Amybeth Hale - Research Goddess

I’ve seen a lot of folks in our community who use Eventbrite to host trainings and organize networking events. But did you realize that you can use Eventbrite to help in your research efforts as well? Read on to find out how…

Eventbrite is a provider of online event management and ticketing services. If your event is free, there is no charge and if you sell tickets, they collect a small fee per ticket.  When people register for an event, it generates an attendee list for you. This list can often be viewed via a specific Eventbrite website. So, for example, let’s say we created an Eventbrite registration site for ‘Recruiting Conference’; our attendee list might show up on recruitingconference.eventbrite.com.

Why do you need to know this? For a very simple search technique! Using an easy site: search for Eventbrite, you can locate people from specific companies or with specific titles that you might be looking for. Here is an example:

site:eventbrite.com “public relations” “attendee lists”

This search yields me countless numbers of events, both past and future, with attendees from the public relations field. At the very least, I am provided with a name and a company, and as a good researcher, I can take that name and find a profile or contact information. Often, a city/state, website, blog, and sometimes an email address are provided. Any researcher worth his/her salt can take only a name and find the contact information for that person. Here’s a sample from the page of one of the events in my results:

Here’s another example: let’s say you want to find someone from a specific company – we’ll use Creative Director from Avenue A | Razorfish as the example:

site:eventbrite.com razorfish “creative director” “attendee list” – result page

Not only did we find a creative director from Avenue A | Razorfish, but we also know her location. In addition, there are some other folks on the list that would be worth taking a look at as well: an Associate Creative Director from Digitas, an Interactive Marketing Manager from Comcast-Spectacor, a Media Director from Backe Communications, as well as the VP, Media for Avenue A | Razorfish.

Another way to source using Eventbrite, especially if you are sourcing locally, is to search for a specific city name to find good networking events. This is a great way to learn what events are in your city, and also to find people who will be there who could be potential candidates or clients:

site:eventbrite.com Philadelphia “attendee list” - result page

This event hasn’t happened yet, and you can also subscribe to the attendee list so you’ll be notified when new people register for the event – cool!

 Learn about the aid trip I am going on this November to Mamelodi, South Africa. I need to raise $3000 by the end of October - any help you can provide is greatly appreciated!

Alright, I’m all for making new (meaningful) connections on LinkedIn, but this new site that a friend showed me tonight has taken things, in my opinion, to a sickening new level. The site, called InvitesWelcome.com, describes itself as the “casual and informal version of TopLinked.com [they are both registered with the same contact information]…. another way to show you are open to new connection opportunities.”  So basically, you can either do this for free and be on one big giant list, or you can pay $5/month or $20/year to be on a top list, and you’ll get fresh, new email addresses sent to you to connect with on LinkedIn. There apparently is also a ‘Top Supporters’ list that you can buy your way onto through toplinked.com by purchasing points or something….honestly, I wouldn’t consider a list to be a ‘top’ anything list if you had to buy your way onto it. It’s like those “Who’s Who Among Students” things we used to get in the mail (where you buy your own plaque, trophy, and bound book that honors you), or the mail-order beauty pageant applications that don’t even require a photo for you to be entered in some obscure beauty pageant.

Another thing that comes to mind is those chain letters that used to circulate through the postal system a few decades ago. You know, the ones that say, “Send $1 to the first person on this list, then write a new list adding your name and address to the bottom and remove the first person on the list, then send it to 10 people”, and supposedly you’d get thousands of dollars in the mail within 6 weeks. This seems kind of like that, except instead of sending dollars, you’re sending around your email address.

Though I would imagine several folks from the recruiting community are on the list, I still stand by my original opinion that buying people’s email addresses for this purpose is lame. Some might argue that it’s like buying a database access – well, not really. When you purchase a niche database, you’re pretty well assured that the information contained therein is industry specific. This is just haphazard connecting with people who may or may not be in your industry, and who may or may not be connected with someone who is in your industry. It’s total pot-luck!

Hey, if you’re into this method of making new connections, more power to you. I guess this is cool if you’re a ‘power networker’, LION, or a ‘top-linked’ person. Besides, it IS only a few bucks. And from a business standpoint as well this is profitable, because whoever came up with this is making some pretty easy money! But for me, it seems pretty lame. Lists that call themselves “top lists” should not be something you purchase points to be at the top of. You be the judge and come to your own conclusions about this one…

There is an endless supply of information available to us these days. This information comes at us in all forms – emails, blogs, RSS feeds, tweets, at times I know we all feel bombarded. Come join the latest social network! Check out my new website! Please subscribe to my blog! How can you possible keep up with the latest trends within your industry to maintain a competitive sourcing edge without spending the rest of your life trying to play catch-up with your RSS reader?

