A great article with some tips for every PR job searcher!
(Source: estellewrites)
Today marks my Slideshare resume reaching over eight hundred views (822 to be exact) in just ten days. What a great achievement! For the actual plant drop I used a different bit.ly link and discovered that if you sign up as a user they give you free stats on who clicks your link. What this means is overall, from the 12 plants I sent out, the link (only used on the cards stuck into the plants) has had 47 views:
Forty-four of those clicks came from Canada, one from the US and two from international users, meaning the link has not only been revisited on more than one occasion but also shared. Another amazing thing to come out of this was an old friend from my University of Toronto PR course, messaged me to say her friend from a firm, shared the link with her not knowing our connection. What a huge compliment.
All in all I would deem my #plantdrop a success and will continue meeting with firms, establishing relationships and eventually settle into a PR position where I can plant my feet and grow!
1. Show what you’re made of. In most interviews, you try to tell people that you’re knowledgeable about a given topic. In a blog, you can show them. To that end, blog about current events in your industry, your view on trends and developments and demonstrate your areas of expertise.
2. Build a professional network. There are numerous examples of people finding jobs through connections in a blog community. This month, I helped connect a young woman into the professional marketing scene in Chicago because I was impressed with her blog. Your blog community can certainly become a professional network.
3. Engage instead of advertise. Let’s face it. No matter how creative you get, a résumé is still an advertisement. I struggle to read carefully through a lengthy résumé. However, I will read interesting stories on a blog all day long. Compelling content is a way to engage prospective employers in a way that will hold their attention.
4. Stand out. In today’s world, blogging may be an expectation of many entry-level jobs. Demonstrating an ability to create content may just be the difference that gets you the job over a non-blogger.
5. Sharpen your professional skills. If you’re going to blog about a subject, you need to know your stuff. Putting out thoughtful content requires that you stay on top of your game, which will certainly be an advantage to you, especially if the job-hunting process is a long one.
6. Expand your reach. Building your personal brand means showing up in all the places a prospective employer might find you. Of course that usually means LinkedIn. But having a link to a blog on your profile, as well displaying a feed of your recent blog posts, gives a potential employer stalking you on LinkedIn more ways to connect with you and learn about your skills.
7. Extend the interview. Here is the last thing you say to your interviewer: “I’ve enjoyed our time together but there is so much more I could tell you about my abilities. I hope you’ll take a look at my blog (the Web address is on my résumé) so you can see for yourself the way I think about things.” And you know what? They’ll do it. You have just extended your interview by another 15 to 30 minutes and that may make all the difference.
Mark Schaefer is the executive director of Schaefer Marketing Solutions. He blogs at grow, where a version of this article originally ran.
“For the second quarter in a row, the city with the most bustling economy in the country is Toronto”
“Employment has climbed 4.6 per cent, led by full-time positions, more than the 3.4-per-cent average.”
Good news for Torontonians and the job market. Read the full article from The Globe and Mail here.
So it happened, I dropped off the plants at various organizations across Toronto! Despite a few minor roadblocks like traffic, the link to my Slideshare resume not working for a bit and one case of opposition, it’s done!
I’ve already received some amazing feedback and have even set up a few meetings! All around I’m feeling positive about what’s to come.
I do however want to address the negative feedback I received. One of the people whom I dropped a plant to, acknowledged my plant drop and a tweet I had posted to various firms with the following tweet: “oomph….#fail”. When I inquired, they responded saying that forming relationships is personal and although my idea was “cute” it would have been preferable to tweet individually.
As I mentioned in an earlier post I struggled with whether or not I should be open about targeting various firms. I was worried that each organization might not feel I really want to work for them if I’m not personally reaching out to them. I decided in the end that because I am using social media as a platform I would just be transparent. Transparency is, in my mind, what defines an organization’s success online.
I researched every firm and organization I dropped plants off to. Each company offers different opportunities, all of which I find exciting. I’m open and willing to meet with anyone. The conventional way of sending a resume and getting an informational interview has not gotten me where I want, so I decided to think outside of the box and do something different. My method may not suit every firm but I believe that the people who respond and like the idea are people who are similar to me and are ultimately the people I would like to work for.
Although the word “fail” was a bit harsh, I do appreciate the feedback even though it was negative. I think hearing opinions different from our own helps us to grow and be challenged. It also forces us to view situations from different angles.
I will continue to blog throughout this process and hope if nothing else my idea has inspired others to find creative ways to reach out to employers they want to work for.
