“We’re Hiring! Now Hiring! Sign-On Bonus!” Businesses are re-opening and hiring! If you drive down any busy street in your town, you’re bound to see businesses advertising for open positions with similar messages.
With the on-going labor shortage, employers may decide to host on-site open house job fairs. These job fairs give job seekers the flexibility to attend within a time frame that works with their schedule, and it gives the opportunity to tour and learn more about the company at their facility. In the past, community workforce groups hosted large job fairs at conference centers with several employers, but depending on the recent Covid-19 restrictions you may see smaller employer-hosted job fairs. Read on to learn about our 5 tips for preparing for a job fair.
1. Prepare Your Introduction
In order to stand out at a job fair prepare an elevator speech that highlights yourself as a candidate. Don’t be shy and come ready to provide this information about yourself: what skills and experience do you have, what qualities make you stand out as an employee, when can you start working, and what career goals do you have? Practicing the responses to these questions ahead of time will ensure a smooth delivery to a recruiter. Finally, don’t forget to ask the recruiter questions about the job.
2. Conduct a Social Media Sweep
Audit your LinkedIn and other social media accounts before the job fair to ensure your profiles contain an updated professional-looking photo, skills, experience, and job history. No need to hire a professional photographer, just follow these simple steps for taking a new profile pic with your cell phone camera. Do you need help updating your LinkedIn profile? We can help you for FREE – contact us!
3. Arrive Early
When you plan to arrive early, you’ll feel more prepared and ready to tackle any last-minute traffic, public transportation, or parking challenges. If the employer(s) advertises about same-day job offers, it’ll also confirm the age-old truth that the early bird gets the worm.
4. Dress Appropriately
It can never hurt to confirm with the job fair organizers ahead of time about any dress recommendations. If the job fair is on-site at a production facility, you’ll likely want to wear closed-toe shoes and pants. Regardless of the location, wear well-fitting, comfortable clothing that makes you feel confident!
5. Keep the Communication Lines Open
After the job fair, send the recruiter a quick thank you email, and closely monitor your email and phone for incoming messages. Also, clean up voicemail messages ahead of time to ensure a full inbox doesn’t prevent a future employer from leaving important messages.
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