Ten Free Job Search Tools

10 Free Job Search Resources Online

Here’s a list of 10 free job search resources that I frequently recommend:

1. JibberJobber (free version): hey, it’s my list, I get to be on top, right?  We designed the free version of JibberJobber to be more powerful than an excel spreadsheet (with regard to features), and offer OPTIONAL upgrades (one for $5/month, and one for $9.95/month).  Whether you are in a job search now or not, you should be using something like JibberJobber to manage your professional relationships.
2. Emurse.com: This is my favorite place to put a resume online, nothing more, nothing less.  Get your paper resume out and simply fill in the blanks.  Your online resume will be accessible from a URL like jasonalba.emurse.com (not a hyperlink – I don’t have my resume up there, since I’m not looking right now… but I should do this!).
3. LinkedIn.com: I usually only recommend upgrading for people who will be searching a lot and need to reach out to the people they find.  This might describe you, but if not, just get the free version.  YOU HAVE TO BE ON LINKEDIN.  PERIOD. Oh yeah, and subscribe to my LinkedIn blog.
4. Job-hunt.org: this site has a tone of stuff, and can be overwhelming to navigate, but let me share two gems that I frequently refer back to.  First, Deb Dib’s article on LinkedIn for the executive job seeker.  Great article, but I refer back to it a lot because there are 8 LinkedIn Profiles that she points to that are pristine… excellent examples to help you craft your LinkedIn Profile.  Second, when someone tells me they can’t find a local face-to-face network meeting, I go to Job-hunt.org and look to see what they have listed there (top left drop-down on main page).  I could go to Google but this already has what I’m looking for (I don’t always find the right answer, but it’s where I start).
5. Twellow.com: I’m not going to try and convince you to get on Twitter, but do this: go to Twellow.com (which is like the “yellow pages of Twitter”) and search for people in your city, state, profession or industry.  You’ll find influencers who are probably well-networked – these are people who you want to develop relationships with.  No kidding – give it a shot and start networking with people who can help you get closer to your target companies.
6. Indeed.com: Yup, a job board, but not for job board’s sake.  Use Indeed to do COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE RESEARCH.  Find out what companies are hiring, what your target companies competition is doing, what job titles look like (I had to get familiar with industry buzz words and titles I wasn’t familiar with during my job search, which led me down other paths), etc.  Ignore the idea of applying for jobs using job boards and think about this as a rich database research tool!
7. The Career Hub Blog: You can read me babble on and on and on at this blog, but realize that (a) my job search was an utter failure, and (b) while I offer freaking awesome website to job seekers, I am not in the trenches with job seekers like professional job search coaches.  Want to hear from them?  The Career Hub Blog is THE PLACE to go!  Also, on the right of that blog you’ll see a download button for free job search ebooks – totally worth the time to download and read (they are short, packed with great stuff).
8. Groups.Yahoo.com: Two big part of a professional’s job search are personal branding and networking (nurturing relationships).  There are not many places better to do this at a very focuses level than the right Yahoo Group.  The right one will depend on your profession, industry, etc.  I’ll give you ONE example… if you are in PR you MUST MUST MUST be on Young PR Pros.  I’m there because I want to learn how to do PR for my own company, and learn from these experts, but I see job leads, contracting leads, and other types of referrals continually passed along, and I know there is a lot more going on offlist – find the right Yahoo Group and actively participate!
9. blogsearch.google.com: It would be too easy to just say “google.com,” which I could, but I want to narrow that down a bit – use Blog Search . Google to search for players in your space, just the same way you would use Twellow.  Same concept, although you’ll have to play around with the search terms more to really find the results you want to find.  But once you find a blogger in your space (industry, profession, etc.) you might hit a gold vein, … check out the blogroll, who comments etc. and you might just have a ton of awesome contacts to start developing relationships with!
10. Google Alerts:  You should have target companies… why not keep up on them?  Go to Google Alerts and put in the company names, officer names, products, etc. to see what buzz they are getting online? You should also have your own name and perhaps professional friends as well as past companies in Alerts.  I have about 12 alerts set up including my name, names of my books, JibberJobber, and my competition… I want to know what’s being said, and when I can comment on blogs – Google Alerts is an excellent way to keep your ear to the ground on things you want to pay attention to.

I am going to add VisualCV to this list.  Everyone should check out the free online portfolio website.  You can upload your resume as well as supporting files (pictures, powerpoint presentations, audio files etc.) to provide examples of your work.

Originally posted on my blog, TrumpetYourself.com