Market Your CareerFolio
Use Your CareerFolio Web Resume to Drive your Career Marketing Efforts

With more employers using sites like Google and LinkedIn to source candidates and "check out" potential employees online, it's become critically important for job seekers to build and maintain a positive Web presence. The Web has become the medium of choice for candidate sourcing and recruiting and can be equally effective as a platform for job seekers.

Use Your CareerFolio as a Personal Marketing Tool Why You Should Build a Web Presence Add URL to Career Correspondence Optimize Your Results with Keyword Loading Related Articles Promote Your Candidacy During an Active Job Search How to Apply for Posted Jobs Leverage Your Cover Letter Using Personal Search Agents Direct Employer Contact Leverage Your Career During a Passive Job Search Conduct a Passive Job Search

How to Conduct a Confidential Job Search Safeguard Your Privacy Privacy Policies CareerFolio Checklist How Employers Use Google and Linked In Keyword Loading Cover Letters

Cover Letters

Be sure to add your CareerFolio URL to your cover letter. Here are some examples.

• Add URL to your cover letter letterhead: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
• Include the URL in context - pointing out a specific fact: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
• Included in the PS

Why You Should Build a Web Presence

In short, you need a Web presence because 25-75% of your potential employers will use Google and networking sites such as LinkedIn or FaceBook to glean information about you. Related articles

	Promoting yourself online is one of the best, easiest, and fastest ways to build your personal brand. Boris Mann, Web 2.0 and Personal Brand Development
	According to a Harris Poll, 23% of people search the names of business associates or colleagues on the Internet before meeting them.

 

 

5 Steps for Building a Web Presence:

1. Google Yourself: What will potential employers find out if they Google you? Find out!
2. Create a Careerfolio Web Resume: Web resumes are indexed by Web spiders -- in other words, recruiters and employers can find your resume through keyword searches.
3. Optimize Your Keywords: Research your job target to determine the proper "keyword mix" for your job level and targeted industry; incorporate critical keywords into your resume. More..
4. Get LinkedIn / Sign up for Free Web Profile: Get a profile on a "networking" site such as LinkedIn.com and actively build your network of contacts.
5. Blog: If you have excellent writing skills, consider blogging.

The CareerFolio can be used as a short-term job search tool (to supplement traditional resumes), but for many, the CareerFolio provides maximum value when used as "long term" personal marketing tool.

Apply for Posted Jobs

When responding jobs that are advertised online, the first thing to remember is this:

Always send the requested resume format.
Never send your Web resume URL in lieu of a requested format.

How to respond to an advertised job when a text or Word resume is requested:

1. Paste your text cover letter into e-mail window
2. Paste text resume below cover letter and/or attach MS Word file
3. Add your CareerFolios' URL (web address) to the cover letter as shown here.

CareerFolios Checklist for Success

To optimize your CareerFolio as a personal marketing tool:

1. Include a Text Download: This will increase the likelihood that your resume will make it into employers' and recruiters' databases
2. "Keyword Load" your Resume: If your resume speaks the same language (i.e., keywords) as your potential employers, your CareerFolio will attract the kind of attention you want. See Keyword Loading
3. Actively Promote Your URL: See Career Correspondence
4. Manage Your CareerFolio as a Long Term Marketing Tool: Keep it updated, adjust content as your career progresses and changes... And remember, it's always showtime!
5. Include a Link to Your LinkedIn Profile
6. Add Your CareerFolio URL to Your LinkedIn Profile

While the CareerFolio can be used as a short-term job search tool (as an adjunct to traditional resumes), for many, the CareerFolio provides maximum value when used as "long term" marketing tool - along with other "web brand building" activities.

 

Passive Job Searching

 

If you forward your resume to recruiters, there's a good chance it will be processed electronically – and it will be categorized, archived, and selected as a match (or not) based on its keyword content. To ensure a high number of keyword matches, your resume must include job target-specific keywords.

 

Career Correspondence

During a non-confidential job search, here are some ways to promote your CareerFolio Web resume when communicating with networking contacts, responding to inquiries from employers, or forwarding your resume to recruiters:

• Regular Mail: Include your Web resume URL on the "letterhead" portion of your resume and cover letter.
• Fax: Include your Web Resume URL on your fax cover sheet.
• eMail: Add the URL to your e-mail signature line:

Jonathan Newton
www.careerfolio.com/jonnewton

• Add a Live URL: Most e-mail programs allow you to create a live hyperlink from your e-mail to your Web resume. Ideally, this link is placed near the top of the cover letter (sample) so that it is immediately visible to the recipient.

Cover Letter Strategies

Cover Letters for the Wired Job Market by Pat Kendall
This "How to" article includes text cover letter templates, samples with hyperlinks, strategies for keyword-loading, and examples of text cover letters with links to Web resumes.

HOT TIP: Entice the reader! In your cover letter, briefly refer to "additional details" or "relevant projects" that are fleshed out in your Web resume. Your objective is to motivate the reader to follow the link and read further.

Direct Contact the Electronic Way

Check the company's Web site to see if they provide instructions for resume submission. Carefully follow any instructions listed on the Web site.

In most cases, we recommend a "multiple format" approach. It's wise to send multiple formats, as it allows the recipient to view or capture whatever version of the resume they need.

• Text Cover Letter: Paste text cover letter into email.
• Text Resume: Paste text resume below cover letter.
• Word Resume: Attach MS Word file.
• CareerFolio Web Resume: Include a live link to your CareerFolio Web resume in the opening paragraph of your cover letter.

 

Get the Word Out!

Because your Web resume's URL is short and easy-to-remember, be sure to mention it to networking contacts and recruiters when discussing your candidacy.

 

Keyword Loading

Before launching any kind of personal marketing campaign, you need to make sure your resume is market-ready. In short, to work effectively your resume must speak the same language as your potential employers.

Since most resumes are scored and ranked based on their keyword content your goal is to figure out which keywords employers want to see - and then build them into your resume. How to Research Your Job Target Keywords

Recruiters and employers use various approaches and systems to find candidates and most believe that Web resumes are the best source for "untapped" candidates - i.e., passive job seekers. Article

instructions

Maximize Your Keywords = Maximize Your Results

Use a Search Agent

If you sign up for a Personal Search Agent or Job Agent (free on most sites), keyword-matched jobs will be delivered to you by e-mail.

You should always respond to advertised jobs by submitting the requested resume format - typically Word or text.

To promote your careerFolio, include a live link in the opening paragraph of your cover letter as described here: How to Respond to Posted Jobs

Guard Your Privacy

If you have privacy concerns – or need to ensure that your job search is not discovered by your current employer – you should remove the identifiers from your resume, change the document name and title, and (Confidential Sample). Once you've taken these precautionary steps, you can start marketing your resume.

Caution: Unless you have a password protected entry page, search engine "spiders" will find your CareerFolio and index it.

How Employers and Recruiters Use Google and LinkedIn