Classified Ads - Pros and Cons
By Tony Jacowski
The job search has one more face: now you can place your ‘position wanted’ ad on Internet message boards or in classifieds. Of course, placing ads in the classifieds is nothing new. Again, it is not without its share of pros and cons. But, now the hot point of discussion is the advent of help wanted ads on the Internet and their pros and cons.
When someone got through to an interview a couple of years ago, it was not the usual thing, for it was because he had advertised on the positions wanted classified.
Pros Of Wanted Ads
There are many upsides to advertising when you are in need of a job; you can do this in addition to posting your online resume. You can use this combination cleverly by linking them to each other. However, the clear advantages of posting “position wanted” ads are here:
1. Since these ‘job wanted’ ads are placed by you, you can be sure that you can use the space to your advantage. Try to post the message exactly as you want it. It gives you flexibility and freedom to plan your ad yourself. Be prepared to spend a few dollars if you want to do this. Some placement advertising sites ask for a monthly fee, which ranges from $9.95 to $29.50.
2. They keep your identity almost anonymous by automated transmission of messages to your mailbox. Websites protect their candidates’ identity and privacy very strictly so replies and all correspondences thereafter will be channeled through them. But when they allow personal identity, use a free email account created for this purpose.
3. Updating your ad can’t get easier than this. You can go on refining your ad very easily and whenever you want. Be specific in stating who you are and what you want; eliminate any possible ambiguities in the ad language. Furthermore, you can also specify the salary you expect.
Cons Of Position Wanted Ads
This is the other side of the coin which can’t be completely eliminated. Here are a few cons of advertising yourself:
1. There are not too many websites to advertise position wanted ads; therefore, the low popularity attracts very few recruiters and hiring managers. Secondly, they draw far less web traffic than r?sum? databases and job placement sites, meaning that headhunters and job seekers prefer resume databases to placing ads.
2. Technically speaking, both resumes and ad sites are equally searchable depending on the optimization work that they have had done. As all are keyword searchable, the keywords play a key role in making your ad searchable.
3. Some recruiters appear to disregard advertisers as desperate people wanting a job but that still couldn’t pick up the phone and talk to recruiters.
Other cons may include misusing of your email ID by spammers and junk mailers. However, when all is said and done, and when all that matters is bagging a good job, it is not a bad idea to advertise yourself.