and BranchOut Facebook apps have very similar abilities, but the designs are quite different. I think your best bet is to try both and see which one feels most user-friendly to you. Why? Because it doesn’t make sense to use both. As a career coach, I would rather see you pick one and use it consistently then spread yourself too thin by using both. These types of networking tools are only good if you actually use them – so the decision as to which one you find easier to use must be a priority in when choosing which one to invest your time in using. Watch this side-by-side comparison of BeKnown and BranchOut Facebook Apps. To help you with that, I recently put both Facebook apps to the test on our web TV show, Brand ME! I went over both applications and answer questions. So, watch it now and decide for yourself which one to use. The most important thing to remember is this: The goal is to choose one and use it! Regardless of whether you pick BranchOut or BeKnown, the fact is networking on Facebook is a must-do for your career. So, get in the game!
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
BigstockMake a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
- How did I learn about this job?
- How did I apply for the job?
- Did I earn an interview?
- What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
BigstockAre you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
Let's start with resumes!
Every resume should be tailored to the position in order for it to stand out to recruiters and hiring managers. It may seem like a lot of work, but it's actually less work than submitting the same resume over and over again and never hearing back.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
BigstockYour job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
- Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
- Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
- Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.