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Carl V

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I was wondering if anyone here has made any 'speculative' job applications, in other words, asked an employer/company if there were any vacancies even though none were advertised, and had any success.

I was laid off myself recently, and as well as applying for jobs that are advertised, I thought perhaps it may be worth writing to firms asking if they were recruiting on the off chance. I don't suppose any harm can come of it.

Thanks,

Carl.
 
Carl,

I'm just about to be made redundant as well (that lovely high street bank just outside Knutsford). I'm going to try Manchester Airport as although there are very few vacancies, a good email/letter can open doors before they are offered.

Thanks,

Adam.
 
When I was coming to the end of my university days I went to the careers library and picked up a few booklets which were full of big company's names and addresses so I wrote a farily standard begging letter asking for a job. I sent out about 100 letters and received 8 replies and 3 offers of an interview. I went to all 3 interviews, was offered a job from each of them, accepted the higest paid job and I'm still with the same company now 14 years later.

Good luck finding a job. You've got nothing to lose by sending off speculative letters to see if they have any vacancies. All I'd say is that you need to make your letter really stand out. Make sure it says exactly what it is you are looking for, what experience you have and it is written in good English with no errors in it.
 
Thank you Adam and Rob for your replies. I was thinking that the worst they could say is "no", or perhaps not bother with any reply.

I've had some replies for jobs that have been advertised, and unless it was asking you to attend an interview (which isn't often), they usually say they'll keep you on file for next time. Whether they do or not I couldn't really say.

Adam, yes I think I know the bank you mean, as I'm in Knutsford fairly regularly. The airport is certainly worth a try.

Many thanks to you both again.

Carl.
 
I tried the speculative approach and it worked for me. Best of luck.
 
yes, my current employers and my previous employers. i asked to speak to the recruitment department and it went from there
 
-Rob- said:
When I was coming to the end of my university days I went to the careers library and picked up a few booklets which were full of big company's names and addresses so I wrote a farily standard begging letter asking for a job. I sent out about 100 letters and received 8 replies and 3 offers of an interview. I went to all 3 interviews, was offered a job from each of them, accepted the higest paid job and I'm still with the same company now 14 years later.

Good luck finding a job. You've got nothing to lose by sending off speculative letters to see if they have any vacancies. All I'd say is that you need to make your letter really stand out. Make sure it says exactly what it is you are looking for, what experience you have and it is written in good English with no errors in it.
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My son did the same thing and got a job as a result. People will admire the fact that you are trying everything.That is as good as a reference.
 
Many thanks Andy and Ladysue. I do remember reading something a long time ago (can't recall where) and it mentioned when enquiring or applying for jobs, it's better to find out the name of the person who may be in a position to help. That way you can address the letter to Mr or Mrs 'so-and-so' rather than writing "Dear Sir or Madam". I suppose there's some truth there, as it'll make the letter more personal.
 
Carl V said:
Many thanks Andy and Ladysue. I do remember reading something a long time ago (can't recall where) and it mentioned when enquiring or applying for jobs, it's better to find out the name of the person who may be in a position to help. That way you can address the letter to Mr or Mrs 'so-and-so' rather than writing "Dear Sir or Madam". I suppose there's some truth there, as it'll make the letter more personal.
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definately.
 
as mentioned earlier in the thread, speculative job hunting works wonders! I used to be a headhunter so I have a bit of knowledge on recruitment. My advice to anyone would be, identify your target job market and people you would like to work for, if they are looking then send in your CV and follow it up a few hours later with a polite phone call to confirm they had received it. Secondly actively canvass/market yourself to people, ask on a professional level if they are hiring and on a personal level if they know any mates/family members who might be working somewhere that are hiring. that should give you a good start and hopefully some results. :thumbs:
 
Many thanks for that Hsuffyan, I appreciate your advice.
 
Wrote a letter to a company asking for a Job, 10 months down the line and I have been promoted twice :)

Best of luck mate.

The best thing you can do is get an interview, if you get an interview it means they are interested, then its down to you to blow them away.

Chin up and sure you'll be fine, just don't put everything down to "the credit crunch", just keep on going till you are where you want to be!
 
Hi Luke, thank you very much for that. It's nice to know people have had success when applying in this way.

It's just unfortunate there are so many people in the same boat. I applied for a job at a bakery not far from me, and apparently there were over 200 applications for just the one vacancy. This is one of the reasons I thought of trying speculative letters, as perhaps they would respond better to one letter rather than a couple of hundred.

Thanks again,

Carl.
 
Depends on the sort of work you are after. As an ex employer of factory workers I used to look more favourably on those that made the effort to get out and come and knock on the door. Sometimes I was too busy to talk to them but if I had time they got an informal interview.
 
many years ago and newly married and looking to move out of London, I decided that I wanted to live near my wife's home town in Kent.

I looked up all the medium to medium large companies in the area, and had a facsimile letter printed and sent it out to about 250 of them. It was hand topped and tailed and addressed in name to each managing director. It was a lot of work...
One of the recipients was the money bags of Sky Photos... who I had not written to.
One thing led to another, and I was was invited to an interview with the MD. I was offered the Job of Chief photographer on the spot.

You never Know where effort will lead.
If you are given an interview make sure you find out all about the company first, they like to know you are as interested in them, not just a job.
 
Well nothing to loose and putting yourself forward can not only show you are willing.
 
Robert, Terry and Raider - many thanks indeed for your replies and advice.

Yes I was thinking along the same lines of not having anything to lose, after all the worst that can happen is they ignore it. I've always been in the manufacturing industry and this involved operating machinery, and as there is a small industrial estate about 10 miles away from me which has a number of manufacturing companies (albeit not very large), I thought these would be worth contacting.

Cheers,

Carl.
 
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