6 Creative Ways To Get More Job Interviews
The holy grail of job seeking – how to get more job interviews! Most people find the job search process to be difficult and stressful. It can be discouraging to see hundreds (if not 1000’s) of job applicants for many jobs you see on various job boards. So when you’re faced with such massive competition, how can you get a recruiter to notice you?
There are ways, but it likely won’t involve sending the same generic resume to 100 employers, hoping they will throw you a bone. You have to stand out. Easier said than done.
In this article, I will discuss creative ways to get more job interviews, specifically with your job application. Hopefully, you get noticed by the corporate recruiter and get into the interviewing processes at your favorite companies.
Have recruiters find you
The easiest way to get more interviews is to have the recruiter find you. In talent acquisition, we call this outbound sourcing. In other words, the recruiter is actively searching for passive job candidates to see if they may be interested in a new job.
We use LinkedIn Recruiter primarily (of course, there are other ways too). For a recruiter to contact you, they need to find you first. We call this “discoverability”. And to be discoverable, you need to have skills that employers are actively searching for.
An attractive online presence and a well-optimized LinkedIn profile will greatly increase your exposure to recruiters.
I created an entire course on becoming more discoverable online with Unlocking LinkedIn. If you need help, I’d encourage you to check it out.
Customize your resume
If you want to get more job interviews, this next one is non-negotiable.
First, one that’s very near and dear to my heart is customizing your resume. I firmly believe that customizing your resume is probably the most critical thing you can do to impact your response rates. To get more job interviews, you must customize your resume.
Most people don’t take the extra step of writing a custom resume. You’re not giving yourself a fighting chance if you send a generic unoptimized resume. And more importantly, you’re missing out on a golden opportunity to shine.
Because in a lot of cases, major employers are getting hundreds, if not thousands, of applications for some of their positions. So it’s easy to get lost in a sea of applicants. But that’s not all.
Many employers also look for candidates, sourcing people on the open market. If you’re an inbound applicant – in other words, you applied to the position through a job posting – not only are you competing against the people who also applied, but you’re also competing against the people the recruiter is going out and finding themselves.
So it’s potentially a pretty big talent pool that you’re competing against. So you need a competitive advantage. Customizing your resume will give you the best chance of getting noticed for that first-round interview.
Elements of your custom resume
Many things go into customizing and optimizing your resume, including:
- Paying close attention to job titles and job duties
- Adding proper keywords
- Making sure that you have all the best practices
Here’s a sobering unofficial statistic (directly from this corporate recruiter). I would estimate that probably less than 5% of the applicants applying for a position I’ve posted are qualified and would get me excited enough to want to call them.
If you can put a little extra effort into it, take that next step, and customize your resume to be a better fit for the job. You will set yourself apart from the crowd because so few people do this.
It can be a substantial competitive advantage for you. And if you need help writing a resume or how to customize it, I cover those topics in my course, Resume Rocketfuel.
So get into the habit of customizing your resume, and I think you will notice a significant improvement in your response rates.
Create a Clever Resume
The second thing you can do is create a creative resume. This tip is not for the faint of heart and is pretty time-consuming, but it can be effective if done correctly.
What’s a clever resume? It’s a resume designed to wow and capture the person’s attention. So essentially, you’re throwing good traditional resume design out the window in exchange for creativity. Not sure what I’m talking about?
Let’s take a quick look at a creative resume.
In this case, I will show you a relatively extreme example.
If you have a position that you’re particularly interested in and you come up with something very clever like this one – a donut box – people will certainly notice. Your resume is going to make its way to the recruiter just by the novelty of it.
Let’s hope this person’s resume is good. Otherwise, the effort and considerable expense were for nothing.
Nonetheless, I guarantee you their resume got looked at. (and I’ve never met an HR department that didn’t like donuts).
Of course, this is only one of many examples – it doesn’t mean you SHOULD send pastries to your dream employer.
Only use sparingly and probably for creative jobs.
Disclaimer: I would only recommend this if you have a job that you’re particularly interested in and want to hit it out of the park.
