Market Yourself in a Tri-Fold ~The Latest Attention Getter

It's the one of the latest items that is being used to set yourself apart from your competition. The use of a tri-fold as a personal marketing piece is spreading like wildfire in the career search market.

Getting in front of the right person(s) at that company you'd love to work for, can be a seemingly impossible task. In as much as you attempt to network, whether it be face to face or through LinkedIn, to reach the key personnel at the firm, you still have a difficult time gaining the attention of your intended audience.

There is still no guarantee that you will reach beyond the HR department, but certainly an attention getter if you do. Your tri-fold puts a face to the targeted position. The tri-fold can include your strengths and skills, a narrative of your work history, your recent career high points and list your name and contact information in several places. I also included three of my LinkedIn recommendations, copied word for word, in quotations and with the individual and their title of the individual that provided the recommendation.

This tri-fold slide presentation provides a good idea of what I'm talking about. You can conduct a Google search for tri-fold templates that will provide you with a head start.

Don't forget to put your business card in the first flap of the tri-fold before mailing. When the flap is opened, your business card will fall out on the desk. You now have two pieces of contact information that must be handled. You increase your chance of being noticed and having your name hang around for awhile.

Research the companies that you want to work for, looking up key names of at least Vice Presidents of your targeted department or department heads and managers (hiring managers if they can be determined). Mail the tri-fold to these people at the company and the published company address. Also, mark on the front of the envelope; "personal" and/or "confidential". This should increase the chance of the intended individual to receive the tri-fold.

Give it a week or so, but don't wait too long. Call the individual(s) that you sent the tri-fold to. Ask if they've received the tri-fold. This will open the dialog for you both. You might not want to come out and ask for a job, but perhaps show an interest in the company, ask about their needs, or problem areas that they are willing to share with you. Ask for their opinion, people love to provide free advice. Ask if you could meet with them, preferably off site, perhaps over coffee early one morning before they go to work.

I wish you well in your search. Please come back and let us know how this worked for you and perhaps what you've done differently with the tri-fold.