Social media, SEO, marketing and writingAn Interview with the ‘Jerry Maguire’ of Media Recruiting
Recently I had the good fortune to meet and chat with Jess Roberts, president of iRecruitMedia, an interactive media recruiting firm who’s goal is to help leverage their industry knowledge and strong work ethic to bring the most talented professionals to the companies that need them. Jess says his team focuses on the interactive media arena—helping small-to-medium sized, high technology and fast-paced growth companies in the branding, gaming, convergence, mobile web, interactive and digital media space.
I assume a recruiter needs to stay well connected. Any networking insights or best practices you can share?
Roberts: Talk to everyone. I have a huge network of people that I stay connected to. I’m not just talking LinkedIn or other social sites. I’m talking real people, real networking. The best advice that I can give anyone is to not think that you’re above anyone else or that just because a person isn’t your “target” that the person isn’t valuable. Also, don’t make it all about you. If you’re only trying to expand your network to just benefit you, you’re not doing it the right way. Honestly be about helping other people.
What type of employment positions do you focus on—and why this niche?
Roberts: I’m focused on interactive media, mobile web/applications, and gaming. It’s an industry that not only do I love it, but I believe in it. I’m huge video game fan myself. I love to watch my kids light up when they’re online playing on NickJr. When I see my 4 year old working the keyboard and mouse like a pro, it makes me smile.
I work with my clients for whatever they need. It’s typically something in the sales or technology areas. I love being able to bring a person that has been over quota for the last few years but is looking for a company that values him as a person to a company that establishing a foot hold in the market place and is looking for the person that can help get them there.
What are some recent positions you have filled—title and pay ranges?
Roberts: Here are a few examples:
- Interactive Account Managers – Base $100K – OTE $250K
- Director of IT – Base $110K
- Systems Analyst – Base $79K
- Account Executives – Base $85,500k – OTE $175K
- HTML Markup Coder – Base $66K
- SEO Marketing Expert – Base $77K
- Interactive Creative Director – Base $73K
Do you have any recommendations for job candidates in your niche looking to increase their chances of getting hired?
Roberts: Don’t just randomly submit your resumes to companies. Work with a recruiter to put together a game plan. Hiring managers and HR are getting slammed with resumes everyday from tons of people that are not qualified for the positions that they are applying for. Find a recruiter that will spend the time to get to know you and what you are looking for and have a good enough relationship with their clients or can develop a relationship to get quick and pointed feedback.
Do you utilize any of the professional social networking platforms such as LinkedIn or Plaxo—and if so, how do they help you do your job?
Roberts: I utilize LinkedIn a good bit. It has helped me to keep a finger on the pulse of my industry. I also belong to a few industry specific networking sites and groups that allow me to keep my sights cleaned.
What sets me apart for other recruiters including internal ones is the fact that I’m pounding the pavement everyday and working with the latest skill sets all the time just in this industry. Staying in touch with other people in the industry helps keep me fresh. LinkedIn is a great tool for that.
In your opinion, how can job seekers benefit from social networking? In what way–how?
Roberts: I think that job seekers have to be careful in social networking. They would want to be sure that any profile they have on the web represents them in a positive fashion. Employers and recruiters are starting to check the Facebook and MySpace worlds in reference checking. If you’ve got pictures of you hanging upside down from the lights of your office, it may not be a good thing.
I think that social networking sites can help candidates to keep up with what companies are doing and make great research tools before an interview.
What would you like people to know about you that may not be apparent until someone gets to know you?
Roberts: I like to have fun with this and everything else I do. I’m not the guy that’s going to call you and read off of some script. I’m real. I don’t try to do fancy sales talk or B.S. clients or candidates. I’m a bit on the goofy side and will probably have you cracking up before we hang up the phone. The reason why is that I want to be a breath of fresh air for everyone. Look, I’m the CEO of my business. I have employees and a business to run. I understand how busy you are during the day and that you get tired of hearing the same old story from the hundreds of recruiters that call.
My goal is to be the one recruiter out there that can make a difference to a company.
Contact:
Jess Roberts
President, iRecruitMedia
http://www.irecruitmedia.com
jroberts@irecruitmedia.com
Ph: 866-933-6019
