COLLARTS WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS PART 1: “THE BASICS”
COLLARTS TYPES OF JOB APPLICATIONS CV’s & resumés → Key selection criteria (KSC) → Cover letters → Emails → Social media → Tweets are becoming more popular as an initial contact, especially in the media/marketing space. Linkedin is great because you can target the decision maker directly. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS GET THE RIGHT MINDSET It’s a game; it’s not personal. → It’s all too often a flawed process – getting the → person who APPEARS to be best for the role. Do not become personally attached to a → CV/resumé – it’s a tool and often needs to be sharpened, repurposed or you need a different tool! Always look at this process from the perspective → of the person hiring, not your own perspective. Every question, every challenge is an → opportunity to display your value. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS GET THE RIGHT MINDSET It gets you the interview and also acts as a rough → guide for the interviewer to use during the interview. Remember: job hunting is a skill all of its own; → just because you’re good at a doing the job, doesn’t always mean you’re good at job hunting. You need to develop this skill just like any → other…you need to learn and practice, but it all starts with having the right mindset. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS GET THE RIGHT MINDSET Accept that most people don’t score an interview 100% of the time. If you’re above 60% that’s good. If you’re below 50% you should consider changing something. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
THE RULES Painless Relevant Relatable Tailored
COLLARTS PAINLESS → Does the person reading it have to re-read a sentence to understand it? PAIN! → Have they spotted a spelling error? PAIN! → On first glance of your CV do they frown? PAIN! → Are you rambling too much? PAIN! → Are there three or four different fonts, sizes and odd formats? PAIN! → Too many colours? PAIN! → Is it too long? PAIN! GET THE PICTURE? WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS RELEVANT → Does everything written on the application serve a purpose? Does this employer really care that you were the “Victorian under 12’s UNO Captain”? Does it sell? Be brutally honest with yourself. → Is it written for a specific job or industry? Is it evident that you have written this application for that specific job or industry? Does it address the KSC’s either in the job description or job advertisement? (more on this later) → Does it show an insight and understanding for the importance, duties and responsibilities of that job? → Does it show insight and knowledge of the company and/or industry? Is it evident that you have done your research? Companies LOVE this… it strokes their ego and makes them feel important. They are almost always impressed that you have taken the time to research their company. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS RELEVANT THE TOP HALF OF YOUR CV IS PRIME REAL ESTATE. → First impressions definitely count. The top half of your Resumé/CV is the most important. It can make or break you. It is an opportunity to invite the reader to read on. If the reader is engaged, intrigued or interested, they will most likely continue reading with an open and interested mind. If not they might not read on at all, but if they do, it will be with a more disinterested and critical eye. → Include your most relevant, unique and engaging attributes in the top half. You need a ‘hook” and you need to pique the readers interest. → Do not waste this opportunity to SELL YOURSELF. This sets the tone of the entire application process and forms the foundation of the readers opinion of you. Keep them reading! Make them want more! WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS RELATABLE Written applications are essentially stories. They → tell the story of your career. The reader needs to be able to read this story → and relate to it. An effective written application needs to be able to conjure up positive images of your professional life. It serves as the script to a movie which plays in the mind of the reader. The reader must be able to clearly answer: → - What can this person do? - What has this person done? - Where did they do it? - How much of it did they do? - For how long? - Who with? (company, industry and people) WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS RELATABLE GIVE EXAMPLES ! People want a narrative, they → want to read and easily see a story unfold in their mind. This is why SPECIFIC examples are important. What are you applying for? Do you look like what → you’re applying for on your CV? Use industry specific language & themes, be → topical. Sound like you actually know what you’re talking about. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS TAILORED → The application (cover letter, KSC’s and CV) must be tailored to that specific job and/or industry. It needs to read like it’s been written specifically for that role, for that company and for that particular job. → READ THE JOB AD! This means that you need to pay attention to the job ad/job description and you’ll need to conduct some research. The application must reflect what that employer is looking for. → If there is no job description, ask for one. This also gives you the opportunity to introduce yourself and possibly speak to a decision maker pre-interview. This is a huge advantage and will give you an edge. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS TAILORED → Read the job description, then read it again! Make sure you’re constantly reviewing it when you’re completing the application. → Give them what they’re asking for. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS TAILORED → RESEARCH the company and their news/ blog page on their website. “Stalk” the company and its employees on Linkedin. → Look for patterns in employment history and the “type” of person they usually hire. See if you can find your predecessor and see how you match up. This may give you some indication as to what you need to “inflate” or “play down”. This may also give you a snapshot of the culture at that company. Note: “Culture” isn’t necessarily about where you were born, what language you speak or what food you eat. From a hiring point of view, it’s about building teams that work well together and stay together. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS GETTING “JOB READY” SOCIAL MEDIA → If you’re not comfortable with a potential employer having an open window into your private life, clean it out and set to PRIVATE. → If you want a career in digital marketing and media, make sure your socials (at least the public ones) are “on point”. → Linkedin is a public profile so use it as a public profile (otherwise don’t use it at all). Use a decent photo but this is your professional profile so make sure it’s 100% appropriate, even consider investing in a professional headshot if you can afford it. WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
COLLARTS GETTING “JOB READY” PHONE & EMAIL → Professional voicemail message. Answer your phone and/or return calls quickly. Employers want to see these kinds of attributes in potential candidates. → Professional email address… thehotchick99@gmail.com or thestudofstuds18@hotmail.com isn’t appropriate for job hunting. Create an email that is specifically for jobs and use a variation of your real name e.g. lucyjones0099@gmail.com or 22harshana22@gmail.com WRITTEN JOB APPLICATIONS
THE FUTURE BOLD THE FUTURE BRAVE THE FUTURE NOW collarts.edu.au
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