4 Reasons for job seekers to Google your targets
Not long ago, I wrote about Googling yourself in the post, “Have You Googled YOU Lately?”
Today, I want to talk about how you should Google the company you are looking at in your job search. Michael Lunsford, a Twitter friend suggested this topic because he knows I often write ways to help job seekers in the job search process. If you are looking at a new position, Google the company you are targeting. It sounds logical, but I would guess that many people skip this step.
What will Googling the company do for you?
1. → Find out whether it is a legitimate company
With so many spam companies and the ability to even forge a corporate website, finding additional information and perhaps checking it out on services like Ripoff report or even Snopes.com. With all the e-mail scams, offering you a job if you give them pertinent data about yourself, it is easy to be fooled.
- I had a young college graduate client who didn’t check with anyone including family members who were private detectives and Special Forces before he gave his banking information for one of those jobs that sounded too good to be true… It was.
- Michael Lunsford shared one of his experiences:
I once got a blind job offer that seemed too good to be true. Google found a SEC cease and desist. You talk about change an interview!
2. → To help find information about the company and be able to pull out details in the interview.
- One of my sons said that he has always used that strategy to be able to show he understands what products the company makes, what their market is, and how the products are produced.
3. → To determine the size of the company and see if you are a good fit for the organization.
- In many organizations, you may want to know if it is a large company or business or a smaller more locally run operation. My clients are very different in this way. Some of them love large organizations with multiple locations and others are drawn to the small more intimate organizations.
4. → To see who works there.
- Google will work for this but LinkedIn will work better. Search for both current and ex-employees. This will also give you two different perspectives and the opportunity to connect with people who can help with informational interviewing and using the back door to get in.
There! Four reasons to send you to Google to jumpstart your job search and protect you from being scammed. Can you think of more?
Stuck in your job search or just ready to move on or up from your existing position? Julie Walraven, a Wausau, Wisconsin-based professional resume writer and career marketing strategist, can help you get ready for your next role! To find out how, Click here!
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Great points, Julie, and something any jobseeker should take on board when prepping for any interview.
One thing I would say about Rip-Off Report, though, is that they can often be as bad as the businesses they’re reporting on. They may be better now, mind you, but this was the experience one of my friends had (and I’ve heard other stories like it):
http://dannybrown.me/2008/11/12/do-you-know-whats-being-said-about-you-online/
Another reason why Google is definitely becoming your best online friend.
Cheers, Julie!
.-= Danny Brown´s last blog ..The Five Unwritten Rules of Guest Posting on Blogs =-.
I totally agree, Danny! And thanks for stopping by. I weigh everything I read about a company online. I have seen good companies get bad reports on Ripoff Report and on what some people would think is a reliable source, the Better Business Bureau. Thanks for adding another dimension to this post. You can’t take any one source at face value. You need to assess what it says and draw your own conclusion!
Julie –
Another great post! (You’re a writing machine woman!!)
I tell clients to really dig. They might find where the person interviewing or a higher up in the company won a charity golf tournament or some other “obscure” fact, not commonly know. Think how memorable that individual will be to that interviewer. They not only researched what the company makes, how large it is, the problems faced and the other things you listed; they took time to learn about the people in the organization too.
In this market, it’s all about differentiation. Sometimes a way to differential is found on the sixth page of Google search.
Excellent information!!
Thank you, Dawn! Excellent advice about digging, too! I had a client interviewed for a full day by 12 people. He did his homework on LinkedIn and knew who read what books, who had worked where previously, and who had lived in similar places in the past. All of that can add up to success!