I have said it before and I will say it again… I am amazed at how many people do not even take the time to look at a company’s website. I am not talking about people I cold-call. These are not even people who just take the time to apply. These are people who apply AND schedule a day and time to talk with me so there is no surprise factor at all! Add to that, I email them a multi-page job information document on the position. What do I get… blank stares. Well, they are blank stares over the phone but I can hear them!
So, step 1 is… look at the freakin’ website! You will be amazed at the information on company websites.
2. Glassdoor. They are the place to look up companies. Keep in mind that people usually only post when they have an axe to grind. But a company should be responding to posts. If you have half a brain you can see through the employee whining and get to the real issues.
3. Look at the job description again. Do they mention other parts of the company like “builds cross-functional strategies with marketing” or another department? If so, look up marketing and the other parts of the company.
4. Research other openings. A good question can come from other openings. “I saw that you also have a bottle opener position, how does that interact with this position as a bottle emptier?”
5. Google. This sounds like a no-brainer but believe me, there are a lot of people with no brains.
6. Set up a Google alert. This is also a great way to stay up on industry news and job openings.
7. Social Media. You want to look up @company and #company.
8. Competition. Also do some of the same searches on the company’s competitors.
If you even do one of these it puts you in the top ten to twenty percent. But remember… there is usually only one opening. You don’t want to be the first looser, do you?
Al
If you steal from one author it’s plagiarism; if you steal from many it’s research.
Wilson Mizner