The Seven Steps for Interview Success Page 42

Job Search Method #2: Contact Employers Directly

It takes more courage, but making direct contact with an employer can not only expand your network, but it can lead directly to interviews as well. You can use the Yellow Pages to find potential employers. use the index to find organizations that you think could use your skills and start calling.

Using the Telephone to Get Interviews

Once you get used to it, making direct contacts by phone is easy and effective. Most employers don't mind talking to a person they might be interested in hiring. Because most phone calls take only a minute or two, you can easily make personal contact with more than 20 employers in one morning.

The primary goal of a phone contact is to get an interview. To increase your chances, you need to practiced in advance. Don't be afraid of rejection, and do be prepared to ask for an interview three times. Employers often assume that such a determined person will show the same persistence on the job.

Quick Tip

Instead of calling, you could try just walking into a business or organization that interests you and ask to speak to the  person in charge. Just remember to ask for an interview even if there are no current opening.

Call each organization and ask to speak to the person who is most likely to hire or supervise you-typically the manager of the business or a department head-not the personnel or human resources manager. The following sample telephone script can give you ideas about what to say:

"Hello. My name is Pam Nykanen. I am interested in a position in hotel management. I have four years of experience in sales, catering, and accounting with a 300-room hotel. I also have an associate degree in hotel management, plus one year of experience with the Brady Culinary Institute. During my employment, I helped double revenues from meetings and conferences and increased bar revenues by 46 percent. I have good problem-solving skills and I am good with people. I am also well organized, hard working, and detail-oriented. When may I come in for an interview?"

If you cannot get an interview, it never hurts to ask for names of other people who might be able to help you. Add these new referrals to your network, and when you call them, remember to tell them who referred you.

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