How to Get a Job Without Connections - TheJobNetwork

How to Get a Job Without Connections - TheJobNetworkNetworking is probably the number one way to get yourself a job if you are looking. Referrals account for nearly 40% of all hiresand referred employees often get jobs quicker and make more money out of the gate. But what if you dont have anyone to refer you to a particular company or within a particular industry? If this is the case, then youll need to figure out how to get a job without connections. Luckily, weve got the right information to accomplish that. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Here are 4steps to follow to help you get a referral even if you lack the relevant connections.1. Find an InfluencerOnce youve determined theres a job opening somewhere, find someone who has influence on the hiring process for that position. Search for the position you want and the company you want in a site like LinkedIn until you find your Influencer.2. Make contactFind the contact information for that person and get in touch to set up a time to chat. This is just normal networking, remember? Easy Keep it short, sweet, and to the point. Address the new contact by name, briefly explain that youre interested in working in their company, but ask only for advice. Throw in some modest, subtle flattery to sweeten them up, and politely request a quick coffee (your treat) to pick their brain. You can use Quick question as your subject line.If you dont get a reply, dont badger themand dont worry Just find yourself another influencer in the same companyor for a different job entirely, and try again. If or when you do get a meeting, make koranvers to do plenty of homework first. That means researching the company, the field, the contact, etc.3. Prep your questionThe absolute most important question you need to ask is this What is the biggest challenge your team is facing right now? That question will make all the difference between awkward small talk and giving your new contact the oppo rtunity to open up and talk about something that matters to themand something that will be extremely informative and helpful to you. Dig in. Listen hard. And send a thoughtful thank you note.4. Strategize your solutionYouve heard from your Influencer (and new contact) what their biggest challenge is. Now figure out their solution. Reach out, research, think inside and outside the box. Put yourself in their teams shoes and consider things from every conceivable angle. Once youve got a great idea, make sure to test it through all the possible hypotheticals you can come up with. Then craft a detailed and elegant proposal.Youre going to send this proposal to your Influencer. Start a casual email, with an extra thank you for the coffee date, then say that youve been thinking about the conversation and mulling through their situation and then BAM. Explain that youve come up with a proposal to help solve their problem. Its gutsy, of course, but if your idea is goodeven if it isnt perfectit will show your value, and your Influencer will most likely share it with their team.If any or all of this goes your way, youll probably be able to follow up by inquiring about any open opportunities on this persons team (knowing already, of course, that there is one). Best case scenario Instant referral Worst case scenario youve netted yourself a new contact or two.How to get a job without connections - TheJobNetworkYouve heard the old adage a thousand times before, its all about who you know. Submitting a sleek, professional resume is obviously your first priority in the hund for a new job, but employee referrals are the job hunters secret weapon. According to a recent study by Payscale, 41% of employees who landed a job because of a referral did so through family and friends and 32% got a referral from a business contact. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) So, what do you do if you dont have any inside connections? What if youve moved t o a new city and your social circle is nonexistent at the moment? What if youre fresh out of college and you didnt network as well as you may have wanted? Dont worry. Even when you dont know anyone, getting a referral that lands you an bewerberinterview is a lot easier than you think.Message mutual friends on social mediaFacebook is clearly the dominant social media outlet, and its likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future. As such, its a surprisingly great resource for finding employment leads. Your suggested friends list is a potential job referral gold mine. You can also use the search function on Facebook in clever ways to aid in your new career quest. Find individuals by the city they live in, where they went to school, which friends you both have in common, as well as where they work.I suggest mixing and matching a few of these filters.Start off with finding people that work at the company youve been eyeing, and also went to the same university as you.Then transition to friends of friends that work where youd like to apply.If you come up empty-handed with either of those combinations, just search for people by workplaceThe biggest hurdle with seeking job referrals, particularly if youre an introvert, is reaching out to someone that you barely know. It seems intimidating (maybe even a bit rude) to message someone youre unfamiliar with, but its actually in their benefit to have you brought onto the team. Many companies have lucrative referral programs that incentivize current employees to suggest new hires.When striking up a conversation with someone you barely know or dont know at all, remember not to jump head first into a sale pitch be tactful. Break the ice by bringing up a commonality. Build a relationship before you solicit them for a job.Scan their Facebook page and see what pages they follow, what music or movies theyre interested in, anything that will make the inevitable questioning about their work much more acceptable.Open up with a m essage like thisHey