Electronic Posting

Many companies advertise their jobs on the Internet by posting jobs electronically. Some businesses use their home page to notify people of any employment opportunities that may be available.

Advantages to online recruiting include:

• broader audiences than local newspapers
• quicker response time (most people will respond electronically unless you specify otherwise)
• potentially shorter hiring time

Electronic posting can be especially valuable as a recruiting tool for positions with advanced computer-related skills because many people with those skills are frequently online. However, as the Internet and commercial online service become more common, any job posting that you place there will reach more people than possibly any other medium you use.

Local and industry forum posting. In addition to the major national recruiting that occurs online, you might also try posting a notice on some local forums where people with skills for your position might be located. Generally there is no charge for posting job openings on forums, other than what you pay for access to the service.

You can also post jobs in places where you know people with the skills you're looking for tend to read. Sometimes people looking for work in a certain industry will look for online areas geared to that specific industry or subject matter. For example, if you're looking for a writer, getting involved in some forums that writers would tend to read is the best way to target writers online.

Resume databases. Employers aren't the only ones getting access to the computer networks. There are many resume databases for people searching for specific employment. If you have a position that requires specific skills, or if you just want to see more resumes, this is a good place to look. The databases can contain thousands of resumes and are usually indexed by job categories, industries, and geographical regions. Sometimes there's a charge to look at these databases.

Save Money Before you start your Internet search, have an idea of the categories you'll need to look in. That way, if you're using an online service that charges by the time you spend on it, you will make more efficient use of your online time and money! Some online job search databases will suggest that you have several ads using different words that people will search on when they use the database. Keep this in mind as you compose your ad. Think like a person searching for the job. If the title of your job doesn't really reflect what the job entails, the right people may not find it.