uCoz free website builder

Catch an Employer's Attention With a Video Resume 
by Victor Luckerson - TIME magazine employment reporter 

Many job applicants feel that if they could just get past the initial screening process and land a face-to-face interview with a hiring manager, they'd have their chance to shine. 

Getting that toe in the door has gotten harder than ever in today's market. Matthew Epstein, a 2008 graduate of the University of CentralFlorida, created an online video presentation to both display his skills and provide a glimpse of his personality — and it eventually landed him a job. Epstein initially began his viral campaign last summer to get hired by Google's marketing team. He launched a website called Google please hire m.e. and made a pitch video that featured him lounging in a mansion in a blazer and boxers. 

The video gained more than 1.5 million views, and he used an awkward fake mustache to brand himself and his website. "You look at me and all you see is a man with an awkward mustache that makes angels weep," he tells Google in the video while sipping from a glass of wine. "But I'm more than a man with a mustache. I'm a lover, a product marketer, and a digital strategist with a passion for bringing products to market online and off." 

Epstein's quirky approach did snag him an interview at Google. And though he ultimately didn't get a job there, the effort did earn interview offers from 80 companies (including Microsoft and Amazon); brought some 400,000 people to his website; and nabbed worldwide media attention. Pretty useful accolades for young person trying to break into the marketing field. 

Now he's working at SigFig, an online startup that helps users track their financial investments. "I was only unemployed for a month but I personally know friends and family who have been unemployed for 6+ months," he wrote on his blog after landing the job. "If there's one thing I learned from my campaign it's that you can't give up when things seem hopeless." Epstein's not the only one providing potential employers with video introductions. 

Jared McKinney, a rising senior at Brigham Young University-Idaho, created a video resume where he walks the viewer (potential hiring mangers) through his past experience. "I used this short five minute video to show the experience that I'd had and also help give employers a feel for my personality," McKinney said. "Then I just applied everywhere I could think of that was looking for a social media/ advertising/ marketing/ promotions/ copywriting intern." 

Now he's a social media intern at a firm in Utah. "At the interview they mentioned that they were impressed with my video resume, and could tell that I was resourceful and had good experience," he said. 

A carefully targeted video presentation can show bosses your creativity and dedication. Let the web's culture of sharing help propel your name and brand into the consciousness of employers. 

How a Good Video Resume Leads to a Good Job 
By Miriam Salpeter - owner of Keppie Careers 

Video interviewing is the latest trend in human resources and hiring. It offers employers a low-cost way to engage job seekers and get to know them using the power of web cameras and other mobile technologies. 

Earlier this year, Aberdeen Research found "54 percent of organizations that are adopting video have a continuous or long-term talent acquisition strategy in place." 

As companies become more comfortable with video technologies, job seekers may want to consider how to take advantage of the power of video to engage the hiring manager by using a video introduction, also known as a video resume. 

Companies such as the nonprofit Music Saves Lives have successfully incorporated video introductions as part of their hiring and candidate screening process for volunteer positions. Chief Executive Officer Russel Hornbeek says: "By requesting and watching the videos we have found those that truly have enthusiasm for our life saving programs. It's great to be able to have our on-site touring staff recognize the volunteers chosen for the event we have them scheduled for." 

These video introductions are becoming more common in customer-facing industries such as retail, hotel, and hospitality because they offer the hiring manager an opportunity to observe the job seeker's customer engagement and relationship skills in action. 

However, it's possible to successfully connect with a recruiter in a more traditional industry with a video introduction. Mike Ramer, president of Ramer Search Consultants—a professional recruiting firm specializing in the financial, energy, biomedical, and human resources fields—agrees that video resumes are a useful way for some candidates to demonstrate their professionalism and to help them differentiate from the crowd. According to him, "If I received a video resume, I would review it, and if it's impressive, it can absolutely help the candidate." 

CEO Richard Linden agrees. "These online video introductions are a gre

ghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhk