3 ways to make your job applications more efficient - CareerEnlightenment.com

3 ways to make your job applications more efficient Searching for a job can be an energy-sapping process. Each prospective employer expects you to fill out a lengthy and bespoke application form, often formatted in a less than user-friendly way. You spend hours copying and pasting snippets of information into Word documents or online forms and may not even have your submission acknowledged. You craft reams of perfectly worded cover letters after hours of research on each company only to receive a hoard of standardized rejection emails.This can be frustrating, but the fact is that recruiters are not likely to change their methods any time soon. By doing things this way, they receive the exact information they need to pick out the best candidates for their roles. From their end, the process is efficient and effective.For job seekers, it is crucial to minimize wasted time by finding efficiencies that don’t compromise the quality of applications. Here are three top tips to make that happen.Make yourself discoverable.You can save yourse lf a heap of time by enabling recruiters to find you. Utilising social media platforms is the best way to do this, and it starts with your LinkedIn profile.The best recruiters use LinkedIn as a primary method to find candidates more than 90%, in fact. Having a top-notch profile will do wonders for your job search. Getting the basics right your profile photo, headline and featured skills for starters will make you more discoverable and is sure to pique the interest of prospective employers.Next, head over to Twitter and get searching using hashtags. Include a link to your LinkedIn profile, or better yet an online portfolio, especially if you work in a creative industry. Want to Read More Articles Like This One?Sign up here to receive weekly updates from Career Enlightenment, and never miss another powerful job searching tip! SUBSCRIBE! You have Successfully Subscribed!We hate spam too. Unsubscribe any time. Finally, whilst it might not seem an obvious place to find a job, Face book can be a great way for potential employers to discover you online. First up, make sure your profile picture shows you in your best light it doesn’t have to be a professional photo, but make sure you don’t appear inebriated. Add a link to your LinkedIn profile, update your work history and contact details, and make sure your privacy settings are set up correctly the last thing you want is for a recruiter to stumble across any less than flattering pictures of you.Create a cheat sheet.Whilst it’s true that job applications forms tend to look different for each company, it’s likely that there will be some overlap in the information they ask for.Building a set of documents that allows you to easily copy and paste answers to standard questions will significantly reduce the time it takes you to apply. Your CV is a great place to start, and as you apply for each job you can build up an archive of the answers you give to additional questions.Finally, create a draft cover lette r that you can use as a starting point for each application, leaving room to include references to the company you are applying to.Sign up for the top job sites.The chances are pretty high that each job you want to apply for will appear on one of the main job sites. You can save yourself time by creating a profile on each of them. You will store your CV here, meaning you can simply click on a job you like and send your information to the recruiter. Many of the sites also enable you to make your profile searchable, meaning employers can come straight to you.If you follow these tips, you will save yourself valuable time when job searching. With that extra speed, you’ll land that new job more quickly and with less wasted energy.