Some of you may read this and think that the answer is quite simple… but there are a few key points to consider before you pick up the phone.

When a recruiter or hiring manager advertises a role they can sometimes be absolutely inundated with calls and a large majority of those calls can be from people that are calling about…. (wait for it)….. absolutely nothing!!!  We know that you must be calling for a reason, however unless you state your question, unfortunately we cannot read your mind (though we often wish we could) to guess what piece of information it is that you might be looking for.

Moral to this story – call with a purpose! Identify what you want to achieve from your call before you pick up the phone (e.g. Is it close to public transport? Is my experience suitable? etc.) Simply stating that you are calling in regards to “job xyz” is not giving the recruiter the piece of information they need to help you.

The second most important thing to consider about that call, is making sure that the questions you have aren’t already addressed in the advert. E.g. If the advert states that “the role is part-time and  located in North Sydney”, don’t call and ask “is the role full-time?” or “where is the role located?”. Ultimately this is telling the recruiter that you have poor attention to detail.

Again, some might think that what I am explaining is quite straight forward, however just this morning I advertised a temporary assignment and was inundated with no less than 20 calls in the first hour from people that had absolutely no reason behind their call except to say that they have seen my advert.

Lastly, when you do call, try to sound enthusiastic and let the recruiter know your name before you start shooting questions at them!!! When a candidate calls and they sound like they have just woken up and they can barely string a sentence together – they are doing themselves more harm than good!

When I do get a phone call from somebody that speaks clearly, calls with a purpose, sounds friendly and engaging and can clearly tell me why they think they are right for the job advertised – I will often book them in for an interview without even waiting for their resume to come through!