Resume distribution services: good use of money or a bad idea?

May 4, 2009 9:45 PM

Is it worth it to pay for a "targeted" resume distribution service?

I'm trying to find a new job. Through some of the big job sites, I find links to these resume distribution services. It's not too incredibly expensive, and the job search is wearing me thin. Of course, I don't want to waste the 50 bucks or so if it's not going to work. They promise not to be resume blasters that blast out your resume to 50,000,000 email addresses; supposedly, they're targeted.

There's this service through Monster: https://www.myresumeagent.com/?ch=monster_fromea. Does anybody have any experience with this? Does it work?

Also, I found this list of resume distribution services: http://www.jobgoround.com/resume_distribution.php. Is it all garbage?

I already know that finding a job depends on who you know. I've gone through my personal contacts, applied to many places, but I'm looking for new channels. I can't find any information (such as consumer reviews) on any of these sites. Even if the ones listed above don't work, can you suggest any that do?

Is it just a scam, though? Is it for people who reach a point so far into their job search that they're desperate for some magic bullet? Will my resume actually end up in the hands of somebody who could actually do something?

posted by rybreadmed to Work & Money (7 answers total)

If I were hiring, I doubt I'd look at resumes from Monster, targeted or not, given the number of excellent people I already know who I would love to hire.

My advice is to keep on talking to the people you know (and the people they know), and possibly also asking them if they can personally recommend a recruiter.
posted by zippy at 11:26 PM on May 4, 2009

I haven't ever given my resume to a targeted distribution service, but I'd suggest getting in touch with headhunters/executive search firms in your area and having a conversation with a few of the recruiters either in person or over the phone. You can probably find them online or through friends, LinkedIn, etc. They only get paid in most cases if you get the job, and I wouldn't ever pay them -- the hiring company should do that. But I'd think it's better to have someone with a vested interest in getting you the job on your side over engaging even the most highly targeted of job bots who have already got your $. Just my 2 cents. And, apologies if you've already gone the headhunter route, or if for some reason it's not applicable. Good luck.
posted by xiaolongbao at 11:35 PM on May 4, 2009

Never pay up front for a service like this, 99% of the time it's a scam, and the remaining 1% of the time that they're sincere, they have no credibility with those that are on the receiving end. (Why would I listen to someone who sent me resumes because they were paid to & not because they actually vetted the applicants?)
posted by MesoFilter at 11:41 PM on May 4, 2009 [1 favorite]

This is easy. Hell no.
posted by madman at 1:55 AM on May 5, 2009

No.

I toss resumes from third parties into the bottom of the pile, at best. I also disregard headhunters who are pimping their clients unless they're one of the two or three I know personally and trust.

If you can't be bothered to make your own effort, then you're not very interested in THIS job, just in having some imaginary job... which means I don't want you.
posted by rokusan at 2:36 AM on May 5, 2009

my last job, I was in charge of the person at the reception desk...we didn't even route the cold call faxed resumes to HR, we routed them to the trash.
posted by legotech at 9:39 AM on May 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

Nope, don't bother.
posted by meta_eli at 11:31 AM on May 5, 2009