Search Engine Marketing and Your Online Résumé

By Matthew C. Keegan

 

Perhaps one area that is frequently overlooked by the corporate flight attendant when it comes time to promoting their own skills is the ongoing search engine marketing of their name. This sometimes involves either securing a web site and/or a domain name and uploading personal information to the internet in hopes that someone, somewhere will find it, read it, and give them a call for work. This effort can be a time consuming as well as an expensive option for most people as not everyone is skilled enough to do the work properly themselves nor are they in the position to shell out hundreds of dollars per year on web marketing. Clearly, there has to be a better way for you to "get the word out" without going crazy...or broke! Please read on and I will share with you some suggestions on just how to get your information published on-line for a reasonable amount of money.

The First Online Résumés

When I initially featured résumés on the Corporate Flight Attendant Community web site back in April 2003, I had no idea just how important an option that this would turn out to be for so many people. At that time, I offered a special two year/free listing resulting in more than 100 people taking advantage of the offer.

 

The feedback I got from participants was quite good. The web site quickly became known as the place on the internet to have a free résumé listed and it was, therefore, a popular destination for recruiters and human resources personnel to visit in their quest to locate qualified workers. Many people shared with me their personal experience detailing how helpful the offer was to them; though I started charging for the service beginning in May 2005, more than 20 people signed up for the paid plan.

Your Own Web Site: It Gets Expensive

So, what should you look for when listing your résumé online? Well, you could opt for a full blown web site, but that can get expensive. Adding together monthly hosting service charges with the domain name expense and web design fees you could find yourself paying $300, $400, or $500 or more for this type of service. Yes, you'll get a nice looking site, but it may not even be that easily found without purchasing additional advertising on your part.

 

Another option is to simply list your résumé with one or more sites offering free listings. You may be thinking, "what have I got to lose"? Well, as experience has taught me you could lose plenty.


Freebie Plans: Crowding Out the Committed Crewmembers

One of the pitfalls of my original freebie plan was that every Tom, Dick, and Jane listed their résumé with me. Some prospects were highly qualified and reliable, but others clearly were not. Essentially, I made it more difficult for the "cream of the crop" to be found as they got mixed in with the wannabes who had no experience whatsoever. In my view, sites that allow anyone/everyone to post their résumé are actually making it more difficult for the professional corporate flight attendant to stand out. With that in mind, I learned my lesson and pulled the free listing option and began requiring that everyone who wanted to have their résumé featured on-line had to have some sort of training and/or business aviation experience in order to be featured.

Effective Search Engine Marketing

Exactly what is search engine marketing? Well, if you have your résumé posted on a quality site and the site manager took the time and care to assign a separate web address for your résumé, there is a chance that your information will appear in major search engine results on its own.

 

You may ask: why is this important? Isn't it enough that my résumé is posted on a site? My answer is this: It can be, IF recruiters know to go to that particular site to located candidates in the first place. Chances are most do not. So, it is essential that your résumé appear on its "own accord" through random or targeted search engine queries [such as with Google, Yahoo!, and MSN]. For example, if you were to enter: "Florida Corporate Flight Attendant" or "Gulfstream flight attendant" would your résumé even show up?  With most web sites, it would not.

A Sensible Plan

A better option for you -- I will cut to the chase and tell you that by listing your résumé with the Corporate Flight Attendant Community web site you can benefit through the following:

  • Your résumé is custom designed by me. A special look, one that is on par with the professional pages designed by web designers. I already design sites for myself and others, therefore I fully understand what it takes to make your résumé stand out.

  • You can include a picture and a cover letter, if desired.

  • Only qualified and trained cabin crewmembers may list their résumé on the site. This exclusivity means that only the "cream of the crop" will have their credentials listed.

  • You can request one free update during the course of the year long subscription period.

  • Your résumé will be promoted as I promote the site. From time to time I run marketing campaigns via Google and/or Yahoo to bring in traffic. I also write press releases to tout newsworthy information about our on-line community.

The best part of this offer is the price: you pay just $89 for a one year subscription.  Sure, you could get a "free" listing elsewhere and get lost in the shuffle. Yes, you could pay big bucks for an entire web site and overpay for your search engine marketing. Or, you could go with the plan that features corporate flight attendants only on a site that has faithfully and reputably been serving corporate flight attendants since 2002.

 

Interested? Then, please read the instructions on this page and I will get back to you.

Author Information:

 

Matt Keegan does business as The Article Writer writing about a variety of social, human interest, as well as business related topics. Please visit Corporate F/A Dispatch for additional information about business aviation.