The Best Job Search Site
First of all, please use this section of the site. Nobody knows all the "tricks of the trade" when it comes to looking for a job. Many heads are better than one. Way too many people visit this site for it to go so underutilized. I don't know what I'm doing wrong.
Please offer any tips you have on getting a foot in the door, writing a kick-butt resume, interviewing, networking, etc. I'll start by offering my opinion on the best job search site.
Back in the day, I spent a lot of time looking for jobs on sites like Monster, HotJobs, and Career Builder. The only site that ever panned out for me was Indeed. The only interviews I got came through applications submitted through that tool. It has done for job searching what Google did for search. You only get relevant results. All the jobs seem to be real jobs, and you apply directly to the company, not to the Monster black hole of resumes.
It costs nothing to use Indeed -- all costs are paid by the employers. So that's pretty sweet too. I absolutely despise sites that promise to get your resume right into the hands of the CEO... for a fee. Don't bother with those sites. They're all shady.
When I was looking for ways to monetize this site, I jumped at the chance to become an Indeed affiliate. Give it a try. It puts a few pennies in my pocket if you do, and I really appreciate that.
If you know of any other good job search sites, please post them downthread.
The first two jobs that I worked for, I found advertised in my local newspaper. I like at least checking this resource because though the listings may be few, they are all real.
I also like looking on Craigslist.org. It's hard to weed out the jobs that are scams from those that are legitimate, so I usually only apply to those that actually list a company name or give an e-mail other than the anonymous Craigslist one. I have never actually gotten a job through them, but I did get an interview and it's a great place to look for new job ideas and fields. I have seen positions on there that I had never heard or thought of before, and it encourages me to see that there are endless possibilities.
Sitting in front of the computer all day with no results and no human interaction can get very discouraging though. That's why I make myself to take breaks (like exercising my dogs and allowing myself to stop thinking about job hunting for a bit) or try other avenues, embarrassing as it might be to face the rest of (seeming) employed the world.
Yesterday I went to the city hall, county office of employment and chamber of commerce in my new town. No leads other than some job listings on the wall and suggestions for companies that might be hiring, but it was still empowering to feel like I was doing SOMETHING and these are good places to see the faces of other unemployed & discouraged people, whom I can really relate to right now. Just like this website, it helps remind me that I am not alone. I am not 'doing something wrong' or lacking skills. These are simply hard times and its hard times that call for MORE optimism, not pessimism (I have to keep reminding myself too!!)
I even tried the old 'hitting the streets' method this morning, but unfortunately, times have changed too much. Asking for the manager and handing in a resume in person seems relevant only if you've got a company 'in' through networking. Walking into 5 companies within an hour, professionally dressed and well-groomed resume in hand, they all said the same thing-"If you go to our website, there is online application you can fill out. Then I would just call to follow-up." I know there are some success stories out there for this method, but I think it all depends on the field and the approach.
If anyone else has an recommendations, advice, or suggestions, I would love to hear them!
Get on the horn and start talking to people. Just go through the Yellow Pages and call every business that interests you. Tell them what you can do for them. Sooner or later you're bound to get a bite.
What I have been doing as well as the Monster and CareerBuilder is going directly to the websites of the companies I would like to work. So far that has netted two interviews, no job offers yet. I also am googling the industry that I am interested in. That way if there is a new company out there I know about it. I have also joined Linked In and made contact with anyone I had a relationship with at my old company. Linked In has not done anything except get me the references that are business related.
That's probably the best course of action for a number of reasons, first of which being that it puts you in the driver's seat in some sense. You're directly going after what you want. Make a list of companies in the industry of your choice, then figure out creative ways to contact them all -- not just through the web. Great advice. Thanks.
I found the job I am presently have via flyers I had been emailing out the the university I wanted to work at. Alot of sites have a list of emails for their staff.
I second Indeed. Indeed's the only one I've found that's netted me anything decent. I'll also second Idealist--all of the jobs seem to be real and there's usually an actual company contact. On the flip side, there is a special place in hell for USAJOBS.gov.
I'll also throw in LinkUp.com It works similar to Indeed in that it's a search engine with actual jobs (and not just sponsored Navy listing or something).
I will also throw in professional organizations for networking and job opportunities (to use a personal example--the Society of Women Engineers). A lot of those have job boards.
Avoid headhunters unless you have some super specialized experience in a field where they're predominantly used. I've had no luck with them. In this economy, employers have their pick of candidates and don't want to pay the headhunter fee. More often than not, I found they were just trying to mine my resume for potential clients.
Additionally, I like the blog Ask A Manager for general job advice.
Probably not much use to many here, but as a source of inspiration for others to get together and do something useful we think you will agree its a damm good idea.
Across the pond in England a group of unemployed coders and other assorted misfits made their own job search website.
http://bishop.comxa.com
Built with whatever they could get for free, such as web hosting, old scrap computers and space in garage. What they could not beg borrow or steal being paid for out of their own welfare cheques.
I'm all about bootstrappin' and DIY. Thank you so much for sharing. Hope it's a huge success!
Another great job search site is called Idealist.org, it's for non-profits of many varieties with a vast array of position types in major cities. It's just a collection of listings, no middle man and you apply directly to the organization either through their email address or their own online system. I've applied to countless orgs, that's how I found the one guy that called me for an interview in DC, although it never panned out I think it's a perfect place to look for that kind of work without all of the shadiness, advertising, and crap mail associated with the ones you mentioned. For me Monster is a total waste, I never get anything of any relevance in those weekly emails. Career Builders I guess is better, however I can't get over the scams that permeate that site. It's really annoying and you have to be extra vigilant all of the time. Anything that says "Company Confidential" is a scam, once they get your phone number they just try to sell you things and whatever else once they get any more of your personal information. There are always 2 or 3 of those in my job list emails from them. Plus I had a few that were like "Work from home for 10 hours a week and make $700, just give us your account information and you'll be our 'funds transfer associate'" or some b.s. like that. As if the search wasn't hard enough I have to wade through crap like that, at least I'm not dumb enough to fall for it.