Author: Portfolio Creative

It’s official. Economists have confirmed that the U.S. is in a recession and apparently has been since last December. Thanks guys, most people already knew that. Regardless of that not-so-happy news, if you’re looking for work you need to keep moving forward. Job Searching in a Recession hits key areas to keep in mind and a few tips related to each area.

Key highlights:

Take a closer look at industry data
Focus on areas that are more stable or growing, and therefore may be more likely to hire. In the marketing and advertising areas interactive is still a big need, and (according to a recent Columbus Chamber report) local industries that are fairly stable include health, insurance, education, and technology.

Freshen up your skills
In a competitive job market it’s more important than ever to be up-to-date. Employers are looking for candidates who are ready to go on day one, they often don’t need to (and won’t) provide on-the-job training.

Rev up your social networking
You probably know a lot more people than you realize. Use online networks like LinkedIn and Facebook to connect or re-connect, and get yourself out to industry events and organization meetings. You’ll find out industry news, inside info, leads, referrals, and other helpful information for your search.

Think in terms of results
It’s really always about the employer anyway, but now it’s crucial to show them what you can do for them. What you need isn’t important unless they can see how much they need you. Sorry.

Polish your brand and market it
Just posting your resume on job boards and looking on Monster.com isn’t enough. You need to put together a pristine resume, excellent portfolio, make connections, and market yourself just like you’d market a product.

Be realistic
Experts say to “expect it to take at least three months to find a job that pays $40,000. Add one month for every $10,000 more you want in salary. In other words, if you are looking for $80,000 a year, expect it to take at least seven months to find a new job.” Be prepared, it’s a process and it takes time.

Congratulations to all of the 2008 winners in the CSCA Creative Best competition. We were very excited to see a few of our associates among the winners.

Alan McClelland, designer/photographer/illustrator on two pieces that won Packaging awards. Check out more work at eye.lyft

Jason Spinks, designer on a Cleveland Clinic invitation winning a Print award. Lovely piece!

Jason Sweazy, designer winning a Student and Judge’s Choice award for his senior thesis project (this guy is good, someone needs to hire him pronto!)

And congrats to our High Street neighbors at Element, for awards in the Identity, Packaging and Campaign categories. We’re lucky enough to have some of those wine bottles in our lobby.

Here’s to another year of great Central Ohio creative work!

Seth Godin is one of my favorite authors, bloggers and overall genius thinkers. He recently posted information about a program he is setting up, essentially a six-month educational opportunity with him. As valuable as a MBA (he says), and he might be right. At first it sounds crazy…six months unpaid, you have to be in New York, pay your own expenses…who would do it?

But then I started thinking about the whole concept, and it’s brilliant. At minimum it’s a one-of-a-kind opportunity to do something entirely different, and learn from someone you really respect. Students and recent graduates do internships to gain experience, it’s a requirement at some schools and highly suggested at most. But once you’ve landed that first, third or fifth job, who thinks about an internship? (which is essentially what Seth Godin is suggesting, regardless of what he calls it).

Say you really don’t care about Seth Godin, or don’t want to move to New York on your own dime for six months? Maybe there is a way you can apply the same concept to your own career. If you could work with a company that you think is amazing or support an organization that you feel is essential, for free, would you? What if it could change your life, get you contacts you’d never have otherwise, building relationships in your industry, help you get into a new field, or build new skills that are essential?

If you really want to be somewhere entirely different in a year, what can you do over the next 12 months to get you there? If you could work part-time in a bill-paying job, and do an internship with the place in town you think is absolutely the best, would you? Would they? Who knows, but you never know unless you ask. Find a contact, put together a proposal, see where it goes. Or, if you really want to build up your contacts and reputation in your industry, and have some fun as well, check into volunteering with an organization. They are always looking for interested people who believe in their cause.

Unusual times require creative thinking, how can you think differently about your career?

Recently Sharon Delay of Permanent Ink put on a teleconference focused on the Top 10 Career Search Killers. Explore each killer, and discuss what you can do to move your career forward. The teleconference was recorded and is now available online. It’s about 35 minutes, and an easy listen.

Still on a high from CSCA Creative Best? Liked the taste of success, but now you’re hooked and need more?

CA is accepting entries for 15th annual Communication Arts Interactive Design Competition. Any interactive project created for digital distribution on the World Wide Web, CD-ROM, interactive kiosk or handheld device is eligible. Winning entries will be published in the 2009 Interactive Annual of Communication Arts and on the CA web site.

You survived Black Friday, now it’s Cyber Monday so our attention turns to online shopping (for a job of course). As the ceremonial kick-off of the online holiday shopping season, the fact that Cyber Monday is even a common term shows how integral the internet is to our lives.

The internet is a great tool for shopping for stuff and a job, but also has the same negatives for both.

• There is way too much information. Search for a term and generally there are thousands of results, you need a way to sort through and edit all of the info.

• Everyone worldwide has access to and is using the same system you are. Especially when you’re using a job board like Monster.com, there are a lot of different things posted and a lot of people respond to each post. For any given position, hundreds or even thousands of people could be applying.

• It’s very key word driven. You’ve probably encountered a situation where you couldn’t find quite the right key words to pull up the thing you’re looking for. That happens with job postings and resumes too, if you’re not entering the right key word, or using the right key word on your resume, the info may not be found.

• It’s impersonal. Don’t get me wrong, I shop online a lot. You can get great deals and don’t have to brave the crowds. But I also like to go to local shops where I can meet with and talk to real live people. Job hunting is the same–you want to be a real live person rather than a piece of paper to a potential employer.

So what’s a cyber job shopper to do? Use the internet as the tool that it is. Take advantage of the access to a wide variety of positions, information, research resources, and ease of contacting potential employers. But it should only be one tool in your arsenal, along with personal networking, connecting through organizations, following local job boards, and pursuing companies that you’ve identified as a good fit for you.

As new HRACO members, Portfolio is excited to be a part of their annual holiday silent auction. Human Resource Association of Central Ohio will be holding a Silent Auction at their December 9th luncheon. The event will feature Dr. Kevin Elko, a nationally renowned Performance Consultant, Motivational Speaker and Author. An ‘art-themed’ basket from Portfolio will be one of the many great items up for bid in the silent auction. Contact Becky Miller at support@hraco.com for more information.

The You Show. Really, I can’t say it any better than Seth Godin did in this post…an interview is a show that’s all about you. Are you planning and putting on a show, or waiting for the audience to direct you? The risk is being so over-planned that you can’t answer questions or react to your audience. But if you go in with a general idea of what you’ll say and do, it can make the process less stressful and more enjoyable. Yes, enjoyable.

The Columbus Chapter of the American Marketing Association has two upcoming luncheons with hot topics.

At the December 9th meeting, come learn how the Ohio Department of Travel and Tourism markets the entire state of Ohio as a tourist destination. Amir Eylon, State Tourism Director along with Ron Foth Advertising will present their new creative campaign and discuss the state’s unique marketing mix that has Ohio competing on a regional level for tourism dollars.

The January luncheon will feature Mr. Mark Galuska of the Columbus Clippers who is proud to unveil the team’s new ballpark and to share the Clippers’ new direction for 2009. Reserve your spot soon!