I propose looking at the flow of information and knowledge outlets in the same manner that you approach a trip to the grocery store. When some people go to the grocery store, they create a list of items they need ahead of time. This makes the trip quicker – in and out. Of course, there are always a couple of rogue items that get put into the shopping cart that were not on the list (usually your kid sneaks a candy bar or a bag of chips in when you’re not looking). Then, there are those who have an idea in their head of what they need when they hit the store. Usually, more rogue items end up in those people’s shopping carts, right? 

Regardless, you go to a grocery store, filled with thousands upon thousands of perishable and non-perishable items, and you come out with only a small sampling of what was available to you. Why? Because that’s all you need – at the moment. However, those other items that you did not purchase will be available to you the next time you need to go shopping, just in case you need one or two of them.

How is this like our seemingly endless flow of information? Well, the Internet is like that grocery store. It houses all the different portals and networks that we need on a daily basis to have a competitive edge in sourcing. Each of these knowledge outlets is like an item sold by the grocery store. They serve a specific purpose for a specific audience. And the important thing for us to remember is that we don’t have to buy every item in the grocery store (register with every network, read every blog, subscribe to every RSS feed). All we need to do is go in with our list, take what we need, and leave the rest on the shelf, knowing that if we need it next time we go to the store, it will be available to us.

What are some good ways of keeping these things organized? The example I’ll use is RSS feeds. I have about 16 different folders in my reader – one for recruiting blogs, one for PR blogs, one for analyst relations blogs, another for social media, etc. Each one is a specific category that I can choose to read at my leisure. Or, I can collect the blog posts for future reading if it’s not an area of top priority to me. For example, I still have a folder for RFID, which is an industry in which I researched over 2 years ago. Who knows if I’ll ever need that knowledge again? But just in case, I’ve got that folder there waiting for me.

So, remember that you don’t have to buy everything in the store; just get what you need at the moment and know that the other items will be there if you need them. Happy Sourcing!

Bill Bradley, an editorial assistant at Vanity Fair, asks for ideas on how he can “be more lame and attract more fans” to Vanity Fair’s Facebook page. Because if he doesn’t, his boss says he’s canned. Seriously - check out the article on Ragan. Interesting publicity stunt here, as Bill is using all kinds of on- and off-line methods, including flyers and sandwich boards, to get people to be his friend on Facebook. Whether or not it’s true that he’ll actually lose his job if he doesn’t make his goal of 10,000 friends by August 5th, it’s still and interesting, and slightly cheesy, way to gain more fans for the Facebook page. In Bill’s words, “the surest way to accumulate 10,000 fans is to transform oneself into a class-A stalker…” I’m curious how many researchers and sourcers have been accused in some fashion of being stalkers. hehehe…

So, is this what it’s come to? We’re being forced make friends to preserve our employment? I wonder what’s next, paying people to interview with us? Oh wait, that’s already been done

I loved this article! I personally believe that the degree to which you are affected by a “recession” is directly related to how much you dwell upon it, but I digress….article written by Darryl Salerno, It’s Not the Economy, Stupid, outlines some ways to make sure business continues as usual even when faced with an economic slide. Main points from the article:

• APPROPRIATE CUTBACKS: With 3/4 of all expenses tied up in compensation and rent, scrimping on incidentals like travel, dues & subscriptions, new business, etc. won’t make much of a dent for cutbacks.
• RECRUIT/RETAIN: The only thing agencies have to sell is the time of their staff; hire/fire decisions should be made on the basis of performance, not profits. AND - if an excellent new hire becomes available, you should jump at the chance to bring him or her on board.
• BEWARE OF FREE STUFF: Don’t keep your staff “busy” by providing extra services to your existing clients for free; it’s hard to go back when your clients get used to these freebies.
• RAMP UP NEW BIZ: Never slow down on new business development!

Read the whole article here- the thought processes apply to many business areas well beyond PR, and the author knows a thing or two about business financials and profitability (he’s been CAO/CFO/CEO of some pretty well-known companies!)

For those of us who work in the world of recruiting, we have been blessed with numerous new resources for name gathering and communication – the various social networking sites to which we belong. We sing their praises because of the ease with which we can now find people to fill our open positions. All we need to do is search our networks tofind these people, and then leave them a message on the site.

There is, however, a downside to this newfound ease in communication. The InMails, the friend invites, the notes we can leave for people, is it all too easy? What do our prospects think of the influx of recruiter outreach?

I’ve heard from a couple of senior level executives that social network outreach is a daily occurrence for them, numbering up to 5+ notes every day that they receive from recruiters. Others I’ve spoken with say they are contacted on a regular weekly basis, and still others several times each month. What do prospects think of this? Of course there are some who enjoy it; it makes them feel important, special, wanted, valued, however you want to describe it. A lot of folks however describe their feelings toward social network recruiter outreach with indifference, saying that they usually delete the notes before reading them (keep in mind that this is unofficial information – gathered only through conversations I’ve had with people and not in any formal format).

