Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Is it ok to send resumes to companies that don’t have any job listings offered? Is this still a thing people do? I am trying to break into a pretty niche industry with no experience. I am thinking of just saving up money and firing out resumes all across my state in small towns to see if I can get any offers. I’m fine with living somewhere crappy for a few years to gain experience and then make my way to where I really want to be (back near home)
Depends on the size of the company and how they accept resumes/applications. Sometimes you have to go through their website or other online system, anything else will be rejected.
In the past when I was job hunting, like if I had moved to a new city, I always sought out smaller, private businesses. Went through the phone book or online listings of all the companies that interested me and mailed a resume with cover letter. Due to the nature of the field I sometimes got creative with the envelope and design of the resume (for creative jobs). I ended up getting several jobs from 'mass mailings' like that. One place happened to get my letter the day one of their employees gave notice. I got called for an interview the next day and was offered the job so I could train with the outgoing employee before he left. Some places may file your resume for the future, I've seen that happen too...one place contacted me maybe a year later and asked if I was still interested.
If the company has an employment section that lists open jobs and the position you want is not posted, expect your resume to be tossed out. I can see a smaller employer in a niche market looking at your resume and cover letter. Other than the cost of postage, you don't have anything to lose; just expect a lack of response from employers that use an online system. Personally, I would try to find a decision maker at the company as opposed to a blind resume to HR. I can only speak for myself, but if I received a resume I would make contact with you and tell you that all jobs get posted on the employer's website, but I would let you know if we planned on doing any hiring in the future and try to offer a little advice on getting some work.
Is it ok to send resumes to companies that don’t have any job listings offered? Is this still a thing people do? I am trying to break into a pretty niche industry with no experience. I am thinking of just saving up money and firing out resumes all across my state in small towns to see if I can get any offers. I’m fine with living somewhere crappy for a few years to gain experience and then make my way to where I really want to be (back near home)
Companies now use email. But more to the point, sending unsolicited resumes even by email is wasted effort and won't get you the results you want.
What you should spend your effort on, is making contact with people who work in the industry you are interested in.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,551 posts, read 81,085,957 times
Reputation: 57739
Having been a manager here for 14 years, I have never seen a paper resume. All applications are through our website and resumes/cover letters are uploaded as PDFs. Unless applying for a specific announced opening any resume, paper or online would be discarded. Since there is no cost to sending resumes by email, you have nothing to lose, however.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
