USING CONTACTS TO GET INTO THE
HIDDEN JOB MARKET
By Kevin and Kay Marie Brennfleck
National Certified Career Counselor

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As The Quick Job Search states, finding jobs in the "hidden" job market involves adhering to the most important job search rule: Don't wait until the job is open! Most employers fill positions with people they meet before they officially have an open position. How then can you tap into the "hidden" job market where 80% of the jobs are found? By following two strategies: using personal contacts and contacting employers directly.

Personal contacts are people who you already know as well as people you encounter daily. A personal contact could be a family member, a neighbor, your minister, or someone you meet for the very first time at the grocery store, the post office, etc! Every person who you know or meet has a wealth of information in his or her head. Talk to enough people and you will find out about job opportunities. Remember, it's not who you know, but who you get to know that counts.

Start by making a list of all the people you know: friends, family members, acquaintances, co-workers, etc. If you have lived in one area for some time now, you should be able to identify 50-100 people or more. Give each person a code listing: (A) for those individuals who might have the most helpful information for you; (B) for those people who might be of some help; and ( C) for those whom you believe would have the least helpful information.

Sometimes people say, But I don't know anyone!" Even if you only had one contact in an area, this process would still work. Suzie's story demonstrates this. Suzie was working in public relations in Los Angeles, California. She decided that she wanted to move to Seattle, Washington. She had only one contact there. From her contact, a friend, she was able to obtain two referrals to individuals who worked in public relations. These individuals referred her to other people, and in just a few weeks she had developed a list of over fifty contacts! From these contacts she lined up four interviews, one of which resulted in a job offer that she accepted before she had even actually moved!

Personal contact work can be done in person, over the phone, by mail or e-mail. It can be done anywhere and anytime you are with other people. Two of the best places, however, to do this type of job search work are at church and association meetings.

Regardless of the size of your church, there are going to be people there who can help you in your job search. However, the only way they can help you is if they know what you need. Let those with whom you fellowship with help you! Often people feel embarrassed about asking for assistance in their job search, but most people are very willing to respond when asked for suggestions, information and assistance!

Association meetings for the field of work you are targeting are another good place to develop personal contacts. You can find out about appropriate associations by using the Encyclopedia of Associations (found in the reference sections of most libraries). This super directory will enable you to identify key organizations, describe the organization and its services, and give you information for contacting them. The national office can give you information about local chapters. (Increasingly, most larger associations have web sites, also.) At local chapter meetings you can meet individuals who work in your field and can potentially give you information that will lead to discovering job openings. Many associations also publish lists of job openings that are just available to their members.

The following is a suggested script you can use when contacting personal contacts in your search to find job openings. After reading through the sample script, write one for yourself.

1. Introduce yourself and explain why you are calling.

    OR

    OR

3. Request information and advice. Sample information areas include:

A. Employment opportunities in the field. ("Are you aware of any current opening for someone with my skills?")

B. Individuals the person recommends you contact. ("Could you recommend two or three people who might know of such an opening? May I tell him/her you referred me?")

Note: Make sure to get the name (with correct spelling), title, complete address and phone number whenever you're given a new contact.

If you are talking to someone who is having a difficult time coming up with any information for you, you can always asked a third question that usually will get a yes! It goes like this, "Do you know someone who knows a lot of people?"

4. Send a brief thank-you note that evening or the next day to each person who has provided you with some help.

Thank each person for his or her assistance and add that if they think of anything else that could be helpful you can be reached by phone at _____________ or e-mail at _______.

SUMMARY

Remember that a job search is a search for information. The more information you get, the more likely you are to find out about job openings. You may go through several contacts before you get some helpful information, but if you are persistent, this strategy becomes a powerful way to tap into the "hidden" job market.

Contacting employers directly involves identifying all of the employers in your geographic area who hire people who do the type of job you are targeting. (For example, Jane wants a position as a graphic artist and is willing to commute up to 30 minutes in the Los Angeles area. She'll determine which cities fall within that commute range, and identify employers within those cities that hire graphic artists.) You can use the Yellow Pages for specific cities or other business directories to identify employers. Ask your library's reference librarian if you need assistance. Once you have identified these prospective employers, you begin to contact them directly by phone, mail, in person or a combination of all three.

This is probably the quickest way to find job opening in the "hidden" job market. It is also the method that takes the most courage and persistence for most job hunters. Why? Because nine times out of ten you are going to hear "No" when you make these contacts: "No, we don't have any openings." "No, we aren't anticipating any openings." But one time out of ten, or one time out of fifteen, you will hear a "Yes!" And it's possible to make ten to fifteen phone calls to employers in an hour.

So, how do you deal with hearing all of the no's? Tom Jackson has the best perspective on this. He describes the typical job search as looking like this: NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, YES. This description indicates that you will normally hear a lot of no's and that every no you hear is getting you closer to hearing a yes. So, if you want to find a job faster, increase the frequency of hearing no's from employers!

When contacting employers, your goal is to speak to the person who does the hiring for the type of position you want. Your first tasks are to:

(1) Get through to the appropriate department;
(2) Find out the employer's name if you don't already know it; and,
(3) Persuade the secretary to put you through to Ms./Mr. Employer. The following strategies are usually effective when speaking with the secretary:

Secretary: "May I tell her who's calling and the nature of your call?"
You: "Yes. My name is Jane Morgan and I have a couple of brief questions I'd like to ask Ms. Blank about the department.

Secretary: "Is this in reference to a job?"
You: "I am interested in current openings, but I have a couple of additional quick questions I'd like to ask her."

Secretary: "Let me put you through to Personnel."
You: "I'd be willing to talk to them, but I don't believe they'll be able to answer all of my questions. It will only take 3-4 minutes of Ms. Blank's time."

Secretary: "She's very busy. Perhaps I can help you?"
You: "Perhaps you can." (Ask your questions. The secretary will not be able to answer all of them.)

Secretary: "She's not available right now. May I take a message?"
You: "Thank you, but I'm going to be in and out. Could you suggest a good time for me to call back?"

Once you have been put through to Ms./Mr. Employer, you have three potential questions to ask:     

(1) Is there a current opening?
(2) Does he/she anticipate any future openings?
(3) Can he/she recommend two or three individuals or companies you could contact that might have job openings?

1. Introduce yourself. Explain briefly why you are contacting him/her and what you can do.

2. Inquire about openings (and referrals, if appropriate).

If you hear "YES": "I'd very much like to find out more about the position. Could we set up a 10-15 minute appointment for me to come in to talk with you?" (Be "gently persistent" to get this opportunity to meet face-to-face with the employer. Any time you get face-to-face with the person who has the power to hire, you greatly increase your chances of being hired.)

If you hear "NO": "Do you anticipate any openings in the future?"

If you hear "YES": "I'd like to find out more about your company and the future opening.

Could we set up a 10-15 minute appointment for me to come in to talk to you?" (Again, be "gently persistent.")

If you hear NO": "Thank you very much for your time. I just have one more question.

Could you recommend two or three companies or individuals who might be interested in someone with my skills? (Get information. Verify spelling.) May I tell them you referred me? Thank you very much for your help."

3. Send a brief thank-you note that evening or the next day.

SUMMARY

Using this method, it is possible to set up one interview for each hour of work that you put into contacting employers directly by phone. It is usually best to make your contacts in the morning and then do follow up job search work in the afternoon (sending out resumes, going to interviews, filling out applications, personal contact work, etc.). If you are intentional about making these contacts, you will find job openings. Give it a try!

Would you like some professional assistance in your job search work? For more information, visit our job search services.

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