It takes money to make money, but exactly how much does it cost to get a job offer?

Active job seeker can find many services, sites and resources to help them on the internet right now. But which ones produce actual results and how much will it cost you?

Paid Job Search Engines:

• The Ladders advertises that it posts job openings that pay over $100K. This service posts it’s fee structure nicely compared with similar sites I found: $30 a month with various bulk packages such as 6 month going up to $180.
• Job Fox was by far the most difficult site to find pricing. They advertise a free subscription rate to join, but introductions to hiring managers will cost you. This Premium Service has a fee associated with it but I was unable to find out exactly how much.

So if you were guaranteed a job offer, what would that be worth to you?

360 Job Interview offers top of the line services to help you score a home run on your next interview. These services are low-cost and include expert resume building, career coaching with a professional in your industry, and interview coaching with an human resources pro. All services can be conducted live, and all interview coaching sessions are done via video conference at your convenience. Get prepared and get that job with the 360° advantage.

Social Networking Sites to Use in Your Job Search:

• LinkedIn Offers a personal account that will allow you amazing visibility. Make your profile outstanding – keep it professional and always spell check. Then build your professional network, get involved and get noticed. LinkedIn Questions and new Group discussion now gives Web 2.0 functionality. Add value to your network and brand yourself as the one to hire. There are many great webinar’s and training tools for using LinkedIn. There is even a new CD called “LinkedIn for Job Seekers” that talks in detail on how to best utilize this site for better results.
• Facebook is a great interactive way to build a different kind of network at no cost to the user. Remember all those friends you went to high school and college with? They are all gainfully employed now and would love to hear from you again. Don’t be too abrasive by making your first contact to them about getting a job. Reconnect, re-engage and build rapport first. This is an excellent tool for “networking into your next position”. Then join professional groups on Facebook and see who is hiring and what’s going on. Facebook is growing up fast. Take time to explore this social media site and see what results it can produce for you.
• Meetup is another social networking site for posting face to face networking opportunities. Search by location or interest. Meetup allows you to see how many members are in various groups, how many have RSVPd to events and offers a nice feedback rating from attendees. When there are so many networking opportunities to engage in, it’s nice to take a peek at which ones might be the most effective to spend time at. It has another great feature which allows you to build a network within the groups by adding people as “friends”. Meetup is free to the attendee, but does charge the organizer. Because you never know where you will meet your next hiring manager, keep it professional and add value when you can.

“You get what you pay for” might be true for consumer goods, but working hard and building something with good old fashioned “sweat equity” for your job search may just be “priceless”.

What would you pay for your next job offer?

“Outwit Outlast Outplay” and get job offer…

The dynamics of watching complete strangers compete for large cash prizes on reality shows like Survivor Island can be similar to competing for the job opening you really want.

And here’s why:

Immunity Challenge:

The immunity idol in Survivor keeps you in the game. And Interview Rounds dictate whether you move on in the interview process. Every opportunity you have to interview by phone or face to face influences whether you move on to the next round.

Reward Challenge:

During the interview process it could become clear the position you’re interviewing for isn’t necessarily the right fit for you. If you’ve made a good impression on the hiring manager this can still be a good way to build a professional relationship internally within the company. Even if you aren’t the right match, having this new bond will allow you a foot in the door for the next opportunity that comes up. So always send a “thank you” note, even when you don’t get the job. This will help you make a good lasting impression and keep you in top of mind.

Alliances:

Establishing trust, building rapport and adding value in a record time keep Survivor Island players in the game longer and build strong alliances. During the interview process you also have just a short period of time to make an impression on the interviewer. Since the interview will make or break you in the interview process you need to build professional credibility fast. This is a real skill to master, but if you are effective at it, it’s one that will keep you ahead of the curve and keep you in the process.

Tribal Merge:

More than likely you will find yourself interviewing with multiple internal managers. More often than not, job offers aren’t extended on the stop any longer. It’s important to build good professional rapport with each and every one of them of the perspective hiring managers you meet. Your goal is to have everyone recommend you for hire.
Don’t forget to be nice to the receptionist who greets you, smile at those you pass in the hall and don’t do anything publically that might discredit you. You never know who might be observing your behavior and influence a hiring decision so being polite and treating everyone with respect is a good rule of thumb.

Voted Out at Tribal Council:

You have been eliminated from the hiring process. Always try to ask what you could have done different or what the deciding factor was on why you were not selected. Be careful with how you ask and despite disappointment sound positive. Follow up with a correspondence to everyone that you interviewed with and to the recruiter or human resources rep who set it up.
Keep in mind, not everyone will get the job, so don’t take this personally and move on in a positive manner. There are more opportunities waiting for you this won’t be the last one and keeping the momentum going will keep you moving ahead in the career search game.

Million Dollar Cash Prize:

The winner of Survivor gets a million dollar cash price. As an applicant you are competing for the Job Offer. You want to win the job offer complete with salary, bonus, 401K, health benefits and other employment perks. Keeping your focus on what you ultimately want will help you stay focused and on track. Don’t get side tracked with petty stuff like lunch breaks, hours, etc. during the process. You don’t want to come across as nitpicky and lose out on the opportunity. Keep your eye on the prize. As a “reality show” junkie I’m prepared for my next job hunt. Watching different personality types thrown onto desert islands, forced to build rapid relationships has helped tremendously. You are competing with many other contestants (candidates) for the immunity idol (interview rounds). If you can out-interview, out- relationship build and out-perform in the interview rounds you may just win the game (job offer).

What reality show are you planning to play to win?