I'm a classified ad. Rarrrrr!
It came as a complete surprise to me today when the seemingly savvy job seeker on the other end of my phone line revealed that he'd been following the Sunday classifieds as part of his search. I think he was actually a little surprised that he wasn't finding much.
Ring, ring. Hello? 1981? Is this you? Is it really you?
With all due respect to the hard working paper route delivery specialists and the vending machine filler-uppers who may, indeed, still find a relevant job via the classifieds?
They are dead. Long, long dead.
Why?
- They're ridiculously expensive compared to the many other online tools we recruiter types have available for announcing job openings
- They tend to attract respondents who are less computer savvy and technologically astute than those who utilize the Internet for job search efforts.
- Unless they're tied to a publications' online classifieds, they have a shelf life of, oh, one day.
- The dumbing down of America has been so remarkably effective that lots and lots of people never even pick up a newspaper, so why advertise jobs in there?
- Indeed.com. I do believe I mentioned this great tool just a few days ago. Scroll on down for the recap.
- Because I said so.
Put down the yellow highlighter, and step away from Section F, please, Mr. Job Seeker on The Other End of My Phone. Your time is worth so much more than this.