New Job Search Ideas - 50 Cents Each

learn more about finding a job by emulating marketing experts than by reading every employment book in the library.

By Kevin Donlin, Star Tribune Sales and Marketing

Last update: September 14, 2009 - 3:58 PM

I've written before that you can learn more about finding a job by emulating marketing experts than by reading every employment book in the library.

And I still believe that's true.

To illustrate, here's a tactic from Bob Bly, publisher of The Direct Response Letter (www.bly.com) and author of more than 70 books on advertising, copywriting, and other topics.

Bly suggests the following for publishers of email newsletters (e-zines), but it applies to your job search, too, as I'll explain below:

"Whenever I am in a used bookstore or -- even better -- a library selling old books, I look for and buy old business books. At my local library, they are 50 cents each. If you are looking for content for your e-zine, I urge you to do the same with books related to your topic. Why?

"Thumb through any old business book and I can virtually guarantee that within 2 minutes, you'll find at least one gem -- a great quote, a neat idea, a list of how-to tips -- you can use as a short article in your e-zine, on your blog, or in other how-to writings."

As an example, Bly shares a marketing tip he found in an old book bought at the local library for 50 cents. "I flipped through it when I got home and found the item in about 90 seconds," says Bly.

Here's what he found, from the book, "Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive," by Harvey Mackay:

"It's common practice for business owners to paint the company name and logo on the side of trucks and vans.

"But if your business or its customers are located in a city, you should also paint your company name, logo, and web site URL on the tops of your trucks and vans. That way it will be seen by prospects located on the second floor and higher of office buildings."

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