You’ll want to ensure that you’re checking all the boxes and that you’re a good fit for the role. Because if you go through the time and the energy to create one of these, you’ll want the hiring teams to look beyond the novelty and call you for an interview.
Note that these clever resumes are probably better served for creative job types and companies that are progressive. I would probably recommend using something other than one for traditional industries. I’m thinking of finance, real estate, manufacturing, et cetera.
Create A Simple or Personal Website
Let’s keep moving forward with creative ways to get more job interviews! The next major thing you can do, which I think is also effective, is creating a simple website. A simple website is a site where you can set up an online resume.
The great thing about it is not only can you host your resume there, but it’s also a chance to show your personality. There are many websites out there that you can set up relatively inexpensively. I made a video tutorial on how to do that.
A simple website can effectively show a little personality and get your name in front of the hiring manager more tangibly and visibly. Think of it as a resume website; there are tons of templates to use, so you can be up and running in minutes.
And while you’re at it…
You might want to consider creating a video resume.
This video can be anywhere from 30 seconds to three minutes long, and it’s an introduction to who you are as a job candidate. Again, it’s a chance to show your creativity, and you can walk through major accomplishments and why you think you’re a perfect fit for that type of job.
Creating a custom video for each job you’re applying to is probably unrealistic, so you might want to keep it somewhat generic to the job type you’re applying to. But it can be a very effective tool in your job search. Create a free YouTube channel to host your video and include the URL in your resume. And, of course, if you create a simple website, you’d certainly want to include the video there as well.
Want more job interviews?… Ask for an employee referral!
The next great way to get your name in front of a hiring manager is to go find someone that works at that company and ask for a referral. In many cases, the referral gets incentivized through an employee referral bonus. So as long as you approach it correctly, they shouldn’t have too much heartburn about being willing to send you over.
However, you might want to connect with them and have a chat with them first so that they get to know you a little bit, especially if it’s somebody that you don’t know already. And the reason why this is so effective is that in every company I’ve worked for, employee referrals typically move to the front of the line, especially if they’re qualified.
So at the very minimum, you’ll get your resume reviewed, and you might get a phone call for that first-round interview. But be prepared to explain how you know the person that referred you.
Contacting the recruiter directly
The next major way to get your job application noticed is to go directly to the recruiter. If you can go straight to the recruiter and nudge them that you’re interested in their position, it might get you a chance to get eyeballs on your resume. But be careful not to be a pest here.
One little nudge is probably enough because if you’re too pushy, you may end up upsetting the recruiter and end up in the no pile.
And if you need help with how to do that, I have a course called Unlocking LinkedIn that you should check out. It teaches you step-by-step and has templates you can use when reaching out to recruiters.
Apply in person
The last unique way I want to discuss in this video to get your application noticed is to go the old-fashioned route and hand deliver your resume. Back in the good old days, hand delivery of your application was one of the only ways to apply to a company.
However, in this day and age of APS systems and online job applications, we’ve gotten away from the personal touch it provides. Yet, it can be a very effective method (assuming that you live close enough to make it reasonable to do so).
Keep in mind that It’s unlikely that you will reach an HR professional or a recruiter directly by doing this.
But even if you leave it at the front desk and it’s handed over to the recruiter, it will get looked at. I can’t tell you the last time I got a resume in that manner. My curiosity is going to get the best of me. Make sure you’re a good fit for the job before putting in the extra effort.
The most important thing to getting your resume noticed
If you’re struggling in your job search, try some of these ways, and who knows, maybe you can get your application looked at.
The most important thing is ensuring that once you get eyeballs on your resume, you’re a reasonably good fit for the role. Make sure your resume is solid and airtight to have the best chance of getting that first call.
Remember, you only have 5 seconds to make a great first impression. If you’re struggling with writing your resume, check out my Resume Rocketfuel course. I designed it from a recruiter’s perspective. It teaches you how to write a resume that gives you the best chance of getting noticed for the first-round interview.
The best thing is that it includes templates, samples, and I walk through writing my resume for you to follow along.
Happy job hunting! Hopefully, some of these ideas get you noticed and into those interview processes
