Using networking cards or business cards to land jobs in the hidden job market
The hidden job market is the group of jobs which are not advertised and are usually filled through connections from within the company resources, Networking cards are a tool which will help you find your way into these jobs. This unadvertised job type can usually be found with high level careers, and networking properly makes you eligible for jobs there.
To Network means to create numerous contacts. With help from these contacts, you get yourself noticed. By creating opportunities to hear about jobs that are out there, you increase your chances to land an interview. In this case, contacts essentially help you find work in the field you desire or give you ideas about who to introduce yourself to. To put it simply, if the job is hidden, networking with the right people will let you find out about it.
To get this going, try growing your circle of contacts from your friends, family, and neighbours at first, Then spread out into a bigger cirlcle which encompasses the circles of each of your friends, their family and neighbours. Set the next target to include your schoolmates, teachers or co-workers and people you meet at industry meetings, For example, at trade shows or in our city, the Chamber of Commerce for business people who love to talk business.
Get in gear to build small relationships with the people in your circle as it grows, here is something to keep in mind:
“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can’t find them, make them”
- George Bernard Shaw quotes (Irish literary Critic, Playwright and Essayist. 1925 Nobel Prize for Literature, 1856-1950)
The focus and ultimate pay off would be to get word of a job and an interview for it. These people might even be a references for you. Keeping a rolodex with all your contacts will help you to keep organized. Do a call or an email for anything you feel would help people keep you in mind. Some examples are birthdays, holidays, or just talking and connecting, keep in contact! Make it a goal for yourself to reach out to 2 or 3 people per week.
You must keep in touch, and remind people about what you are looking for, otherwise they cannot help you. Don’t be afraid to ask.
For students, job seekers, or business people, opportunites are very important. To help you open the doors, introduce yourself with a card which has your contact information on it. Exchanging cards, be it networking cards or business cards is a sure way to access new jobs. Building a list of contacts should start with the exchange of cards.