1. MARKETING 101 for Job Hunters in 2016 by Terrence H. Seamon
How many job hunters know anything at all about sales & marketing? Unless
you came from that field, the answer probably is "Not so much."
There is a marketing guru here in the New York area whose funny tagline is
"Your marketing sucks."
I'm sure he's right.
I had a cup of coffee with a friend, talking about today's job search and
more specifically our respective marketing efforts. I am not a marketing guy.
He is.
His comment was that success is 90% marketing.
When I asked him to break it down for me, here is what he offered:
- Marketing is getting noticed by the people who can hire you.
- Marketing is demonstrating to them that you are the answer to the
problems they need solved.
- Marketing is making it very clear that you are the right person for the
assignment.
When I asked if he could be more specific, he said he is writing a book and
did not want to give away his formula. But he did say this:
- You have to shift your thinking.
Essentially, you must create your own marketplace by approaching
employers that you have identified as your targets and offering specific
solutions to their problems.
So how do you get started on this?
Another friend of mine said to me, "Terry, I am of the old school that says
the best marketing is a damn good product or service."
He reminded me of a classic model that pinpoints the four steps in any
marketing effort:

2. 1) Identify a list of the potential customers with a high likelihood of need for
your product or service.
2) Develop a relationship with someone in that company. (Using your
network, as well as LinkedIn, can help here.)
3) Show them what you can do, even if it is done for free at first. Deliver
with excellence.
4) Sell them on hiring you as the solution to their problems.
Four steps seems easy, right. It isn't. Especially if marketing is not your area
of expertise.
Some experts say that marketing to one client can take years of effort to win
a sale.
If you are a job hunter in this economy, you don't have years. You need
work now. So the question becomes, How can you take these concepts of
marketing and accelerate the process?
So let's get more granular in this post about some strategies that job
hunters can adapt and use to accelerate their searches.
In 1997, the management guru Tom Peters wrote a classic article for Fast
Company about marketing entitled "The Brand Called You." In it, he wrote:
"No matter what you're doing today, there are four things you've got to
measure yourself against. First, you've got to be a great teammate and a
supportive colleague. Second, you've got to be an exceptional expert at
something that has real value. Third, you've got to be a broad-gauged
visionary -- a leader, a teacher, a farsighted "imagineer." Fourth, you've got
to be a businessperson -- you've got to be obsessed with pragmatic
outcomes."
Though these words still ring true today, let's update his article a bit. Each of
the following four strategies is an essential element in your marketing plan.
Your Team - Who is on your team? What? You don't have a team? In
today's economic climate, you cannot go it alone as a job hunter. You must
form your own support team. A team (even a team of two) can give you
input, as well as to hold your feet to the fire and impel you forward.

3. Your Expertise - Everyone is an expert at something. How about you? This
is no time for modesty. Pinpoint your expertise and bring it forward. Do not
put your light under a bushel basket. Look for ways to put your expertise on
display so that you raise your visibility and get noticed.
Your Vision - What work do you want to do next? Where do you want to do
it? Do you want to go back inside corporate and work for a boss? Or do you
want to work for yourself? Don't sell yourself short or paint yourself into a
narrow corner. Think big.
Your Solution - Employers are looking for problem solvers. Are you the
solution? Tom Peters says that everyone has a brand. What is yours? Your
brand is the promise of the value that you will deliver to the customer. Think
of it as the application of your expertise to the problems the customer needs
to solve.
Finally be a smart job hunter by following these guidelines.
S = Sales: Why would an employer hire you? Because you are sold…on You!
You told the best story. The story of Who You Are. And what you can bring
to the employer’s organization. Your Story is your Brand. Telling your Story
is the way you sell the prospect.
M = Market: How do you find potential employers? Like a Big Game Hunter
tracks and snares his prey. With clear intent and unrelenting pursuit. You
know what you want. You know your market. Because you know your
Product. And the product is You. Remember: when you are in transition, you
are in Sales & Marketing.
A = Acquisition: How do you rise above the rest of the job hunters out
there? They want a job. But you are looking to acquire a company. Sure,
you want a job too. But think about it for a few minutes from the point of
view of the recruiter who is beating the bushes to find and attract some
good candidates. You are doing the same thing from the other side of the
equation. So get into acquisition mode.
R = Research: How do you wow the employer? By demonstrating how
much you know about him or her. You did your research, using your
network, LinkedIn, and other resources on the internet. You prepared a list
of questions to ask. You know so much about the employer that you may
actually stun the interviewer.
T = Tools: The well-equipped job hunter always carries his most trusty
tools, especially business cards, a pen, a fully charged cell phone, and a box

4. of “Thank You” note cards. But the Swiss Army Knife of all job search tools is
one’s network, the people you know, the people you can count on, the
people who are looking out for you.
Be smart, baby. Be smart.
Terrence H. Seamon is a leadership & organization development consultant
and coach. Additionally, Terry is a job search and career coach whose book
To Your Success provides a motivational guide for anyone in transition. Terry
co-founded and co-moderates the St. Matthias Employment Ministry in
Somerset, NJ. He can be reached at thseamon@yahoo.com and via his
website:http://about.me/terrenceseamon