THINK ABOUT WHO YOU ENDORSE FOR FREE.

As part of their "get me out of the ditch or blow up the numbers", whichever it may be, campaign The Ladders is offering recruiters and companies a free Passport that entitles them to one free job posting a month. (I think) or maybe one free posting. No candidate access just a posting. Ok, we all know that recruiters will do anything that's free. So what?

Here's the "so what". You hated the commercial, you thought it was disgusting, you don't like the whole Ladders shell game or the fact that they charge both the job seeker and the employer or recruiter, you wouldn't pay to be a part of it, you don't like it because they double dip and or charge job seekers, you wouldn't recommend them to a candidate because they misrepresent that they only have 100K jobs and candidates, you know that the jobs they have on the site are available to view for free on company pages, Indeed, Monster, Career Builder, Simply Hired and for God's sake even Craig's List. In the past you posted a job only to have it remain on their site for years after it was filled so you got to explain that it had been filled in 2007 to a candidate who applied in 2010. But what the hell, it's a free posting. You might even get a candidate or two.

Consider this. You use the free posting. The Ladders can now claim you as a customer so you just endorsed their service. Your name and your company name are now associated with their site. They have your website /email/ name ,to be added to their job scraping spider. You have just tacitly given them carte blance to pull every job off your site to flop on their job board which they can now justify because if you put one on there you became their customer and one of the ,"oh, so many recruiters or employers" whom they represent. So when a job seeker calls you about a job you didn't post you can spend your time explaining that you didn't post it, it's not 100K and it was filled a month ago or longer. You don't really use the Ladders, you just used one free posting. Is it worth adding your personal/company endorsement to a service you don't like for one free posting? I don't think so. I have worked hard to develop my reputation. I am not about to muddy it for the price of one free posting on a site i hate and think is a scam or associate my name or business with people crawling around rubbing themselves on desks.

One other caveat that crossed my pea shaped brain this morning. Recruiters are reporting that when they call The Ladders to find out exactly what the "Passport" really is they are getting a bunch of double talk or as Rebecca Sargent put it "A customer service mess". You will be told to go to the web site where it is explained. Great, you go to the web site. Ping their web site just got a hit. So now the web site hits go up because that is what they want. It validates that the commercial was a blazing success, just look at the increase in web site hits.

If one free posting is worth it to you, or you like the Ladders by all means use the free posting, endorse them, link your name/company to them. Not this kid. I won't endorse anything for a gimme or for money that i don't like or think is a scam. That's just my opinion. I may have been born at night but it wasn't last night. All of us can be bought i suppose but some of us are more expensive than others.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 19, 2011 at 1:13pm

@Jerry, I know your social media schedule is just busy, busy, busy right now. It is a burden to prioritize one's commitments to all these vital, relevant popcorn farts in the highly visible microcosm within which we change the world, fix social ills, build these money making brands and otherwise waste our time with the sound of one hand clapping. I do however appreciate you taking a minute away from brand comparisons to comment here.

I do however agree, I , like the supremes, know porn when I see it. A fat Asian chick spreading her legs and rubbing herself while lying on a desk was very difficult to explain to my grandson when he asked me what she was doing. Rather than address that one, I decided to deflect with something he might be more interested in talking about. I know about 8 yes old boys. I looked him right in the eye and asked,"do you know where babies come from?

At that point the fat girl had quit rubbing, he missed the two guys rolling on each other,

Grandson responded that he knew where babies came from but wasn't sure how they got there.

There went my distraction question that I was prepared to answer with one of those "out of mommy's tummy, inane replies. My thought was, (screw you, you smutty ladders,sick, sleazy bastards,you are gonna hear from me, I have known about you creeps for years but now you have brought your filth into my home in front of little kids in prime time).

Like Jerry, most people with any sense don't see using porn to market job services as brilliant marketing. I don't know about you but I,m not "runnin whores". I place professionals ladies and gentlemen. The Ladders can keep their whores, pimps and pervs. Those of you who think it was funny..you are sick puppies.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Alfred on February 20, 2011 at 8:23am

Sandra ,.... Seriously you kill me ... Happy New Year ... !! .... You're right you're not a brothel ... LOL... !!

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 20, 2011 at 10:50am

Happpy New Year to you my friend. Correct, not a brothel and won't endorse anything that makes our industry look like one..

