All Hail the Irish Job Seeker

Job Seeker

In these tough economic times, job seekers would be well-advised to think outside the Craigslist/Monster.com box and be creative. I recently learned of a young unemployed man in Ireland who went an unusual route- he placed a huge billboard alongside one of Dublin’s busiest roads, stating “Save Me From Emigration”, with his email address at the bottom. Granted, this stunt couldn’t have been cheap, but as I like to remind people, investments are smart.  The man in question, Féilim Mac An Iomaire, returned from living in Australia in August, and has applied for over 100 jobs, with no luck. His billboard has landed him radio interviews and, one would hope, soon a job.  Did I mention that Féilim works in marketing?

I will be curious to hear if this creative approach to the job search results in a good job for this young man. I am reminded of the New York ad executive Alec Brownstein who figured that other top ad executives would have a penchant for googling themselves. Of the five individuals whom he targeted in a Google AdWords campaign, he got four job interviews, and two job offers. And he only paid $6 for the advertising. Remember the old adage from elementary school, “Show Don’t Tell”? When it comes to a creative profession like marketing, you can talk about your creativity in your cover letters, or you can show it in unique ways.