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Use E-mail to Get Your Next Job
Thousands of job seekers—knows that the quickest way to get your name in front of a potential employer is to take the "technological path." In other words, use e-mail. Point. Click. Send.
Speed, Convenience Key
For job seekers in the electronic age, there is no longer a need to be concerned with issues such as paper quality and postage—not when e-mail is rapidly replacing hard copy letters as a major way to search for work.
E-mail is quicker for the job-seeker, which is a big advantage when you're looking for work
Using e-mail shows the employer that you are up-to-date and not afraid of the current technological boom, More and more employers are using e-mail in their own online applications. For the most part, employers agree. Speed and convenience are cited as reasons busy employers and human resource departments turn to electronic mail in their recruitment efforts.
E-mail is a timely way to discover contacts and then correspond with them, Incredible Things for Women on the Internet. "It's also a great way to thank someone for an interview when every second matters."
Use a Professional Signature
There's one more thing you have to look at before you send
"Your e-mail address, no less than your resume, is a message, a communication aimed at a potential employer," And if you think no one's paying attention to that string of characters, you're wrong.
Even the most professional correspondence can be sabotaged by a handle , so make sure your return e-mail address is as professional as the message within. Anything with an obvious reference could hurt you, You're better off with a more businesslike approach. Use some variation on your actual name, or your location.
Business Correspondence Rules Apply
So how do you properly use e-mail when looking for employment? Although e-mail is usually less formal than other avenues, when used in a job search, one should always keep in mind that it is still a business communication,
All business correspondence should be formal in tone. Online you can't be judged by your looks, race, gender, or age, but you will be judged by the quality of your writing, and make sure your job-search letters are professional and concise.
The rules of snail-mail business correspondence apply.
• Proofread your mail before pushing that "send" button to ensure grammar, spelling, and punctuation are correct (don't depend on the spell check to catch your mistakes).
• Use capitalization and lower case letters. All capitals is the e-mail equivalent of screaming (never a good thing to do to a potential employer) while all lower case letters work only if you're e.e. cummings.
Also, remember that "what you see" on your monitor is not necessary "what they get" on the employer's screen. "A disadvantage to e-mail contact is a danger in how attachments may appear," Formatting that is perfect on your PC may translate with margin problems and other spacing issues, which result in an unattractive and disjointed document.
Many employers won't accept attachments because of the threat of computer viruses. If in doubt, ask before you send any attachment. Approximately two of the 50 required a snail mail resume, and half wouldn't take attachments.
Follow up Your E-mail
Follow up is always important in a job search, but even more so when you use e-mail as your initial method of contact. "The possibility also exists that the e-mail will get 'lost' among the hundreds of e-mails a busy employer may receive every day," With more and more people using e-mail, a hard copy may help you stand out. An easy solution? Use e-mail for timeliness, but follow up with a hard copy of your resume, a letter of interest, or a thank you note.
It's easier to know if you should use an electronic thank-you note, since you've already met the employer at the interview. If you're not sure if the interviewer is receptive to e-mail, ask or check the employer's business card. If there's an e-mail address listed, then it's permissible to thank your interviewer electronically. (In fact, it may be preferable, since business people who use e-mail rarely go long without checking it.) For a personal touch, follow up your e-mail with a hard copy letter of thanks.
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