I recently conducted some local workforce research on the availability of Licensed Practical Nurses. Part of my process was to post blind job ads, review resumes and analyze if the regional labor force could support the client's talent acquisition needs. Long story short, the answer was affirmative and the client was satisfied the region's homegrown pool would do, and a national search and relo packages wouldn't be necessary.
The exercise did however prove once again, that even in the age of seemingly unlimited information on the Internet about how to reply to a job ad - people continue to sabotage opportunity. Here are four examples from a job ad on craigslist:
I seen your add on craigs list and I am interested in a part-time position. I can work Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Also i can work mornings every other weekend. I am an LPN and am currently going back to school to get my RN which is why i can't work Tuesday and Thursday. My resume is attached and you can call any time after 9am.
A nurse needs to pay great attention to detail and is responsible for skilled documentation on the job. Not being able to write 75% of sentences grammatically correct is a downer. Delete.
I'm interested in the LPN position posted. 000-000-0000 is my cell. Please call if still needed.
This response was received two days after the job ad was posted. No resume was attached or included in the body of the email. The job ad wasn't an invitation to play phone tag. Delete.
The information in the job ad was quite specific and the requirements were too. Delete.
I am interested in the job positing for a Home Health LPN you have posted on Craigslist. Thank You.
No resume, no contact information, and 50% of the sentences have an error. Delete.
I could post more examples, but I think these cover the major issues with the replies I received. Replies that were complete and included an attached resume or link to an online profile, were forwarded to the employer for consideration.
These and other replies like them went nowhere.
Job ads receive an abundance of replies, from excellent to acceptable, and meh to completely unqualified. Only the ones that give a good impression, fulfil requirements and have a resume or online profile attached get a response.
For real. Not kidding.
P.S. You might read this and think, "Karla, this post is like Kindergarten, too simple, no brainer content". Well.... obviously not.
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