Why You'll Need to "Play the Game" to Get Your Next Job...

This week, Amazon subsidiary, Zappos, the mega-successful online shoe retailer announced it has eliminated job postings. Now, candidates interested in landing a coveted spot with the company must join "Zappos Insiders," a social media platform where they befriend current employees and are encouraged to display their passion for the company as a way to earn the job. See the details here >>

Play the Game, Or Else...

As is pointed out in this article, the potential challenge with this recruiting concept is it can make many job seekers feel like they are back in high school. For those who don't feel they can compete in this fashion, the pressure of fitting in arises like an uncomfortable wave of nausea. Meanwhile, those who love Zappos and drink the corporate Kool-aid will have no problem diving in to the insider's club. They have good reason to. Zappos has one of the best employee benefits and perks packages around. So, playing the game can pay off big-time!

Not All Companies Will Follow Zappos, BUT (And, that's a big BUT)

Most companies don't have the corporate infrastructure or culture to do what Zappos is doing. However, you will see employers shifting their recruitment strategies to be more interactive with potential hires. In fact, the trend is on developing their company's abilities to attract passive candidates - a/k/a the top talent working at other companies they want to steal away. To play this game, recruiters need to be able to proactively market their employer's WOW factor. The term for this type of recruiting is "Employment Branding," and it's going to be a major focus in the next few years for companies of all shapes and sizes. [You can see an infographic and more information on what Employment Branding looks like here >>]

Example: LinkedIn's Career Pages = Playing the Game Made Easier

A great example of how Employment Branding is affecting job search are the new Careers Pages on LinkedIn. Now, employers can create impressive showcases of what it's like to work for their firm. In a matter of days, if a company has the right content to display on a Careers Page, they can go from drab to fab in the eyes of job seekers. Just ask the executive team of Fusion Worldwide. In less than 30 days, they more than doubled the number of followers of their company on LinkedIn and were able to get a steady stream of passive candidates to interview with them - all thanks to their new Careers Page focused on their need for top sales talent.

By sharing with job seekers what they need in a salesperson, and giving them an easy way to interact with the company, the dialog with candidates has increased significantly. [For those who want to learn more about how to create strong Career Pages on LinkedIn, a free webinar is available here >>]

Play the Game on Your Terms - Just Be Sure to Play

The takeaway here is that no matter what, the rules of engagement are changing with employers. The hiring game is going to require you to play a more active role. You need to be following companies you admire and respect. Even if you aren't looking for a job right now, you should be building a bucket list of companies that you'd want to work for in the future. As we say over at CAREEREALISM, "Every job is temporary!" You just never know when you'll need to jump in the job search game. So, why not start playing a little bit? Follow companies now, and you may find them knocking on your door and asking YOU, an attractive passive candidate, if you'd like to come work for them. That's everyone's dream, isn't it? Having the employer seek us out? If you start leveraging the Employment Branding efforts of companies on LinkedIn now, you could make that dream a reality - and a big career win!

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If you want to read more of what I've written, check out my articles on Inc.com.

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