Standing out at a Job Faire can make a difference in your career search. Career Faires are starting to pick up, and a major job search company is running some nice ones, called Targeted Job Fairs. At a Silicon Valley Job Faire in January, 10 companies as showing up, and a major job search company has 82 career faires scheduled for this year across the United States.
How do you rise above the crowd at a Career Fair? The contention can be significant, but you can help yourself surpass from the gang with advance homework. At AA-Careers, we have a simple 6-step process to prepare. Planning to go? Here’s how to prepare:
First, research the companies that are going and pick your targets. Use the internet to check out the organizations that are there before you go. Go to their websites and see if they have their job openings listed. Pick a moderate number to go after, and get ready to spend an hour researching each one. It’s hard to do more than 10 in a day, and five or six is a much more reasonable target. For each company, you want to know: executive names, recent news, and key product lines. Try to see if you know anyone at the target companies. You should end up with a page or two of research for each company/job.
Second, if there are job openings on the web, read them to see what the organization is looking for. Create a mapping of your achievements and skills to the demands of the job. Make the nomenclature match. If the hiring company calls customers "clients", your resume should do the same thing. The accomplishments should be written in the style of the hiring company.
Third, create a ‘thumbnail sales pitch’ for each likely company/job combination. Write down a ninety second ‘thumbnail’ that you can repeat verbally describing why you are a special prospect for that job. You’ll use this in your resume and when you meet people at the job kiosk.
Fourth, modify your resume for each position. The objective on your resume should exactly match the position you’re targeting. The executive summary should be a written form of your “mini sales pitch” for the job. Then choose the achievements and skills that most clearly match the job description. Especially at a Job Faire, the purpose of your resume is a sales tool for you – to get you on-site job interviews. It should be simple to see that you’re a fit based on your resume.
Fifth, dress and prepare as if you’re doing on-site interviews. Dress well and be well groomed. Don’t overdress (this isn’t a date!) and don’t underdress (no jeans or t-shirts, no matter how much you paid for them). Avoid strong cologne or perfume.
Finally, practice your ‘mini-sales-pitch’. Collect your research and the resume for each opportunity – bring a couple of copies for each – and put each in a distinctly labeled folder. Keep them in a lightweight briefcase or folio.
Remember to smile, and good hunting!