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 22, 2011 at 9:23pm

The folks, er, mavens who attended The Ladders Summit in New York, T & E paid by the Ladders, came back reporting that "The Ladders realized they had image problems and wanted to know how they could do better in our space"..

Here is how the Ladders spins it. http://moneywatch.bnet.com/career-advice/blog/career-management/job...

The Mavens, according to this article are much in agreement with the Ladders.

Check out Dave Manaster's post on ERE. "Is the Ladders a Scam?", Nick at "AskTheHeadhuter" has a well written informative piece on his take on the deal. "Mercenaries to Critics, They'e Good Eggs. Karla Porter, WTF are they Smoking at the Ladders. Josh LeTourneau opines that the Ladders is a bit like Circus Soleil. on Fistful of Talent. There are other opinion pieces on FOT that are well worth a read if you haven't seen them. John Sumsner at HR Examiner says that candidates always pay and the Ladders has out criticaled the critics. Laurie at The Cynical Girl just says, "They're a Piece of Crap.".

Seems to be another group of Mavens who don't see it exactly the way the New York Mavens reported it. Ouch!

Think about who you endorse for free and how that endorsement shows up at the damnedest times.

Some of the folks are already mumbling that they sort of wish they hadn't made that little trek. I think they been had, but that's just my opinion.

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Permalink Reply by Karla Porter on February 25, 2011 at 10:31am

I can't get them to stop sending me email.......

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 25, 2011 at 1:19pm

Spam is spam. I keep getting offers for a discounted license. Like any other spam marketing it's the gift that keeps on giving or is that a social disease?

Karla i think you mentioned somewhere that they quoted you on their site. Did you give them permission to quote you or did they just pull that off your website and print it on theirs to make it look like you endorsed them?

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Permalink Reply by Thomas Patrick Chuna on February 25, 2011 at 5:08pm

i got a note from one of their MENSA candidate employees a few weeks back on LinkedIn.. asking me to work with them on a bunch of accounting type positions...umm, wow there sparky, can you NOT READ my profile? reading all this other stuff about them has been enlightening.

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 25, 2011 at 5:17pm

Tom,

Would you publish that email. Perhaps other recruiters/individuals have received the same email. it would be interesting to see if these are form emails. Were they soliciting you to buy a membership as a candidate without reading your profile that clearly states you are a recruiter?

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Permalink Reply by Dina Harding on February 25, 2011 at 10:57pm

Amen, Sandra! A truly great post, to which I absolutely agree with you on all points! :D

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Permalink Reply by Thomas Patrick Chuna on February 25, 2011 at 11:58pm

Sandra..whoops, upon further review, the email I got was from someone with "The Ladder Group", not "The Ladders"...thought is was the same outfit..got the email a month ago...never mind, I will shut up now. :)

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on February 26, 2011 at 1:51am

Actually Tom that's kind of funny. Coincidence probably but it would be kismet to the third power if somebody is using a spin off of a recognized name. Thanks for the correction. Ethical people don't have a problem saying woops.

Hi Dina, If you could ask the Ceo of TheLadders three questions what would you ask?

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Permalink Reply by Dina Harding on March 3, 2011 at 6:31pm

Hello Sandra,

Just now had a chance to reply to your inquiry, Sandra .... First off, I wouldn't waste my time talking to him. Not to be disrespectful to anyone, I'm just very selective in how I choose to spend my time. But, if I had to ask, or rather to be respectful of a reply (since it's you who asked, Sandra :D), my questions would be:

1- What are the core strategies of marketing at TheLadders and what quantifiable results have been accomplished via that campaign and over what time frame?

2- Please identify and elaborate on your response protocols for the top 3 'firefighting' issues which your company must deal with internally on a regular basis.

3- Please explain your company's metrics currently in use for evaluating success in terms of increased clients and actual sales figures, and how those metrics have evolved from the start until present day.

There is something significant which can be learned from, and ultimately used as recruiting intelligence, from simple questions addressed to a C-Level member of a company. Let me know if you ever learn any answers to these questions from TheLadders, Sandra.

~Dina :D

P.S. I am not at all reachable by their messages, or by their so-called 'free' offerings. I've never even given it any consideration. :D