Just as it is important to prepare for an in-person interview and/or career fair, it is also important for job seekers to prepare for online career fairs. Online career fair interviews are generally conducted within a short timeframe, which means job seekers must quickly make positive impressions with prospective employers.
Here are some top tips to help you prepare for an online career fair interview:
1. Update Your Resume&nbsp;&ndash; Ensure that your resume is easy-to-read, concise, and up-to-date with recent employment experience and added skills and activities. Additionally, have an electronic version ready to submit to recruiters (in PDF form to avoid digital re-formatting concerns).
2. Research the Companies&nbsp;&ndash; Prior to the career fair, access the list of employers and research to determine which interest you. Learn as much as you can about these companies and their open job positions, including accessing their websites and social media. Think of questions you&rsquo;ll want to ask and the skills you have that align with the companies and the open positions. This will save valuable interview time and help you appear better prepared.
3. Create a Calendar Reminder&nbsp;&ndash; Sometimes when you don&rsquo;t have to travel anywhere, an online event can slip your mind. Set multiple calendar reminders, both days and hours before the event begins. Keep in mind any differences in time zone and adjust accordingly. You can attend our career expo on any device with an internet connection, including your smart phone.
4. Prepare Your Pitch &ndash;&nbsp;Your elevator pitch is important, so spend time determining how you will introduce yourself. Try to include your education, skills, and future goals. This should still be short and to the point, addressing the job you are seeking, why you would be a good fit, and how hiring you would benefit the company.&nbsp;&nbsp;
5. Dress Professionally&nbsp;&ndash; Although recruiters won&rsquo;t be able to see you, dressing as though you are in a live interview will help boost your confidence and help you focus.
6. Test Your Technology and Environment&nbsp;&ndash; In addition to preparing your resume, ensure your Internet connection is functioning properly and that the environment is distraction-free. This means trying out the exact location you plan to be for the interview.
7. Drop Off Resumes and Leave a Note&nbsp;&ndash; If &ldquo;lines&rdquo; become long, we provide an option to drop off your resume and leave a note for a company. Take advantage of this feature and make sure you use your elevator pitch as part of the note. All notes and resumes are provided to the employers at the end of the event.
8. Request Next Steps and Contact Information&nbsp;&ndash; As you conclude your interview, ask about next steps in the process and how you can stay in touch. Some companies do have policies about providing their individual information, so don&rsquo;t be offended if they cannot share it with you.
9. Send a Thank You&nbsp;&ndash; If a recruiter does provide you with contact information, or you&rsquo;re able to find it online, be sure to follow-up as soon as possible with a thank you note/email to express your gratitude and further express your interest. This also serves as a good time to remind the recruiter about who you are and your qualifications, as recruiters meet many candidates at online career events. Even if a job is not currently open, a thank you note is usually remembered and noted with your information.
Contributions to this blog were made by Andra&eacute;a LaVant of Solutions Marketing Group.&nbsp;

Prepare for online career fairs with these top tips: update your resume, research companies, and test your tech.

How Job Seekers Can Prepare for an Online Career Fair

From virtual workplaces to gig work to robots, the past decade has seen major shifts in the world of work. With these shifts, the skills employers once valued in their employees have also evolved.
While education and training continue to play a critical role in helping job seekers land their dream jobs, most recent research shows that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/hard-skills.asp" rel="noopener" target="_blank">hard skills</a>&nbsp;may not be the primary skills needed to help you land or keep a job in this new decade. In fact, a recent LinkedIn&nbsp;<a href="https://news.linkedin.com/2019/January/linkedin-releases-2019-global-talent-trends-report" rel="noopener" target="_blank">survey</a>&nbsp;shares that 92% of talent professionals and hiring managers believe strong&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nationalsoftskills.org/">soft skills</a>&nbsp;can help you stand out from the crowd (see our post,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.careercircle.com/blog/post/7-essential-soft-skills-for-getting-and-keeping-a" rel="follow">7 Essential Soft-Skills for Getting and Keeping a Job</a>).
No matter whether you&rsquo;re in a job you love or currently pursuing new opportunities, here are 9 essential job skills that will help you excel:
<ol>
<li>Creativity&nbsp;&ndash; Every day new technologies and ideas emerge that allow employers to deliver new products and services. Employers want people who can take these new things and come up with creative ways to help increase productivity and profitability.</li>
<li>Flexibility&nbsp;&ndash; Today&rsquo;s employers deeply value employees&rsquo; willingness to quickly shift and try new ideas and ways of doing things. With rapid advancements and constant access to information, strategies and systems that work one day may not work the next day. Employees who succeed are able and willing to shift focus and learn new skills swiftly and without complaint.</li>
<li>Critical Thinking&nbsp;&ndash; With access to so much information, successful employees must be able to make logical, well-thought out judgements. Rather than accepting everything you see or hear, it&rsquo;s important to ask questions and think through arguments before developing conclusions about any work-related matters.</li>
<li>Leadership Ability&nbsp;&ndash; Leadership doesn&rsquo;t just apply to high-level executives. Employers want employees that take initiative and make decisions that benefit others. Whether it&rsquo;s motivating your team, supporting co-workers, being a role model, or even displaying self-confidence, consider your leadership ability and seek out opportunities to strengthen areas where you need to grow.</li>
<li>Problem-Solving&nbsp;&ndash; Technology can&rsquo;t resolve every problem. In fact, for the many problems that technology solves, often even greater needs for solutions arise. This means employers need employees that can help them think through issues and come up with ways to address them.</li>
<li>Cultural Intelligence&nbsp;&ndash; More and more employers are making diversity and inclusion a top priority in their hiring strategies. This means employees must be willing to embrace differences regarding race, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation and disability.</li>
<li>Collaboration (includes Virtual Collaboration)&nbsp;&ndash; Today&rsquo;s workplace requires employees to interact and work together consistently. Also, with continual transitions to virtual workspaces, employers are looking for people who can not only work together in-person in physical offices, but who can also be productive and engage with others as a member of a virtual team.</li>
<li>Tech Savviness&nbsp;&ndash; These days, there are very few jobs that don&rsquo;t require technical skills. Job seekers and employees must not only be aware of existing technology, but must also be continually open to learning how to use new equipment and systems. </li>
<li>New Media Literacy&nbsp;&ndash; In addition to knowing about technology overall, employers also value employees&rsquo; ability to assess and develop content that can be used across existing and emerging media forms (i.e. social media). They want employees that can create content that drives positive business outcomes, which includes increasing profits.</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re a job seeker with a disability, it&rsquo;s likely that you employ a lot of the job skills mentioned more often than you think. Consider how you manage your day-to-day experiences and how these can be presented as forms of creativity, flexibility, problem-solving and more to potential employers.
Are you a job seeker with a disability looking to land your dream job? Let us help! Reach out to the CareerCircle team for resources and assistance.
Contributions to this blog were made by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/andraealavant/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Andra&eacute;a LaVant&nbsp;</a>of LaVant Consulting, Inc.

