02.01.10
Getting Noticed at Career Faires
Standing out at a Career Faire can make a difference in your search. Job Faires are starting to pick up, and a major job search company is running some nice ones, called Targeted Job Fairs. At a San Jose Area Career Fair in early 2010, 10 companies as showing up, and Dice has 82 job faires scheduled for 2010 across the States.
How do you rise above the crowd at a Career Fair? The competition can be sizeable, but you can help yourself surpass from the gang with early planning. At AA-Careers, we have a simplified six-step process to prepare. Plan to go? Here’s how to prepare:
First, research the companies that are going and pick your targets. Use the web to check out the companies that are there before you go. Go to their websites and see if they have their openings posted. Pick a rational number to go after, and get ready to spend up to an hour researching each one. It’s hard to do more than 8 in a day, and four or five is a much more reasonable target. For each hiring organization, you want to know: key product lines, recent news, and executive names. Try to see if you know anyone at the target companies. You should end up with a page or two of research for each company/job.
Second, if there are job postings on the web, read them to see what the hiring department is looking for. Create a mapping of your accomplishments and skills to the requirements of the job. Make the nomenclature match. If the hiring organization calls customers "clients", your resume should do the same thing. The achievements should be written in the style of the hiring company.
Third, create a ‘mini sales pitch’ for each potential company/position combination. Write down a 90 second ‘thumbnail’ that you can repeat verbally showing why you are a key prospect for that job. You’ll use this in your resume and when you meet people at the job kiosk.
Fourth, modify your resume for each job type. The objective on your resume should exactly match the job you’re going after. The executive summary should be a written form of your “mini sales pitch” for the job. Then choose the achievements and skills that most clearly match the job description. Especially at a Job Fair, the purpose of your resume is a sales tool for you – to get you on-site job interviews. It should be obvious to see that you’re a fit based on your resume.
Fifth, dress and prepare as if you’re doing on-site interviews. Dress nicely and be properly groomed. Don’t overdress (this isn’t a date!) and don’t underdress (no jeans or t-shirts, no matter how much you paid for them). Avoid strong cologne or perfume.
Finally, practice your ‘mini-sales-pitch’. Collect your research and the resume for each position - bring a couple of copies for each – and put each in a distinctly labeled folder. Keep them in a light briefcase or folio.
Remember to smile, and good hunting!
