I know you’ve heard this a billion and a half times. I have too and, quite frankly, as much as I hate to say it, it’s true. It really is who you know when it comes to finding the most, the best, and the most interesting positions that are available out there. By the time a standard job posting makes it to a career-builder website, it’s been through three to four levels of interested people.
Nice to meet you.
Sure is blurry back here.That means that, either there’s something really wrong with it or they just haven’t found anyone that wants to do it or the compensation is just not where most people want it to be. So, you really do need to know someone on the inside or related to the inside that can help you at least get your foot in the door. I know it’s a tough thing to think about, but that’s why we’re going to go through these five networking hints to help you get your foot in the door and get your next job.
1. Call A Business And Speak To Someone There
Super easy, right? Just pick up the phone and say, “Can I speak with someone that’s going to hire me?,” right? No. It’s not that easy, but chances are that some of the smaller or mid-size companies will have HR managers or hiring managers that are very much interested in talking to people and aren’t flooded with hundreds of emails every day because of the way they approach the search.
Also, a lot of the bigger corporations are getting more into the social marketing and using some of these tactics to find people that are qualified by non-standard routes (i.e., social media). Usually, depending on how busy they are and how far advanced they are with their skills in these new Web 2.0, Web 3.0 tools, they will post you their email addresses that they want to receive these types of inquiries at, phone numbers, LinkedIn profiles, or special sections of their websites, to where you can get this one-on-one interaction.
It’s not as difficult as it sounds. It is scary still, I’ll admit that, but you can find legitimate contacts and be very short and quick with how you approach them and probably gain some type of response, which is all you ever wanted. Open that door and, professionally, take care of the rest.
2. Pass Out New Age Business Cards At Industry Events
Business cards? What?! This doesn’t mean you need to go spend $300 and get nice little pretty things on a business card printing website. It could be something as simple as going to a website where you can print out the QR code that leads to your LinkedIn profile. Or, just have that picture on your phone and when someone asks for your business card, you say, “Here, take a picture of this or scan this.” Boom – you’re done.
If this is an industry where technology and new tools are relevant, this will not only be an impressive thing because it’s not done often, at least not from what I can tell. It will prove that you are familiar with the tools and the technology but would also be a very simple way to pass this information back and forth. Consider new ways of sharing paths to your resume or what you have to offer that are different, that will get people’s attention and stick in their mind, but in a professional manner.
3. Email People You (Don’t Really) Know
Friends of friends, acquaintances, old colleagues, current colleagues that are not really tied to your boss (because you have to be careful with that), and any other interested person that knows someone related to a position or company you’re going for.
This can be tough, depending on how many people you know and who you know, but if you’ve ever been to a high school, been to a college, had any types of friends or know anybody, chances are you can post on Facebook, you can send out a Tweet discreetly or by direct message, or send an email blast with everyone on BCC (you don’t want to cause any funkiness there, and you don’t want anyone “replying to all” and it just getting crazy).
You can find someone who is somehow related to a person at a business you’re interested in. This is the “Six Degrees of Separation” concept, but now that everything is technology and social media, it’s more like two degrees of separation. Make sure you call and get in contact with people that you are familiar with but don’t necessarily have to be super buddy-buddy with.
4. Check With Your TRUE Friends
I know research has shown that sometimes friends aren’t the best source of getting an interview or position that you’re interested in, but sometimes it’s just the best way in. Especially if you’ve been at a company and made friends with people at that company and you’ve seen them go off to other companies, and you’ve kind of kept in contact with them or at least kept their email, you don’t just call them up and say, “Hey, whaddaya got?,” but you start a conversation out to strengthen and rebuild that relationship.
You can ease into, “Hey, if you’ve got any positions opening up here and there, I’m interested in this, this and that, so send me an email and let me know.” Chances are, they’ll ask for your resume just to keep it on file and send to someone, and immediately you’re on top of all the riffraff that flows in to apply for those positions. It’s definitely a wonderful thing to try.
5. Check Your Social Connections
Maybe this is Tweeting a random person that’s following you that you are somehow familiar with, or maybe this is the off-the-beaten-path LinkedIn group that you joined. Whatever the case may be, some of these “outer fringe” social networks that you joined that have people that aren’t necessarily strangers but are people you might not invite to your Christmas party might just be a great tip for you to have for a foot in the door at a company or position that you’re seeking.
And, really and truly, it couldn’t hurt to ask. More often than not, someone that is somehow following you or related to you on one of these social websites is interested enough to be friends with you, which is showing that they are interested enough to help, but they’re not so close that they’ll come up with the reasons to not help or to feel guilty. So, it’s a definite source that you need to try.
Start Building Your Job Network Now
Get your next job with the five networking tips that you just went through, and your efforts will be multiplied. When you leverage your resources to call business and actually speak with the person that’s relevant to the position that you’re seeking, pass out “New Age” business cards that lead directly to what you have to offer for the company, email people you know, check with your friends and the outer fringe social networks, you will have a step above the rest and, hopefully, a step in that open door, so you can get that position you’re seeking.
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