there, I saw that we both know mutual friend. I also noticed youre into the same musician, book, movie as I am. Thats awesome, I love them I dont mean to bother you, but I welches curious if youd be interested in chatting for a bit about company? Wheneveryoure available, of course. No rush. I welches looking to apply there and I wanted to get your thoughts on a few things before I sent in my resume. Id love to know what you thought about album, novel, ending of movie too Thanks so much.Always be mindful of how aggressive youre coming off. Your main goal is to build a bridge with a prospective colleague. If you dont receive a response as quickly as youd like, be patient and never be too pushy.Reconnect with your universitys alumni networkUniversity alumni networks arent just for reconnecting with old college flames or long-lost roommates, theyre an ideal resource for job referrals. College is, after all, your first major networking pool and reaching out to a fello w university alum is a lot more comfortable than, say, random Facebook users. You already share a common sense of identity. Think of your alma mater as an extended group of potential colleagues.Many of these networks are designed with the specific purpose of helping students advance their careers. If youre totenstill in school, head to the career center on campus. They often maintain large databases of alumni information, so see if theyre able to get you in contact with recent graduates.Scope out the universitys website and find the alumni section. In this digital age, colleges often utilize some form of external platform that you can log into. You should have access to these areas for a lengthy period of time after graduation, but its simple to sign back up if youve been out of school for a while.Additionally, college career centers host job fairs and similar networking events that are open to the public. Consider attending one whether you live near your old school or youre in a ne w city.Scour Linkedin for employeesHopefully, youve been diligently growing your LinkedIn network. If you havent, well then, open a new browser tab and either build your profile or start expanding your network immediately. LinkedIn is hands down your best chance at securing a job referral from someone that actually works in the career field your applying to. Its perfect for when you absolutely, positively dont know a single person that can refer you for a job.Follow these stepsSearch LinkedIn for the job you want.If you already have a profile, browse your first and second-degree connections.Research what you can about the company and find someone currently employed there (either inside or outside your LinkedIn network).Politely introduce yourself and try to set up a meeting over coffee or lunchAsk specific questions related to their business.Once youve found a contact in your industry, try and set up an informational interview. This is where you field questions about the nature of t he company and their particular position. Not only will you gain valuable insight into the business, if you impress the contact well enough, you have an opportunity to be referred for the position you want.You can be far more direct with your LinkedIn pitch as opposed to the Facebook example from earlier.Hello LinkedIn Contact,Ive been following the work of company for some time now and Im considering submitting my resume for position. If you have a moment, I was interested in asking a few questions regarding the application process. It would be great to get an insiders perspective on company product as well. Were there any issues that arose with that project? Has it been successful? I appreciate your time. I look forward to finding out all that I can about company.An added benefit of cold-emailing employees like this is that its good practice for when you finally reach the interview stage. Even if you arent able to set up a meeting, that person is likely to tell you how to get in t ouch with someone that can assist you. Ultimately, thats what youre trying to accomplish.Join a meetup websiteWhats better than a networking event? I know, youre probably thinking anything is better than a networking event. However, there are a handful of websites out there that make networking much more tolerable.These sites are perfect for chatting with professionals with inside information about your industry and meeting people that can refer you to recruitersMeetup Perhaps the largest networking website out there. Meetup has a dedicated job search page to help you find business socials in your areaEventbrite Used by organizers to promote, plan, and even sell tickets (if necessary) to area eventsEventful An online calendar and local event tracking website that includes a networking categoryReddit The /r/meetups page on Reddit primarily organizes social networking events, but you never know who you might run into.There are a few things to keep in mind when joining a networking website. Be wary of only mingling with other unemployed people. Youre there to find work and neither of you are in a position to help one another at the moment.Events with low attendance can also be an issue, particularly if youre in town with a small population. Try not to waste your time if it doesnt seem worthwhile.Avoid sites like Craigslist when looking for gainful employment. While it may help with an entry-level job search, you run the risk of being scammed. I once attended what I originally thought was a networking event which turned out to be a bizarre attempt to pitch multi-level marketing (read pyramid scheme) to the few confused individuals that showed up.Getting a job referral doesnt have to be about who you know. It just takes a little initiative.About the AuthorLauren McAdams is a career adviser and hiring manager at ResumeCompanion. Shes been quoted by sites like Forbes, Huffington Post, and TechRepublic. When shes not busy helping job seekers, shes sipping on coffe e or a glass of wine depending on the time of day of course.