Discover the 9 essential job skills for the modern workplace, from creativity to tech savviness, and excel in your career.

9 Essential Job Skills to Help You Excel

When it comes to the job search, there&rsquo;s often one factor that determines whether you do or don&rsquo;t move on to the next step in the hiring process: a good cover letter. Rather than using the same cover letter over and over, tailoring a letter for each company and position you&rsquo;re applying for can make all the difference in persuading an employer to invite you to interview.
Here are&nbsp;5 must-haves for a cover letter&nbsp;that will help you land that interview:
1. Address it to a Person&nbsp;&ndash; Ensure your cover letter stands out from the applicant pool by addressing it to a specific individual in the company. Starting a cover letter with &ldquo;To Whom it May Concern,&rdquo; can often dissuade hiring managers from considering applicants, as it can appear less personal. It can also look as if you haven&rsquo;t done your homework. Often a simple Google, LinkedIn, company website search, or email/phone call to the company can help you determine the right point of contact for addressing your letter.
If, after researching, you&rsquo;re unable to find a name, try using, &ldquo;Dear Hiring Team.&rdquo;
2. Incorporate a Strong Opening Statement&nbsp;&ndash; Much like a news story, your opening statement in a cover letter should draw your readers in and make them want to know more. Don&rsquo;t begin your letter by stating what the company already knows, such as the fact you&rsquo;re applying for a job. Instead, focus on selling yourself and why you&rsquo;re interested in working for the company. Or, talk about what impresses you about the company, or any personal connections you may have to the work.
For example, if you are applying to a company that sells products that you use, mention that. If you&rsquo;re impressed by what you&rsquo;ve seen in the news about them, share that in your letter.&nbsp;
3. Focus on your Relevant Experience&nbsp;&ndash; Your cover letter is the place to fill in gaps and elaborate on information outlined in your resume. It&rsquo;s particularly important to use your cover letter to address how your experience aligns with the duties listed in the job description. This includes incorporating specific words and phrases from the job description.
For example, if a position requires project management experience, share an example of how you have either managed a project or exercised the skills needed to do so in your previous work or educational experiences. If it requires knowledge of a specific software or equipment, explain your familiarity with these or similar systems. In general, don&rsquo;t make this section read like a list; rather, provide a few highlights based on your strengths in specific areas.
4. Display Personality &amp; Passion&nbsp;&ndash; Once again, your cover letter serves as a tool for an employer to get to know you in hopes they will extend an invitation to interview. This means going beyond the facts listed in your resume to display a bit of personality. It can also be a tool to express your passion for the organization&rsquo;s work.
It&rsquo;s important in your letter to base your tone on both the position you&rsquo;re applying for and the company&rsquo;s culture. If applying for a legal position at a high-powered law firm, you should likely err on the side of formality in your cover letter writing. If you&rsquo;re applying for a position at a graphic design firm whose clients are comprised of small businesses and local non-profits, perhaps use a more conversational tone.
Ultimately, research remains critical. Determine the culture and personality of the company and align your tone accordingly.
5. Disclose Your Disability, if it&rsquo;s Relevant&nbsp;&ndash; Today, many employers have hiring goals and recruitment initiatives designed to increase their number of employees with disabilities. As companies continue to recognize the benefits of hiring people with disabilities, they&rsquo;re doing targeted outreach to reach job seekers with disabilities. Thus, if a job posting specifically encourages people with disabilities to apply, feel free to discuss your disability in the cover letter. While not a requirement, in cases like these, disclosing a disability can be an advantage.
When choosing to disclose a disability in a cover letter, ground the letter in your ability to perform the job functions well. Focus on how your disability can be an asset to the employer, rather than how it could potentially prevent you from meeting the job requirements. Save any requests for accommodations or other needs until time to confirm your interview.
Crafting your cover letter with these must-haves can greatly influence your potential to get in front of hiring managers for an interview. For more guidance on how to write an effective cover letter,&nbsp;contact the CareerCircle team.
Contributions to this blog were made by Andra&eacute;a LaVant of Solutions Marketing Group.

Tailor your cover letter for each job to stand out. Address it to a person, show passion, and highlight relevant experience.

5 Must-Haves for an Effective Cover Letter

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144 Articles

How Job Seekers Can Prepare for an Online Career Fair

9 Essential Job Skills to Help You Excel

5 Must-Haves for an Effective Cover Letter