Tales from the Jobseeker Front — Joan Fortman

Is there a magic bullet for landing a job? Unfortunately, not, but this series from the Brand Your Career blog is going to share stories of job seekers that successfully landed new positions in the sales and marketing field. Hopefully, you’ll be able to pick up a tip or two that can make you, too, successful in your job search.

Our first guest for this series is Joan Fortman, who is now the Midwest sales director for Social Moms. Here is an edited version of our conversation.

BYC: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

JF: Sure, I have more than 10 years experience in the interactive/digital marketplace as a salesperson and marketer. I have a passion for building relationships and a fascination for the whole job search process. That is why I also do some career coaching on the side.

BYC: How long was your job search, and were you employed at the time?

JF: I was out of a job for about 60 days. During that time I had about 10 interviews a week. So, no, I wasn’t employed at the time. My previous company decided to change how they were running the business and the entire sales force was laid off.

BYC: What was your biggest challenge during your search?

JF: Well, for me I work in a world where you always need to be on the lookout for your next opportunity, so I actually felt pretty prepared when I had to start searching. I kind of feel like searching for a job is a lot like dating. It’s not hard to get the dates, but you never know how many other people that company is “dating.”

BYC: What was the first thing you did when you started your search?

JF: The first thing I did was contact all the recruiters I had worked with in the past and let them know I was in between jobs.

BYC: Did you have your resume professionally written?

JF: No, because I felt I had a pretty good handle on how to market myself. I did research to find a good format to copy though. Also, I really would recommend that everyone have their resume professionally written at least one time. Then you’ll have the format and can update it as you move through your career.

BYC: What tools/activities did you find to be the most helpful in your search?

JF: Definitely LinkedIn and using my network I have been building over the years. My biggest mistake early in my career was I didn’t invest in my network. Now, I organize a monthly lunch just to touch base and keep up with my network.

BYC: What was the most disappointing experience?

JF: I would say when I had what I thought was a fantastic interview and then never heard another word from the company. Going back to my dating analogy, it’s the same feeling you get when you go out on a first date and you think things are fantastic, but the guy never calls you again, and you have no idea why.

BYC: How did you stay motivated during your search?

JF: I love spending time on LinkedIn because I am fascinated by relationships. I think it’s fun to discover cool companies and what they do. I enjoy looking for a job almost more than having a job.

BYC: Looking back, was there anything you would have done differently?

JF: No, I think I did everything right. I had a lot of opportunities in my pipeline. I didn’t quit looking when I had a good interview and thought an opportunity might come out of it. One thing I do wish I had was a good cover letter. Having a good cover letter certainly helps your search.

BYC: What advice do you have for other jobseekers?

JF: Remember that you are the product as well as the sales person for that product. So, you always need to be prepared to tell a good story about each position you’ve had as well as to explain why you are looking.

In addition, I advise people to remove jobs from their LinkedIn profile that are not relevant to their current search, or are from a long time ago. It is also critical to have an optimized LinkedIn profile. Use keywords to help recruiters and hiring managers find you.

BYC: How did you ultimately find your current position?

JF: They found me on LinkedIn. The CEO reached out and asked me if I was looking for a new job. This goes back to what I said about an optimized LinkedIn profile. I keep my headline on LinkedIn broad and use a lot of keywords in my summary.

So, I hope you enjoyed this first installment of Tales from the Jobseeker Front. If you’d like to be featured in this series, please contact Michelle at 773-531-3457, or info@brandyourcareer.com, as I am always looking for more jobseekers to interview.