Mastering the Art of Online Job Hunting: Streamline Your Search and Save Precious Time

The Landscape of Online Job Hunting

When I first ventured into the world of online job hunting, I found myself spending countless hours sifting through numerous job postings across various sites. One of the most frustrating aspects of this process was the duplication of job postings across hundreds of job search sites.

Sites like Monster.com and Headhunter.net are filled with newly posted job opportunities. These postings are then picked up by webmasters of telecommuting sites and career-specific sites, resulting in the same job being duplicated across multiple platforms.

The Hidden Job Market

Many companies avoid posting their job openings to avoid being flooded with resumes from unqualified candidates. Instead, they search for resumes on various job sites. To ensure your resume gets noticed, post it on several job sites and update it regularly.

Crafting a Digital-Ready Resume

• Create a professional resume in your preferred word processor, ensuring it is free of spelling and grammatical errors.
• Export the resume to a text file.
• Edit the text file to remove all internal carriage returns. Each paragraph should be on a single, long line.
• Paste the resume into the job site's entry form.

Keep your resume to two or three pages as many sites have character limits. If you're worried about omitting important job-related skills, add a short section at the top of your resume that lists these skills. This will provide the necessary keywords for the search while keeping your resume concise.

The Power of Meta-Search Engines

To save time, consider using meta-search engines. These engines search multiple sites simultaneously and return the results to you. Some popular meta-search engines include JobSleuth, Job Search Engine, Wanted Jobs, and JobVertise.

Leveraging Online Tools

I found two tools particularly useful for online job hunting: Copernic, a meta-search engine application, and Correlate, an organizational tool. Copernic allows you to search multiple engines simultaneously and groups duplicate job postings together. Correlate helps you organize information in a tree structure, making it easy to keep track of job postings and applications.

Making Your Application Stand Out

Once you find a suitable job opportunity, send a cover letter and your resume. The cover letter should clearly state the job you're applying for and highlight your qualifications. Also, provide contact information for potential interviews.

The Next Steps

After you've landed an interview, don't panic! Engage in conversation with the employer, whether over the phone or via email, and negotiate for your position. Remember, it often takes a few tries to land the right job, so don't be discouraged if it takes some time.

Once you've secured a job, the next challenge is staying disciplined. But that's a different story for another time. Good luck with your online job hunt!