There are those as well who, being networkers themselves, take the time to read a few of the notes received from recruiters and either respond or pass them along to their networks. These are good people to know; however, don’t abuse your relationship with these folks by sending a lot of irrelevant openings to them to pass along. You don’t want to wear out your welcome, after all!

(As an aside to this, how many folks tell you they will pass an opening on to their network, but never do? It’s kind of like the promised prayer to actual prayer ratio isn’t it?)

So, with the increase of ease in reaching out, are we in fact alienating the very audience we desire to reach? Hey, I’m certainly not excluding myself here! As a researcher, my networks have become invaluable tools for me, especially when it comes to contact verification.  But I personally think that, if you rely heavily on this method of contact, it is important to personalize your outreach to people. Make sure they know that you took the time to find out a little about them.

I’d like to encourage discussion of this topic via comment. Please share your thoughts on the matter by leaving a comment on this post. Do you think social networks have jaded our audiences? Do you think social networks have encouraged greater interaction between recruiter and prospect? As well, how do you think you can make yourself stand out in the crowd from all the other boilerplate notes that your prospects are receiving?

Many of you have visited the page on my blog called GO Mamelodi. If you haven’t, please check it out - I’ve put up a lot of information on this aid trip I’m going on in November to help build homes, plant vegetable gardens, set up a technology lab, and just simply bring love and compassion to a hurting community.

Tonight we had the first of several information meetings on what our trip will entail. We also received information on where donations may be received to help fund our trips. Each of the participants must raise $3000 to cover our trip expenses. I’ve already put in some money myself to help fund my own trip, and I will be putting on some events over the course of the summer to help raise some money.

I’ve been on aid trips in the past, and one thing I’ve discovered is that lots of people, though they cannot physically participate, find a great deal of joy in assisting those who have chosen to. I truly believe in this, because I too sponsor others who are off doing good things all over the world. I think it’s great to allow as many people as possible to be part of a greater cause like this, because it feels good to know that you’re contributing in some manner.

I’ve already received commitments for donations of supplies as well. Thanks especially to Frank Keppler of Brew City Brand for offering to donate some clothing from his business - besides money, things like computers, telephones, other office equipment, clothing, books, and medical supplies can all be used and are welcomed donations!

When I was at the Fordyce Forum last week in Las Vegas, I had the pleasure of meeting some ladies from South Africa. I told them that I was going to be visiting their country in November to do some aid work, and Carilyn Oxley from Fusion Consulting very graciously offered to donate some old computers to our efforts. The power of networking can lead to so many good things, and I am very appreciative of their generosity!

That being said, I am excited to leverage my skills as a professional networker to gain interest and support for this project from you my fellow professional networkers. Let’s see how much good we can do by using our relationship-building skills to bring some much needed aid to those who are less fortunate!

I am asking for your financial support as well as any donations of technology and/or supplies you’d like to give. If you would like to give individually, or you’d like to make a corporate donation, I am happy to accept what ever you can assist with.

To make a financial donation, simply click on this link - GO Mamelodi donation -  and type ‘Hale’ in to the donate field. Or, you can type in my participant ID number, which is 1-39874. Then just follow the instructions to make a donation. Or, if you’d prefer to write a check, please email me and I’ll provide you with the address to send a check to.

If you’d like to donate a computer, clothes, supplies, etc. please email me and I will put you in touch with the folks who are managing the logistics of our trip.

Let’s put our extensive networks to work for a good cause! Please feel free to pass this information along to anyone you’d like.

Small things, done with great love, can change the world.

Saw Maureen’s post about the Democratic folks who have LinkedIn profiles, and I had to add in that the Republican Presidential nominee also has a LinkedIn profile, a cool website, a blog, a Ning site, and an official John McCain for President LinkedIn group! Oh, and he IS open to accepting connection requests, unlike the Democratic presidential hopefuls

Go McCain!

Cool resource for those folks who’ve been affected by layoffs in the print news area:
Praying for Papers

Lots of print publications are feeling the pain that online media has been inflicting, and this is a nice thing that the Koehlers are doing. Not only is it a good resource for those of us in recruiting to see what news sources are having layoffs, but it’s a place for encouragement for those affected by the downsizing and struggling to stay afloat.

Have you been affected by news source downsizing, like last month’s wave of layoffs at the NY Times, the Seattle Times, Ziff Davis (eWeek, PC Mag, Baseline, CIO Insight, etc.), and now this month at Reuters? Waggener Edstrom is hiring for positions that you might be interested in! Check them out:

Editor in Chief - Seattle
Web Publisher/Production Coordinator - Portland
Senior Web Publisher/Production Coordinator - Seattle
Digital Media Producer - Seattle

Last article from my experience at the Web 2.0 Expo! Check it out here on ERE - Inside Recruiting.

Make sure you look at the last video There were only a small handful of people who caught it live!