The main purpose of a recruitment fair is to meet and discover exhibitors, companies that are recruiting, advisors and representatives of training organizations. It's a great opportunity to get face-to-face interviews with hundreds of recruiters and recruiting professionals ready to help you in your career.
If you're relying on a job fair to find your future job, don't plan to attend without any enthusiasm!
Recruiters will be looking to meet potential future hires. So, regardless of your job or experience, you need to be prepared, motivated and interested to stand out from other candidates and be seriously considered as a future employee.
In order to meet their expectations, you will need to learn as much information as possible about the companies you wish to meet with, whether it is via the event's website, the companies' websites or other sources such as social networks.
These recruiters will expect you to be psychologically and physically ready, but also to bring the necessary documents (CV, cover letter) so that they can contact you afterwards.
So, are you ready?
The preparation work beforehand
- Find out about the company via the internet and social networks, to learn more about its services and products, its history, its workforce, its location, its values and the profiles it is looking for. If you want to meet several exhibitors, it is a good idea to prepare a list beforehand and bring it with you on the day of the event. This will ensure that nothing is forgotten!
- Prepare your updated resume with your last experiences and trainings, and don't forget to add the title of the job you are applying for at the top of your resume. If you wish to apply for several jobs, it is recommended to bring several versions of your CV.
- Be prepared to ask questions about things that are not already included in the company's communication materials. Be sure to ask relevant questions about the company and the position you are interested in; it would be inappropriate, for example, to talk about salary or benefits during a primary contact.
- Prepare your elevator pitch. Another very important element: knowing how to pitch yourself. At a job fair, you will usually have less than 10 minutes to convince your interviewer that you are the ideal person for their company. The first few seconds of the exchange will be decisive, which is why the Elevator Pitch is an excellent way to practice introducing yourself quickly to make a good impression.
- Prepare your pitch for each company. This little list of two or three reasons why you want to apply to a particular company.
Be ready for the big day
- Have an appropriate dress code. Dressing appropriately will allow you to be in tune with your interviewer, but also to sell yourself by looking your best. Indeed, according to the old adage, "you never get a second chance to make a good first impression". Therefore, adopt a classic and elegant style, don't take too many risks, unless your job/industry allows it.
- Coming to the fair outside of the busy hours will give you the chance to have a privileged exchange with the recruiters. We advise you to come between 11am and 4pm. However, be aware that some recruiters may leave their booths to eat during the lunch break. For your information, the busiest time for an event is usually the morning when it opens.
- Bring a sufficient quantity of resumes because there are not always printers nearby!
What to do after the fair
- Send a thank you email. Think about contacting the recruiters with whom you had an interesting discussion and send them a thank-you e-mail. Take the initiative to make the first step, after having carefully collected the recruiters' business cards on the day of the fair.
- Add the contacts you met at the fair to your various professional social networks to keep in touch. These people may be useful to you immediately or in the future.
- Follow up with the recruiter. If you don't hear back from the recruiter within 10 to 15 days after your first email, then you can follow up with the recruiter, making sure to mention that you've already met them at a recruiting event.
- Apply on the career site. Sometimes recruiters will ask you to apply on their career site after your interview at the fair. This doesn't mean that your interviewer is going to ask you to apply.
Remember: a recruitment fair offers you the opportunity to have a first contact with recruiters face to face and make an impression on companies. By following a correct line of conduct before, during and after the event, you will be able to maximize your chances as a candidate and impress the recruiter to move forward in the recruitment process.
Would you like to practice our tips at a recruitment fair? Find the list of events organized by Moovijob.com.
