6 Job Search Tips To Think About...
Notably unemployment this year has increased, we all know someone who has faced redundancy… It has been reported that UK unemployment has risen by 4.8%. Recruitment agencies such as us refer to this rise in candidates as a ‘candidate rich market’, but as a job hunter it simply means, more competition and less vacancies.
With this in mind, we understand that regardless of the hard work you put into your job search it is ultimately a hard market you find yourself in. Our tips are to support your search, unfortunately we can’t wave a wand and get you hired (we wish we could). So here’s a few of our top tips to support your job search.
Social presence
If you haven’t got LinkedIn, are you even alive? Strong statement? Nearly all recruiters use LinkedIn to find and source talent. We aren’t saying that you need to regularly post but we are saying that it’s important that you have an up-to-date profile that clearly demonstrates your skills and work history. If you have a social presence, we strongly recommend that LinkedIn features! You could find yourself with recruiters and hiring managers viewing your profile and potentially requesting your CV!
Keywords Matter
If you’re applying for a role called “Graphic Designer” and your CV does not mention the words Graphic Designer, then we have a problem. Ok that’s a basic example we know, it’s important you read the job you’re applying for, what keywords are included in that job spec? Mirror the skills and keywords that you see in the job on your CV. Afterall you chose the job because it matches your skills, right? So surely if your CV has the same skills you’ll be in a good position? More than that, your CV will feature when employers and recruiters are searching for candidates like you.
Be personable, be you
If you’ve recently been for an interview that you feel went well, why not email them to say thank you? A good thank you matters; it makes you memorable. These small human gestures could make you stand out from the competition; if you went for a nice meal with a friend, would you message to say “had a great time” surely the same rule applies? “Thank you for your time today…” Who would you remember? The applicant who followed up. Or the one who didn’t?
Soft Skills
In our recent blog ‘4 Soft Skills To Add To Your CV’ we highlighted some of the soft skills we believe employers will be looking for in candidates, now and post Covid-19. We highly recommended taking a look at this article and further thinking about what soft skills and hard skills you have. It's notably important to show that you are a for example “emotionally intelligent” person as it is to say you are proficient with “Excel”. This additional layer could bump your CV to the top. Employers want to hire people who are able to offer a wide range of skill sets, if your hard skills are lacking, add some soft skills in too. We recommend between 5 and 10 skills.
Keep track of your applications
When you start your job search it can be easy to forget what you’ve applied for, all of a sudden, you’ve applied for 10 jobs and likely forgotten which you have and which you haven’t, resulting in a messy job search... A great way to stay organised is to keep a spreadsheet as advised by our lead accountant Louise “Keep a spreadsheet/notebook and track the applications you make, noting when you sent your CV, the email address etc. Note when and if you get a reply but don’t be disheartened if you don’t. Just keep applying.” As an agency who receives 100s of applications per day, this truly is a golden piece of advice. Further to this make sure you check your response emails, all too often we receive multiple applications from the same candidate for the same role, sometimes with different personal statements, as you can imagine this could shine some negativity on your application.
Be open, be transferrable
Whilst we all want to apply for our ‘Dream Job’ sometimes we have to work our way to that eventuality. In times where there are limited opportunities it’s worthwhile allowing yourself to look at vacancies that may not be exactly what you want but could blossom. Think about what skills you possess, what training you have that could be transferred to a different role. In times where there are limited roles it’s worthwhile expanding your search… however make sure you “Ensure your CV is relevant for the role you are applying for highlighting your relevant skills.” Says Lead Technical & Engineering consultant Julia Sherlock. If you do decide to broaden the net, ensure your CV is relevant, if it doesn’t reflect the new job type you won’t be considered.
