The following article was found through DISCOVER's website:
Making Contact with Employers
When you are hunting for a job, getting your foot in the door is difficult. How do you get the attention of the employer? How can you find out about job openings? How do you find out more about an organization than is provided on their web site?
Know What They Need and What You Can Offer
Rule #1: Identify the kind of job you want. Know how your skills, education, and/or experience "fit" the job for which you are applying. If you have particular strengths or weaknesses, be sure you think about how you will explain them to employers. Use the occupational description in DISCOVER to decide which skills will be useful and how you will use them in this kind of work. Then use the Internet to find job descriptions in your field. Look at other people's resumes to see how you can strengthen your resume. Visit the websites of companies that employ people in your field, or use a search engine to identify employers in your field.
Find-a-Friend
Rule #2: Find people who either do the kind of work you want to do, or know people who do the kind of work you want to do. Ask for their help. Good places to find such people are professional organizations in your field, such as the American Marketing Association or Teacher's Federation, or general professional associations like the Chamber of Commerce or Lion's Club. Attend meetings or subscribe to listservs to strike up conversations with "pros."
Other ways to network with people who can help you are college alumni associations, mentoring programs, and jobshadowing partners. Use directories, such as professional association guides, telephone books, and on-line directories to make contact with employers. Your local library can also provide helpful ideas.
Getting in the Door
Rule #3: The phone is your friend. We may live on the Information Superhighway, but business is still mostly done by phone. Use the phone to find out:
• Who you should bring or send your resume to
• What the current issues are within the company
• Who the people are who do the kind of work you'd like
• If there are job openings now or whether there may be openings soon
A good way to prepare for the phone call is to write a script. That way you'll have the right words in front of you when need them. When you contact a person by phone:
• Introduce yourself and briefly tell her or him where you went to school, when you graduated (if you have, of course), and why you are calling.
• Highlight your qualifications in a few sentences. Ask if you might stop by for a short visit. If not, offer to drop off your resume.
• Whether you get a chance to follow-up or not, be sure you ask the person if you can check back in a month or so.
• Be sure you are upbeat and thank the person when you hang up.
With these tips, you should be working in no time. Good luck!
