You may have heard of JSeeker.com.au. After launching about ten months ago, they are one of few that are providing job aggregator or vertical search engine services in Australia. Others are (Recruit.net, Myspider.com.au and Jobsites.com.au which uses recruit.net’s engine)
It’s a simple looking site with the techologies developed in-house. It seems that they rely on Google Adsense ads for a revnue source. A quick search shows about 209183 jobs indexed that last month delivered about 800,000 referrals to sites listed on their search engine. (good news for MyCareer and CareerOne)
Not bad for a new player in the market.
I did some SEO research on Google to find out how they are getting these eyeballs when I have never heard of them before. By entering site:jseeker.com.au into the search box on Google Australia you can see how many listings they have. This might help to answer the question:
348,000 from jseeker.com.au
41,600 from myspider.com.au
174,000 from australia.recruit.net
256,000 from seek.com.au.
103,000 from careerone.com.au
(796,000 from mycareer.com.au, great SEO work)
So what’s next for Jseeker? Cuong Hoang from JSeeker provided some insights. They are developing some technologies to enable a few revenue models including pay-per-click sponsored jobs as well as contextual ads (similar to Adsense). They will try to bring more jobs directly from employers via their websites and also have plans for a recommendation engine capable of suggesting jobs to users based on their recently-viewed activity.
JSeeker are my pick for a small site that will make it big in the next few years.
The words in the title, they’re not mine. They’re a quote from an email I received from a distressed ex-employee of a graduate recruitment agency. And I don’t want to go into the particulars of her experience, or others like her. I want to broach this issue in a more general way. (here’s a link to the discussion, in case you’re interested)
As we’re all aware, the recruitment industry is unregulated and this has resulted in some pretty dodgy business practices, especially in regard to reverse-marketing. The results of this affect folks in the industry, but also cause misery on a larger scale.
How so? While there are instances of reverse marketing being ethical, the practice often requires an all-out lie. That is, recruiters place an ad. for a job that does not exist, in order to attract a cohort of people who might be then on-sold, or reverse-marketed. If we consider the lowest common denominator of good and decent human behavior, lying to folks does not rate as a cool thing to do, and not an accepted way of behaving. It does not improve the credibility of recruiters, nor the validity of the work we do.
Further, the cohort that is frequently preyed upon is the graduate population. Good one. With each time this occurs, there is a group of people, possibly embarking on their first experience of searching for professional employment, left with a very sour taste in their mouths.
It also calls to question the validity of job boards, which the public doesn’t easy separate from the recruiters themselves.
Then there is this: the work we do, looking for it, choosing a career, arranging our lives so that we are available to do it, these things take up a large portion of our lives. Our work is important. So why would anyone in their right mind choose to stuff people around by placing fake ads., by building hopes where none deserve to exist? Consider the last time you knew someone on the job hunt. How excited were they to get an interview? I’m ticking the prospect of an opportunity meant heaps to them….and probably to you too, if you cared for them any.
People who wanted work would probably be just as likely to turn up for a cattle-call interview if they knew the truth, that at the end of the day they would be used as bait for recruiters looking to make placements.
And just while you’re thinking on it, recently a recruiter that built a substantial part of their business on reverse marketing sold out for a pretty hefty sum - forty-odd mil, in fact. Good on ‘em, some might say…I’m suggesting that the purchasers of this business weren’t the only ones paying a price.
Check out this video. It serves as a reminder of how we should all be approaching marketing in our businesses.
Adam Davis is an internet marketer who has turned his experience of setting up a business into a riveting narrative - reminiscent of reality TV. This serves numerous functions. Firstly, it promotes his business. Secondly, it promotes him (who’d have been talking about him otherwise). Finally, it acts as a template for the use of new media in marketing.
I was set this challenge with the chance to win $250 USD. All I have to do is write an essay with some ideas about how to save print classifieds…knew there’d be a catch. Doh.
ReinventingClassifieds.com is a new website and initiative whose aim is to resurrect through reinvention the newspaper classifieds business.
Contrary to the belief of many of my colleagues, I reckon newspaper classifieds can be saved. At the moment, though, they’re treading water and the waves are washing over them, causing them to gulp and gasp for air. A few splutters perhaps. They’re not going to be able to recover from their fix alone. They need the new technologies to lean over the edge of their secure aquatic crafts and pluck them out.
If you’re not into metaphors and can’t work out what the heck I’m on about, here’s the point put simply. Newspaper classifieds will only survive if they work in conjunction with new technologies.
For example:
- Offer free Wi-fi internet access for newspaper subscribers while in CBD locations.
- Create a killer application for the new iPhone that ties in the ads from print and online, including video classifieds.
Jeez, US$250…that’d buy a nice meal in a posh restaurant for me and the missus.
I am noticing that the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) providers are becoming more vocal in the public arena lately and revealing some useful insights into job application rates and job number trends.
Here a passionate Mike Giuffrida from NGA.net talks about the current trends in this candidate tight market. He comes across well on my favorite day-time TV channel…
Jobadder recently made the claim in their blog that JobsJobsJobs are currently #2 in terms of job applications per advertisement. (see article here) It is a claim that has not been supported by data. To begin this blog, I would like to challenge Jobadder to present the data supporting their claims. Without valid data, the claims are nothing more than the opinion of Jobadder.
Opinions are acceptable and necessary in their proper place, but should not be represented as fact sans supporting evidence.
Okay. That’s off my chest. Let’s move on to the next point.
