Seems like employment ads are the topic du jour on the The Hire Sense today. One thing I have noticed that truly cheapens an ad is to use extra large fonts, multiple colors and highlighting. Does this approach just scream multi-level marketing or is it me? Most corporations write their ads in a prim and proper manner which is ok. This approach reminds me of the Apple commercials with the PC represented by the stodgy, business-suit guy and Apple represented by the trendy, young guy. Formula ads with cliche requests for degrees, years of experience, etc. are similar to the somewhat boring PC guy. Of course, that approach is certainly… Read More
Continue ReadingPromo Responses to Job Postings
One of the peculiar facets of Internet job boards is that you receive interest from around the world. That fact has its good and its bad. This would be the bad side of it: Meanwhile I am highly & hugely trying at my best efforts to post for this vacancy with heavily long-desired rayhopes that based on my supreme graymatters plusing with my well-accumulated experiences in working for several foreign-based firms as well as projects, & I have accrued a lot of skills or so specialization in various matters & manners…I make risks to submit for the aforesaid post with long-desired hopes that you will see through my sensitively &… Read More
Continue ReadingJob Board Update
We posted multiple ads about 10 days ago on multiple job boards for 3 different sales positions we are presently working. Our highly unscientific experiment has led us to these . . . conclusions. Big Boards – Monster.com still leads the pack – probably due to name recognition. We have had more success with monster as opposed to CareerBuilder. Niche Boards – We received a limited response and no viable candidates. My gut tells me these may work better for higher-level positions (VP, Director, Manager). Free Boards – We have been using them for 6 months and the response totals are increasing with each posting. The candidate quality is hit-or-miss,… Read More
Continue ReadingAccountants that Sell?
Even I had to do a double take regarding the title of this post – it is a bit misleading. AICPA has a rather dry article (what did you expect from a CPA website) about hiring trends in the accounting world. We try to stay on the cutting edge here at The Hire Sense so I read the short article. I was intrigued by this statement: The traditional structure of a corporation’s accounting department, with definitive job responsibilities and several layers of management and staff positions is changing. Accounting departments are staffed by fewer, more flexible, technologically savvy and highly experienced professionals. They are responsible for developing methods to grow… Read More
Continue ReadingGen Y Changes in the Workplace
I’m late in catching up to some articles, but I did read CareerJournal’s excellent Three Tips from Gen-Y About the New Workplace. There are some intriguing points here so let’s start with this gem: Gen-Yers crave feedback from bosses, clients and co-workers about what they should be doing, how they should do it, and, afterward, how they can do it better next time, she says. This approach is effective for more than just employee discussions, but also for customer interactions. We discussed some of these topics in one of our articles from earlier this year – Hiring Adjustments for Generations X and Y. Lastly, an epiphany for a Baby Boomer… Read More
Continue ReadingCyber Sleuthing Candidates
Here is a good tip from Tory Johnson via the abcnews.com website. Is MySpace a Professional Liability? provides insight into her technique for researching a candidate. It is surprising how many employers do not take a minimal amount of time to search the web for a candidate’s information. I must confess, I am a neophyte when it comes to the social networking boards. I have cruised around MySpace.com a couple of times looking at the business-related information. There wasn’t much that I found. However, the individual information is quite extensive. Yes, I have heard the punchlines on Leno about MySpace, but this article does lay out an excellent use of… Read More
Continue ReadingEmail Subject Lines That Hurt
I thought I would start your Monday with some levity. This is from the general resume pile and is serious, from what I can tell: I am the GREATEST Tele Sales GURU on the planet. Again, some times you do not need an assessment.
Continue ReadingMost Prestigious Careers
How did salesperson not make this list? Ok, maybe we are not completely objective about this topic.
Continue ReadingAnecdote – Sales Training
Earlier this year I was conducting phone screens for a client whose service was always changing and evolving. Essentially, we knew a major key leading to success in the role was to find candidates with a Theoretical motivation. One of my screening questions was “What have you done in the last 3 years to further develop your sales skills?” A response from one of the applicants: “I have taken a bunch of Microsoft classes, from PowerPoint to Excel to Word to Access. If you name it, I’ve taken it.” Sounds right. Shows a desire to learn. But notice my question – develop your sales skills. Did these courses afford them… Read More
Continue ReadingTop 10 Sales Killers
CareerBuilder put out a well-written newsletter this week that I am still trying to find time to read. This article by Tom Hopkins provides 10 fundamental sales points that apply to all selling situations. My favorite: Sales Killer #5: Lack of a qualification system. A certain percentage of the people you talk with won’t be good candidates for your product or service. If they don’t have the need or the money for your product or service, there’s no sale. Your challenge is to figure this out as early in your communication with them as possible. Come up with at least three or four questions, the answers to which will tell… Read More
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