Best Practices For Your Listing

Best practices for your listing

1. First Impressions matter
   1. Make sure your photo looks nice and professional. This photo is your first impression. 
   2. You do not need to go out and have professional headshots taken however stay away from “Snapchat” style selfies.
   3.  Do not wear anything that will distract from your face.
      1. Heavy makeup
      2. Large jewelry
2. Include verifiable references
   1. Do not use family or friends as references unless you have worked for them in a professional capacity
      1. Make sure to let them know ahead of time. Nothing is worse than calling a reference and they refer to you as their “honey bun” the entire conversation. Biased reviews not only do not help but they can hurt you.
   2. Give references relevant to the job you are applying for. 
      1. Clients are not interested in your caregiving experience when they need assistance with grocery delivery.
   3. Job history will only go so far if your new boss is not able to get ahold of the past employer
      1. Let them know you are using them as a reference and ask if this is okay.
      2. Nothing is worse than calling a reference and the information they provide is not stellar. Make sure to use references that you have a good relationship with.
3. Make sure you update your availability!
   1. Not only will you miss out on jobs but it doesn’t look good if you say you are available but you are not.
4. Be  proactive
   1. If you notice you have not heard from a client in quite some time, reach out and see how they are doing!
5. Be responsive
   1. Responsiveness is one of the key determining factors between you and another provider getting a job. The service industry operates very quickly and you have to view it as a race.
   2.  In low touch services whoever responds fastest will typically get the job as the client just needs someone to do the job.
   3. In high touch services the idea is the same. There is a threshold for qualifications and skills; this is called the minimum effective dose. The minimum effective dose (Commonly used in medical settings but we will use it here). Once you meet the minimum, effective qualifications and skills will not get you more jobs or more pay. Whether you have 10 years or 15 years of experience you are likely in the same playing field. Enough is enough in some cases. SO then you have to look at other variables that you can control. Looking at your response times would be the next choice.
6. Make sure to list all of your skills
   1. Don’t sell yourself short! You have had a lifetime of skills. Show it off. However, always be sure to be honest.
      1. Experience does not necessarily mean formal jobs roles 
         1. Growing up in a home full of animals can show that not only do you know how to care for a dog as a pet sitter would but you also understand that they are a part of the family as well.
         2. Backpacked in Europe for 6 months can show that you are independent and may enjoy a family who will need someone to travel with them.
         3. Working as a server for 6 years shows that you can do well in a high paced environment and are able to take tasks or delegate when necessary.