You may have noticed that the tone of this blog is a tad more serious than usual. That’s because I get cranky when folks send me marketing emails that are nothing more than hype. It interferes with my sense of intelligence. Take for instance the newsletter I received yesterday from JobsJobsJobs - the one that’s piggybacking the unsubstantiated claims by Jobadder that we discussed at the outset.
First up, JobsJobsJobs make the claim that recruiters want competition within the job boards. They then make an appeal that recruiters should “drop the other contenders and let them run their print businesses” so that maybe, just maybe you will have the competition that you have asked for.” I hate tautologies. If recruiters drop the other contenders, JobsJobsJobs will have a monopoly, and there WILL BE NO COMPETITION.
JobsJobsJobs goes on to ask us to forget about traffic volumes, and assess the success of a job board according to applications per ad. They acknowledge this formula does not account for the quality of applications, but write the problem off by contending that quality is difficult to quantify because of the varying demands of different companies. To dismiss this vital flaw in the traffic vs job application per job debate does not satisfy me, nor should it satisfy other folks who are interested in participating in the debate.
The newsletter from JobJobsJobs goes on use of traffic volumes to demonstrate their growth. Please - don’t patronise your clients by dismissing the use of traffic volumes on one hand and use it to demonstrate your strength in the next breath…
The use of spurious claims by Jobadder, together with a bit of chucked around logic, make the recent newsletter by JobsJobsJobs nothing more than meaningless propaganda.
It is the application rate that matters!
Our focus at jobsjobsjobs is to increase the value that our advertisers get for their investment – we’re here to help you make money – and that means increasing the volume of ad response that you get.
Earlier this month Jobadder, a leading multi job posting solution provider, ranked jobsjobsjobs.com.au as the #2 in terms of job applications per advertisement – well ahead of two very well established competitors. (see article)
The head of one of these competitors recently stated that half of their traffic comes from overseas – which re-enforces the point that volume of traffic to a site can create false perceptions of value.
The critical measure is volume of ad response per advertisement.
We recognise that there are other factors that are important to advertisers such as quality of applications but this is difficult to assess given that what suits one company may not suit another.
The Recruitment industry has wanted competition for many years. The recruitment industry recognises that two well known major players have more interest in protecting their print revenues (why wouldn’t they?) and have not provided the competition that you want.
At jobsjobsjobs we believe we have shown that we can deliver more than them – though it is still early days. We have enjoyed strong support from hundreds of recruiters – but now is the time for all recruiters to put their support behind jobsjobsjobs, drop the other contenders and let them run their print businesses and maybe, just maybe you will have the competition that you have asked for.
From Strength to Strength…
It has been a massive three months for traffic for jobsjobsjobs.com.au. Since the last quarter of 2007 we have grown over 69%.
Today I received a letter from Rec Radar, inviting me to make an appointment with their sales team. Rec Radar is an online trading system for recruiters, used when they are having difficulty finding candidates for jobs. A nice idea, yes.
But here’s the rub. Rec Radar isn’t the only company to do this, but I’m going to scapegoat them. Firstly, the “sales letter” is addressed directly to the apply@onlinerecruitment email address, but it is addressed “To The Management Team”. How hard is it to find my name and use it in the address?
And I don’t want to be a pedant. I’m pretty sure that a quick perusal of my website and blog will reveal several typos. However, this letter looks as though it is written by someone for whom English is not their first language. In truth, my primary-school-aged kids have a better grip on the correct use of the capital letter than the folks who composed the letter I received.
It’s old advice but sound. If you are going to represent yourself to a potential client, use their name and do your best to use the language properly. Der.
From: peter@recradar.com
Subject: Rec Radar
Date: 10 June 2008 7:23:35 AM
To: apply@onlinerecruitment.com.au
To the Management Team,
I would like to introduce Rec Radar® to you.
Rec Radar® is a secure web based networking tool for ethical and professional recruitment agencies to work together for mutual advantage.
Rec Radar is an automated online trading system. It’s an advanced two directional management tool, Similar in style to E-bay, But only for recruiters in the recruitment industry.
The service enables agencies to earn commission from trading jobs and candidates with other agencies that they would have struggled to fill or place themselves.
In your account, you can list the jobs for which you want to find candidates you can also upload details of candidates for which you want to find jobs.
You protect your agency identity and business by working in a secure, confidential environment. You only release your candidate details to another agency when you want to and you never release your client.
With Rec Radar® you will always have plan B
For a limited time during the launch in Sydney the first 6 months membership for all your consultants is free.
We will be in Sydney from the 16th-19th June and soon after we will be in Melbourne and would like to meet and show you through Rec Radar®. So please check out www.RecRadar.com
Feel free to contact us with a time that is suitable.
LinkMe is offering $500 to folks who set up an interview with an employer who has a role in offing. (See details here). This is one of those things that, on the outset, appears reasonable.
“Great! ” reads the well-connected individual who is always open to new and exciting business ventures (and perhaps sells a little Amway on the side), “here’s a unique opportunity to make a quick buck.”
Here’s where I challenge you to look a little deeper; to engage your understanding of human behaviour, Australian culture - all that. Well-connected individual has a chat with Human Resources Manager (or whoever is in charge of finding employees within their company). Part way through the chat comes what is known in the sales industry as “The Permission”. It goes something like this:
“May I pass your details onto LinkMe so that they can contact you regarding this position. They may be able to connect you with passive candidates who you would otherwise not be able to find.”
Human resources Manager suspected that the well-connected individual smelled slightly of Amway - but now they are certain that what was perhaps a lingering aroma is a fully-qualified stench. The meeting is called to an abrupt halt with promises that the Human Resources Manager will “get back to” the well-connected individual.
