Why You Shouldn’t Post A Resume On Craigslist

I have a love/hate relationship with Craigslist. On one hand, I love the fact that it is a great way to post free classified ads on the web. I also love that the site has stayed true to its roots and avoided selling out.

What I don’t like is the lack of formality. Now, I’m not suggesting that everyone should be formal all of the time, but the informality of Craigslist leads some people to believe that a posted resume (or “job wanted” ad) doesn’t require the same time or effort as you might see on a larger job board.

So when I read How NOT to Post Your Resume on Craigslist, I thought that this was the type of thing that was needed to prove my point.

This article is a collection of poorly written/edited/posted resumes as found on Craigslist. And while I can never fault someone for using every possible weapon at their disposal in order to find a job, I can fault them for posting something like:

I NEED A JOB! I’ll literally do anything!

Kinda makes you want to bang your head against the wall.

The biggest problem I have with the resume posting service that Craigslist provides is that no recruiter I have ever met has looked in a resume bank and blindly contacted a candidate UNLESS they were looking for a very specialized, hard to find skill/talent. Every recruiter wants you to show your interest in the job and the company. With this in mind, it seems like a waste of time to just blindly upload your resume with the hopes that it will lead you to a job.

On top of this, when you do post your resume on Craigslist (and/or other job boards), and you do it poorly, it can come back to haunt you.

For instance, imagine that you have just applied to a job and the employer likes your resume. As a next step, they decide to do a little research on you online. When they do, they come up with this gem on Craiglist, where you last posted your resume:

I.m looking for work

The point that I am trying to make is that you not only need to be aware of what you are posting on the Internet, but also about how your posting will be viewed. Poor grammar, spelling mistakes, desperation, confusing language, and/or vagueness will help to ensure that your credibility is ruined before a recruiter even looks at your information.

This is doubly true if you are just posting a resume without applying to a specific job.

So be careful. Finding a job is hard work. The people who are willing to put in the most effort are (generally) more successful. Just be aware of how your information is going to be perceived if you intend on posting your resume online.