Here are some interestingly designed resumes that might inspire you!
ps. As of today my visual resume is at 309 views and the link I sent out on the cards (to accompany the plants) has had 27 clicks! Great news!
Previous jobs I’ve had have allowed me to polish my “deal finding” skills. Many times with PR and events I’ve been faced with tight budgets and high expectations, so I’ve had to find creative ways to make things work. With Plant Drop because I’m planning on sending out plants (duh!) I’ve spent the last week or so looking around for the best deals.
The process has become more tricky than I initially predicted because of the fact that it’s Winter and not exactly flower planting time here in Canada. So I’m still deciding between potting my own (the cheapest option, if I can find them) or buying small 4” ones from a market or flower shop. The cheapest I’ve found so far is $2.99 per plant for a nice 4” tulip plant but, I don’t really think that’s the best deal around so I’m going to check out Home Depot, Kensington market and continue calling around. Despite many plant and flower shops telling me they have nothing in season, they are quick to give me advice on who might. If I can get the cost down below $2.00 per plant I will be much happier.
The next major purchase is packaging, I mentioned in an earlier post that I found cellophane bags at six for one dollar, and yesterday I discovered that Ikea has cute pots for only .79 each (shown below)!
So that leaves me with the cards to stick in the plants with my Slideshare link, the sticks to stick the cards on, ribbon to tie the cellophane bags and something to hold the plants in the car while I drive and drop them off around town Monday. It’s going to be a busy weekend, but it also seems like everything is coming together nicely and I must admit I’m very much looking forward to the actual Plant Drop part.
Stay tuned…
After discussing my plans for Plant Drop with various people one concern seemed to arise quite often. Will organizations “feel special enough” if they know I am targeting other ones as well. I’ve considered this a lot over the past few weeks and finally came to the conclusion that I’m not going to worry about it.
The thing with social media is it doesn’t work unless you’re transparent. So I’ve decided to follow through with that and keep this strategy completely transparent. Yes, I’m targeting many firms, but does that mean I’m just going to jump into a position with any of them? Of course not! The main reason I’m doing this, spending all this time (and a bit of cash too) is because I want to foster relationships with organizations I respect and aspire to work at in Toronto. I want to find somewhere that I can plant my feet and make my mark. I’m much more interested in finding somewhere I fit than just any job. So that’s why I’m doing this.
Now that that’s out of the way I just wanted to share that I’ve mapped out my targets, and though I may add/remove more as I continue to research, I wanted to post a picture of how great a job Google Maps does with the My Map location. I sometimes wonder if there’s anything they can’t do?
It’s finally finished! After many tweaks, changes and hours, my visual resume is done and uploaded to Slideshare. I’d love to know what you think and am open to any suggestions/critiques.
I spent most of today sourcing vendors for the plants and finding somewhere to buy pots to put them in. I also managed to find cellophane bags in packs of six for $1!! Looking forward to buying the plants this weekend and putting this all together.
Stay tuned for #plantdrop happening this Monday January 16th!
I’ve started this blog to document my search for a PR position. You don’t have to be a genius to know that the job market isn’t what it once was. It’s become very clear to me in my job search that a resume and cover letter isn’t really enough, especially when it comes to creative industries like PR and communications.
To give you a little background; I have about four years of experience, mostly in event planning, PR and social media. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Journalism from Dalhousie University as well as a post-graduate PR certificate from University of Toronto. I’ve had the pleasure of working for companies such as Clinique, Arts & Crafts, War Child and ALS Ontario. All of my experiences have contributed greatly to who I am today and now that I finally know exactly what I want to do, and the path I need to take to get there, I’m ready to compete to make it happen.
SO…I’m on the last few slides of my Visual Resume that I created in Power Point (which I plan to upload to Slideshare once complete and I’ve come up with a creative way to get the attention of PR Firms and Corporate Companies that I want to work for.
THE PLAN aka Plant Drop:
I’ve selected a bunch of PR people in Toronto from various firms and companies that I want to work with at their organizations. This week once I finish my visual resume and upload it, I will buy a plant for each of them. I will then print cards with each person’s name, put my Slideshare and this tumblr link on the back and stick it in the plant. The plan is to tweet and update tumblr with pictures and info about the process of buying, preparing and dropping off the plants (using the hashtag #plantdrop). Then, once delivered, I wait and hope that the people and companies I’ve targeted receive the plant, check out my visual resume, connect with me, interview me, and hopefully hire me!
If you have any input or suggestions I’d be happy to hear! Thanks for reading.
