There is a secret layer of information about companies that is not revealed on the corporate "About us" page. It’s not revealed in the annual reports. And it’s definitely not revealed on social media.
Related:9 Tips For Becoming A Successful Networker
This secret layer of information is only revealed in one-on-one conversations with current employees of your target company. Trade shows are the perfect place for this.
Here are five steps for networking your way to a job at a trade show:
1. Zero Hour: Find Your Event
Trade shows are the perfect platform for meeting company representatives in person. There are trade shows for nearly every industry - sometimes too many. I’ve given advice before on preparing for a trade show from an exhibitor’s point of view, but as a job seeker trade shows can be an untapped gold mine.
You want to get a master list of all the relevant trade shows, and then start filtering through them based on important details such as number of exhibitors and quality of companies.
Once you narrow down your event it’s time to get together a list of your target companies.
2. Building Targets: Get Your Short List
Now it’s time to gather a list of companies and people at the event that you would possibly want to work for. A realistic number would be about 15-20 companies at the event. From this list of companies, start digging into who might be representing them at the event.
Do some digging online to gather any info you can. You’ll want to gather at least a couple of names that could be representing the company to start. Go to the company website and see if there is any announcement of the trade show they’ll be attending on the corporate blog. The author of the post might be attending the event, or someone on his or her events team could, too. Look at the person’s LinkedIn profile and see what the title of their position is. Look at their contacts and look for similar positions on the team. List these people out.
3. Create The Dossiers
With your list of possible contacts for each company, start doing some research on them. Don’t spend too much time on each person, but for each possible company staff member at the event, look at their available Twitter and LinkedIn accounts to see what they like to post about and what articles they share. Also do a search on SlideShare to see if they’ve put out any presentations of their own that you can review.
Your profile on each employee will be part company info on the possible booth staffers and part conversation fodder. Find the interests of these company employees that you can pepper into your conversations at the trade show.
4. Gather Live Information
Now is the fun part. With your list of companies at this event in hand start making your rounds and sparking up conversations.
You’re looking for an in at these companies, not looking to purchase anything. The best angle to take is to be honest, and not act like you’re going to buy something, but to show interest in their company from a learning perspective.
When you meet the company representatives, state your interest in the industry, and mention that you work in it and are trying to learn more about other companies in the space. With your research, you’ll know a good amount of the company, but this is where you can start to dig in and ask deeper questions:
What innovations is the company announcing soon?
How long have you worked at the company?
What do you like best about the company?
What would you like to see improved about your company?
Do you know of any open positions?
Is there anyone I should reach out to about the positions?
Do you have any advice for applying for positions?
From the questions above, you can get a true feel for how this person feels about the company. You can tell if they are generally excited to be working there, or are they giving routine answers. As you dig deeper you’ll get invaluable information about the company that you won’t find anywhere else. You’ll use these answers to build a profile of the company to be prepared when you apply at the companies.
5. Recap And Plan Next Move
The mind is like a sieve, and it’s important to write down a thorough recap of your conversations with companies at the show. Write down as much info as you can remember from the show, including important details you won’t find anywhere else that you must remember.
The information gathered before and after the show is crucial to helping you narrow down your target companies, get inside contacts at the company, and add unique talking points to your interviews.
This post was originally published at an earlier date.
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
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Make 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
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Are 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.
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
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Your 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.