This guest post was written by David Spinks, co-founder of u30pro, a social media entrepreneur living in NYC, and someone I’m convinced has more energy than Mr. Energizer Bunny himself.

So you’re looking for a job.  You’ve asked your friends, you’ve searched craigslist, and you’ve scoured the job boards for opportunities that look like a good fit for you.

What do you do next?

Well… I guess you could give a quick look over your resume one more time, make sure everything is pristine, and start pumping it out to each of your chosen companies.

Or you could do something that will actually separate yourself from your job-seeking competitors.  Here are some ideas you can steal:

1.   Bring the opportunities to you.

Content marketing is a method used by businesses to bring leads to them.  They create content, usually helpful, or educational, and work to convert the consumers of that content into leads.

The same concept applies for job seekers.  Create great content that properly represents your ideas and expertise, and the job opportunities will come to you.

Blog, tweet, record… create as best you can.  If it doesn’t bring the opportunities to you, it will make it easier to secure the opportunities you find.

2.   Create a video.

Nothing shows your personality and passion like a good video.  Keep it quick and to the point.

Create a different video for the specific company that you’re reaching out to.  Personalization is important.

Explain why you’d love to work for that specific company.  Explain what you can bring to the table.  Act natural and comfortable.  The video will give the company a glimpse at who you are.

3.   Find the right people and connect with them.

You’ll get your foot in the door real quick with someone on the inside pulling for you.  Look the company up on Linkedin and find out who works there.

Find anyone who tweets or blogs.  Both are great avenues to make a first connection.  Comment on their blogs and respond to their tweets.  Build that connection.

When the time is right, and you have good reason, drop them an email.  Ask them for advice.  Ask them about the company culture and for tips about how to apply.

4.   Do the work for them.

Go through the requirements in the job description and see if there’s anything you could take a shot at.  If you can send them examples of the work you can do for them, and you do a good job, you should consider yourself in.

5.   Attend their events.

Most big companies will have an event for the holidays, or other occasions.  Many small companies will too. These events are a great opportunity to meet some of the employees there and make the connections you’ll need.

6. Write a blog post about wanting to work for the company.

It’s ballsy, and of course, it might be embarrassing if you don’t end up getting the job but it shows commitment.  It shows that it’s something you truly care about.  It’s out there for anyone to see which can be powerful.

If you know you really want to work somewhere, put it out there for anyone to see.

7.   Get creative in other ways.

I’ve heard stories of people standing outside an office and introducing themselves to everyone who walked in and out.

There are people who have created very unique videos, websites and more to draw attention to their job search.

Think about unique ways that you can make yourself stand out… and go for it.

{view other career related genpink posts}