Part 1 imparted knowledge about why employers attend job fairs; Part 2 related what to do productively at a job fair, and this article (Part 3) will tell you what to do after you leave.

I noted several actions one should perform at a job fair in Part 2 of this series, including some advice after the job fair. These follow-up actions will give you tools and advantages above all the other job seekers who won’t know these secret tips and tricks. These tips are good regardless of whether you attend a job fair locally or drive to another state to attend a huge or broadly advertised event. The tips I noted are listed below with an explanation of the why you should do the next step(s).

Ask for names within the company; and if you know anyone in the company – ask about them, their health, how you can get in touch with them.

· Start searching the Internet and social network sites like LinkedIn before the job fair to see if you can find a name of a person working in the company and their department – use that name to ask if “John Doe” has any jobs in their department requiring your capabilities that
hasn’t been posted.

· If you get a name from the job fair rep, perform a Boolean search on the Internet (and LinkedIn) for that direct contact in human resources, recruiting, or other departments to contact directly to forward a resume.

· If the POC other than HR gets a resume, and pushes it to a recruiter, there is a higher likelihood the person will forward it to HR, which may be perceived as a referral – especially if the company provides referral bonuses.

Get a business card from everyone in the room

· Your job at a job fair is to find point of contacts (POC’s) – so pick up a card at every table.

· Once you get those business cards, mail your resume and a cover letter to each employer POC via snail mail, thanking them for the opportunity to discuss their company and potential job openings.

· They won’t remember you, but that’s okay – they have your hard copy resume and cover letter in hand now, and they may be nice enough to look at it for further consideration.

· Since they have an extra printed copy now, and you noted in the cover letter you have already posted to the company’s online job site, they may be inclined to forward the package via inter-office mail to a hiring manager who may have an interest in your capabilities

Research every company by picking up company information you will need later

· Option 1: This is one of the richest sources of finding POC information within a company – there may be a name for a CEO, VP, or program manager or addresses for work sites, where you can send notes and resumes directly.

· Option 2: Send polite thank you notes the professionalism of the job fair rep and you wanted the executive to be aware. The executives may show the job fair rep the note. Of course the rep will want to look your profile up in the recruiting system to see who said that nice thing about them – boom, you and your credentials are now under their noses and they are reading your resume.

Talk to other attendees – if someone notes they are leaving XYZ company – there may be a job opening soon!

· Some job seekers are looking to move upward to higher career levels. If you are waiting in a job fair line, start up a friendly conversation with the next person – Are they leaving a company? Is their contract ending? Where did they work before? Who did they work for (“…I think I remember someone who used to work for XYZ – what is your bosses’ name…”)? You might hit a gold-mine. If a program assistant is now looking for a program manager job because they need to move on and make more money and now you know the name of the company and what supervisor to send your resume to. That employer will need to fill a job quickly.

Use the job fairs as a sourcing tool, and you'll get much further in your career search than you realize!

For more related articles by this author:

Why attend a Job Fair? (Part 1) - http://tinyurl.com/244uqse

Why attend a Job Fair? (Part 2) – http://tinyurl.com/343f8tu

Why attend a Job Fair? (Part 3) – http://tinyurl.com/28bwrby

How many types of resumes should one have? - http://tinyurl.com/2eby5gr

Dawn Boyer, Small Business HR, Career, and LinkedIn Social Media Coach

D. Boyer Consulting, Va. Beach, VA 23464

Dawn.Boyer@me.com / http://www.linkedin.com/in/DawnBoyer

Follow me on Twitter: @Dawn_Boyer

Blog: http://DawnBoyer.wordpress.com

Examiner Career Coach: http://www.examiner.com/x-56052-Norfolk-Career-Coach-Examiner