How To Use a Job Board Effectively

Introduction

Job boards take on many shapes and forms, which makes it difficult for job seekers to find the opportunities that best suit their career needs. One of the most common types of job boards lists hundreds, and maybe even thousands of openings from various employers. Most people have familiarity with Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com, and these are the boards that come to the minds of many job seekers when they re-enter the labor market, such as after a layoff or being terminated. However, people quickly find that going to the same job board as millions of other unemployed job seekers can become very crowded. This leads to many people having an ineffective job search.

Other types of job boards include forums, message boards and even the websites of major corporations that are hiring for several different positions across departments and business segments. The modern job seeker is aware of these other jobs resources, but quickly becomes overwhelmed when trying to find jobs across several different websites. The formatting and design of one jobs website might drastically differ from others, which leaves many people confused and exhausted as they browse these different sites for job opportunities.

If you need to make your job search work effectively for you, consider at least five approaches that might help you in your employment endeavors.

Step 1

Try to use a personal computer, or PC, when ever you visit a job board to find new opportunities. As you visit each website, such as Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com, each company automatically places "cookie" files on your hard drive that help to customize various aspects of website. For example, when the website remembers your "City" or "Location" it is based on these cookie file.

Sharing a computer with other job seekers means that you customized job search information will be overwritten and replaced by the person who uses the computer after you.

Step 2

Learn how to use a mobile phone to visit a job board. It is easier to tote around a smartphone, whether you are at home or in public. For example, if you are riding the train or bus, you can check job boards while you wait at the bus or train stop. This means you can apply for new jobs at your leisure instead of waiting until you get home or have access to a computer.

Step 3

Use the email alerts feature on a job board so that you are notified when employers browse your online resume. Also, you can receive daily emails of new jobs that match your skill set.

Step 4

Bookmark the website for each job board that you visit. This shaves off seconds from the time is takes to visit multiple job advertising websites.

 

Step 5

Create a personal tracking system using a spreadsheet application so that you don't forget which jobs you applied to on a job board. Most PCs have access to Microsoft Excel, but you can also use Google Docs Spreadsheet or Open Office.org Calc for free.

Tips

• Some jobs posted on a job board maybe scams. If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is.

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