Clearly State Your Title and Industry Under Your Name — Instead of stating “Jon Doe, Marketing Director,” on the very top of your profile, state “Jon Doe, Marketing Executive, Digital Media and Mobile.” If you are in digital sales, instead of saying “East Coast Sales Manager,” write, “Digital East Coast Sales Manager — Retail, CPG Expertise.” Get those key strategic words in that will help define your core strengths and experiences to attract greater interest in your profile at first glance.
Expand Your Summary — Whereas, in a resume, you need to keep your summary short and sweet, you have the chance to really blow it out on LinkedIn. Think of your summary as a mini Bio that highlights your core areas of expertise and unique selling propositions, remembering to use keywords throughout to ensure you pop up in searches.
Use SEO Strategies In Highlighting “Specialties” — Think of all the various responsibilities that you currently have, and have had in the past, and highlight them one by one in the “Specialities” area, being very specific instead of broad-stroked. As a marketing executive, you could put, for example:... Read more
Archive for Jane Turkewitz 
10 Way to Promote Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn
6 Ways to Use Social Media In Your Job Search
Living in New York, I feel especially fortunate to have not lost anyone or anything due to the wrath of Sandy. Last week, especially on Tuesday and Wednesday, I found myself glued to the news, watching video upon video of the Katrina-like devastation that hit my backyard. I also couldn’t stay away from Facebook. The social media coverage was just as important, as riveting and as relevant.
For Sandy, Facebook is not only being used to express grievances and show horrifying imagery, but it is also being utilized as a vehicle for those of us lucky enough to be unscathed to reach out and offer a helping hand. It got me thinking a lot about the true power of social media — not in terms of advertising or selling a product, but in terms of raw, grassroots communications. Social media has become so integral to all that we do. With that in mind, I put together this post for those of us who, regardless of how hard Sandy has hit, are moving forward and searching for something new to look forward to.
Rule #1 — Search and Target
If you know there’s a job opening at the Widgetorium, instead of sending your resume through... Read more
What Not to Wear: How Casual is Too Casual in Today’s Digital World?
Recently, a candidate was referred to me by a CRO of a digital media company who thought this person was an A+ but just didn’t have a job opening for him. After speaking with the candidate, who we’ll call Jim, I completely agreed. He was smart, polished and completely on his game.
I sent Jim on two interviews with two different digital companies. The first company loved him and wanted to move forward. The second company, not so much. Sure, they thought he was on his game in terms of where he’s been and what he seems capable of. But, apparently, Jim failed to impress because of how he chose to dress.
Jim showed up for the interview with a pair of ripped jeans and a five-o’clock shadow. The client did not like this one bit. And, since this is the second time in a few months that I’ve received feedback from a client on candidates arriving to an interview too slovenly, I thought it was time to address (uh…pardon the pun).
It used to be easy. If you were going on a job interview, you put on a suit and tie or a skirt, depending on your gender. Professionalism was the name... Read more
To Call or Not to Call After Sending In Your Resume
Not too long ago, I received the following question from a reader regarding a piece of advice I gave on cover letters.
I stumbled onto your blog today and found the resume and cover letter tips very helpful. I’m a reporter looking for my next job, and there’s something I keep wondering about — you suggest ending a cover letter with “I’ll call you to set up an interview.” It’s advice I’ve seen in lots of places, but many, if not all, of the job listings I see say “No phone calls.” One even said that anyone who attempted to call would be automatically disqualified. Many of them also say that due to the volume of responses, only people selected for an interview will be contacted.
Here’s the reality. If the ad basically says, “don’t call us, we’ll call you,” then, my feeling is you don’t call. Chances are, it’s a Human Resources department running the ad and the recruiters in that department are digging thru tons of resumes to find ones that fit the job description. If you call them, you’re probably not going to get anywhere because they’ll... Read more
3 Reasons Why Investing In One Recruiter Makes Sense
You're a mature start up, gearing up to hire 10 people this fiscal. You need help, so you start interviewing recruiters who will work for you (not "with you") on a contingency basis. You hire three in New York to cover your national hiring needs. You figure the more people working on it the merrier.
While it is definitely true that the ball will get rolling faster by hiring multiple recruiting firms to work on your jobs, I submit that it doesn't help you get the job done quicker or more effectively. In fact, I would argue that it could do you more harm then good. Here are my top 3 reasons why:
#3 - Partnership = Collaboration; Vendor-ship = Chaos
With ATS systems in place, many of you who are hiring, farm out jobs to recruiters and then have the recruiters submit resumes into your ATS. There's very little interaction with the recruiters in this scenario. They simply submit their candidates' resumes into your system and hope and pray, #1, that the system worked, and #2, that you will call them regarding setting that candidate up for an interview.
Inevitably, the hiring company loses out here. Resumes don't get submitted into the system... Read more
