7 Job Search Tactics To Stand Out From The Crowd

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LinkedIn: Did you know that 85% of recruiters go to Linkedin first to find talent? Learn how to use LinkedIn effectively. Rich DeMatteo’s Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to LinkedIn is a great place to start.

Infographic Resumes:  Stand out from other applicants with an infographic resume. Infographics communicate data visually. Consider the culture of the organization and the type of position you’re applying for when using this tactic. You can even use it as your Facebook cover photo.

Share Your Portfolio: You can easily display your portfolio on your blog and LinkedIn using tools like Behance. This is another example of showing vs. telling. Why should an employer hire someone who is “results-oriented” when they could hire someone who has actual samples of their work and results? See the difference?

“Hire Me” Campaigns: Use your Blog, Twitter, and Facebook fan pages for a “Hire Me” campaign. Here’s a great example of a job seeker who got creative, and sidestepped the usual channels to land an interview. Bianca Cadloni is doing something similar to attract the attention of Chipotle. Make sure to clearly show your target employer exactly why they should hire you.

Share Links: Using every opportunity you have to share information. Job seekers can include links to their social networks, online resume, or blog. Do you really want to wait for your application and resume to make it to the hiring manager’s desk when there are so many ways to get your message in front of people?

QR Codes: The use of QR codes in resumes is gradually increasing but this is still a great way to stand out. A QR Code is a 2-dimensional “quick response” bar code that contains information (text, numbers, or a hyperlink).  This data is decoded by QR Readers, which are widely available as Smartphone applications. You can easily run a print ad in a trade show program or local newspaper, linking to your blog’s “Hire Me” page. Here’s an example of a QR code:

Facebook Cover Photos: Your new cover photo stretches across the top of your entire profile and is an addition to the standard profile image you’re used to.  You can even use services like http://www.myfbcovers.com/ to tweak your photo.

Here’s a bonus: Use technology to make your job search easier. Here’s some ways to use Google to your advantage that you may have never considered.  

Have you used any of the techniques above in your job search? What was the result? Let us know by leaving a comment below.