How to Read Position Vacant Ads

There is a trick to reading ’situations vacant’ ads that make it much easier to write applications that get you an interview and the job.

You must secure an interview to get a job.

Consider that tip number 1. Job Secrets Revealed readers will understand this concept and many are already getting more interviews and hence job offers because they know how to get an interview – and know what to say in an interview.

When you see a situations vacant ad it may list things like:

Good communications skills
Must have college degree
Self-motivated
Excellent phone manner
X years’ experience

This tells you what the business wants, but doesn’t tell you what it wants those skills FOR. And that’s the key.

Always look at the skills listed in an ad and ask yourself: “What would they want those skills for?” Then look at your own skills and experiences, and address in your application how they can help the employer.

Take “Must have 5 years’ experience” for example.

What would they want that experience for? Maybe because the employer feels that you need that length of time to operate the machinery, equipment, computer, software or whatever properly?

So asking for someone with 5 years’ experience means that only skilled operators will apply. So the issue is being able to use the equipment properly – NOT the 5 years’ experience.

In your application you simply illustrate your competence on the relevant equipment. You may have only 2 years experience but you still could get the job.

Another example? What about “Must have degree.”

Your solution is simple. Ask yourself – why is there so much emphasis on the DEGREE itself?

Why would they want the degree? Specifically, what will it bring to their company? How would it benefit them? The answer to those questions give you the RIGHT approach to take for your application and allow you to overcome the “lack of a degree” problem you may face.

It’s not the degree they want. It’s the benefits and results that the degree promises. Work out what they are, pitch your application there, and you’ll have the approach you need to sidestep the degree.

I have used these strategies over and over again to help people get jobs even though they didn’t meet all the criteria in the ad. You can use it too.

by Acland Brierty

SHAMELESS PLUG: Job Secrets Revealed comes with a special ‘interview secrets’ report that will give you – more secrets of the experts including sections on “behavioral interviewing”, an expanded section on understanding the mind of the employer and the Top 10 list of the “Things Interviewers Fear,” as well as the complete list of the toughest interview questions you’ll ever get, including advice on how to side-step the ones you won’t want to answer. Plus, we give you powerful techniques to let you take control of the interview.