The Connor Consultancy - Outplacement Services "We see things differently"
Outplacement Articles
Targeted Letters that really work!
In the current recession there are more people out of work chasing an ever dwindling number of jobs. Therefore it’s no surprise that employers no longer need to advertise for vacancies or use recruitment agencies.
Targeting ‘invisible’ roles
‘Invisible’ jobs are those that need filling but are not known to the marketplace. There are three advantages of targeting invisible jobs:
- There is little or no competition from other job seekers
- It cuts out the recruitment agency fee
- It demonstrates to employers your initiative in proactively seeking out a new role
When targeting the invisible market, i.e. you don’t know if there is a need or not then you have the choice of targeting:
- a permanent role
- an interim assignment
- a piece of defined project work
Please find below the suggested format:
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The Definitions
About Them - The first paragraph demonstrates that you understand what the target business does. It takes just a couple of minutes to find this out from their website. It helps to give one compliment as well!
Challenges they may face (the pain) – If you are targeting a particular industry it is highly likely that the whole industry is facing a similar challenge. It obviously helps if you have specific information on that company’s challenges obtained from your network.
Their Likely Solution – These are the initiatives that the company is likely to be considering to overcome these business challenges.
My experience in providing these solutions – This is the first time you talk about YOU. For every company initiative you provide a short example of how you have tacked such a problem. The ‘similar, similar, similar’ rule applies here in that you want an example that is similar to the industry of the company you are targeting, similar project, similar size etc.
About Me – Now, and only now do you talk about your relevant career experience.
Call for Action – This defines the next stage.
The key to success in writing Targeted letters is to place the emphasis on talking about the other party rather than talking about you!
Call for Action Example
‘Well the traditional 'pitch' at this point would simply be to ask you for a permanent job, but I realise that the current climate and focus on costs may not allow that. However, you may find it of interest to meet with me informally over a cup of coffee for 30 minutes, where I can demonstrate to how I may be of some help to you tackling some of your current challenges.
With your permission, I will call you on Wednesday 16th December to see if we can arrange a time to meet. If this time is inconvenient please feel free to call me on 07777 77777. In the meantime I attach a brief biography which contains my contact details.
What happens next?
You may have the good fortune of securing a permanent headcount position.
Alternatively, you may have secured a project or a piece of work that gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your qualities as an “insider”. When a headcount role becomes available guess who has the best chance of securing it? The insider or the 250 external applicants?
About Us
In a difficult marketplace where the recession is deepening The Connor Consultancy has a track record of getting 80% of our people who go through outplacement into gainful work within 3 months. Why don’t you call us on 01491 414010 and find out more about how we go about it?
