Helpful Tools For Your 2022 Job Search
Who doesn’t like a good job search tool? In 2022, here are some nifty tools that you might find helpful. Some have a cost, but others are free.
Please Note: I am not affiliated with any of these products.
Better Writing
Grammarly
I love Grammarly. It has helped me become a better writer with its handy suggestions. For the free version, Grammarly will provide recommendations for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and conciseness. It works with Outlook, Gmail, and Apple Mail, on various document types and social media platforms. If you want to upgrade to the Premium Plan, you will also get clarity re-writes, tone adjustments, word choice, fluency, and formality levels.
Hemingway
This nifty app gives you prompts to help you write better. Where you are using the passive tense, where there is simpler phrasing, or when a sentence is hard to read is highlighted. This free tool makes it easier to write clearly and succinctly.
Finding an Email Address
Hunter.io
While using social media messaging tools is one way to reach out to people you would like to speak to, there is no guarantee that even if they have a social media profile, they are looking at messages sent through those platforms. Sometimes the best way to connect with someone is through email. But if you don’t know the person already and have their work email address, how can you do this? Well, some programs can help you with this. Hunter.io is one. If you have a domain name, it scours the internet to find email addresses. With the free plan, you get 25 searches. They also have a Chrome extension you can use.
Aeroleads
There are many competitors in this space that also find email addresses. Aeroleads offers a 10-credit free trial and Chrome and Firefox extensions.
https://aeroleads.com/email-finder
See Who Has Opened Your Email
Mailtrak
Job seekers often wonder if the recipient of a warm or cold outreach has opened your email. If you have Gmail, Mailtrak allows you to know this. The free version allows unlimited tracking, desktop notifications, email alerts, and a daily report. The paid version will remove the Mailtrak signature and provide link tracking.
Mailtrak could be helpful if you are testing different subject lines for your outreach to see if one performs better in getting your email read or for the timing of follow-up messages.
Rightinbox
Rightinbox also has email tracking. Their free plan includes reminders, private notes, a send later feature, and templates. The paid plans allow unrestricted use of these features.
Know Which Skills Are Associated with a Job Title
LinkedIn Career Explorer
As a job seeker, you want to know the skills that employers value. LinkedIn Career Explorer is a great tool to show you what they are.LinkedIn has taken 6,000 job titles and mapped 36,000 skills to those titles. This tool helps those who know what they want to do and ensure they have stories around those skills on their resume and LinkedIn profile.
But what if you want a career change but don’t know what you want to do next? LinkedIn’s career explorer can help you too. You can enter your most recent role, and LinkedIn will show you the skills associated with that role AND then you can explore positions needing similar skills. This tool, which is free, can also highlight skills specific to a role, which can help you to assess better whether getting those additional skills is feeble for you in your situation.
Tracking Your Job Search
TealHQ
A tool to keep your job search organized is a plus. When you find a job of interest, wouldn’t it be nice to bookmark it, so it is easily retrievable and even see highlighted keywords? How about a quick way to know when to follow up on your application? Teal has a job tracker that can help you do this for free.
https://www.tealhq.com/tools/job-tracker
Networking Made Easier
Lunchclub
Job seekers know that they should be networking, but they often feel they do not have the time or even know whom to talk to about their careers. This is where Lunchclub comes in. Lunchclub makes introductions for one-on-one video meetings through AI. You will set up your goals (like meeting interesting people), and you can add conversation starters and interests to help the AI match you with the right people.
Learning Whether Your Resume Is Doing a Good Job Showing the Job Description’s Desired Skills and Keywords
Jobscan
You should always be tailoring your resume for a specific job. This is how you best show your value to the reader, increasing your chances of being contacted for an interview. Jobscan helps job seekers by comparing your resume to a job description and then producing a report showing where you match and areas where your resume is missing specific skills or keywords. If you have the missing keyword or skills, you can make the addition to your resume. There is a paid version and a free version, allowing a limited number of scans.
Skillsyncer
Skillsyncer works similarly to Jobscan, providing a Job Match Score, a Keyword Analysis, and Common Resume Checks.
Not a Graphic Artist? You Can Still Make Beautiful Graphics
Canva
I have trained artists in my family, but I still use Canva whenever I need a quick graphic for social media or even to create a LinkedIn banner. It is straightforward to use. They have templates galore for almost anything you want to do, and you can add backgrounds, photos, elements, and text from their library or upload your own. The free version is very robust, but there are also paid plans for access to more features and elements.
Conclusion
As job searching has changed over the years (and even within my career as a Recruiter), it only makes sense that it has become more complex than the old-school typing up a resume and mailing it to an employer. There is no reason not to employ tools to help make your job search easier and more time efficient. With the use of the tools, you could have a significant advantage over your competition. Why not try them?
Shelley Piedmont is a job search coach. She wants to help job seekers put their best foot forward by providing the tools for a successful job search. If you need career coaching, resume preparation, interview skills assessment, or LinkedIn profile assistance, she can help. Schedule a 15-minute no-obligation consultation.