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Job Search StrategiesBuyer Beware - of Job Search sites that charge a fee for their "services"By Roberta Dulay, Jobfiler.com While there are a few legitimate companies out there that do charge jobseekers a fee for their services, it is my firm belief that 90% of the job search sites that ask job seekers for money are to be approached with a very large grain of caution. For example, I was recently adding to my job site database when I happened across a Bartending Jobs portal called MixJobs.com. Now, when I have the time, I do try take the time to actually visit and review the sites, instead of simply adding them to the database. In this case, I did (lucky for you, perhaps not so lucky for them). For starters, their job search page said "Apply" rather than "Search", which I thought was curious, but ok, I bit. I entered a bogus name and email address (since those fields were REQUIRED.... hmmmm), entered the zip code for Boulder, Colorado and pressed GO. After a very cute martini glass graphic, the search returned 14 job listings for Boulder Colorado. Each "job" read like this: Bar / Pub (1 position available) Location: Boulder, CO 80302 |
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Ok, so I thought it was strange that online job listings would all say "call to apply" but what the heck - it was a toll free number. And their web site was so inviting with their pitch: "Worried about experience? Don’t be. With Mixjobs an individual with little or no experience can always become an integral part of the exciting and constantly growing workforce of the hospitality industry." So, I gave them a ring... A very professional sounding young man answered the phone. His voice was deep and resonant, clearly a telemarketing or call center professional with a long career ahead of him. He asked for my extension number (the site had listed a search ID #, which I gave him). He then went on to explain that he had several jobs listed for Boulder Colorado and that he would be mailing out a package to me with the jobs listed. Along with those jobs, he would be sending me a Mixology certification course, which I would need to complete (an open book test) and return to them in order to be eligible for any of these jobs. And the punchline: all of this could be mine for only $89. Now, aside from the fact that it is fundamentally strange to advertise jobs on the internet then offer to SNAIL MAIL them to me (that just doesn't seem right to me), I question any job posting that requires a Mixology certification in order to apply to. Apparently, prior bartending experience doesn't count at all, just whether or not you can pony up the cash and pass their open book test. When I further questioned the representative and told him that I was looking at their site for my job search portal, he quickly got off the phone. I'm guessing that at this point, I was messing up his call metrics (that is, the measure of time spent on the telephone vs. % of calls which resulted in a sale). One Bad Apple...Okay, so now perhaps you're thinking, "but this is just an isolated
incident"... The bottom line is that there are plenty of free job sites and services out there - if you can find what you need for free, then great. If you can't, but you find a company that offers you what you need for a reasonable price, then go for it! What I learned from this
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Roberta Dulay is a project management professional, a seasoned job seeker, and the developer of Jobfiler.com. She has developed a number of career oriented web sites and has taught seminars on job search strategy for career coaches and job seekers. You can contact her through this web site. |
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