Recently I’ve met with a few people who are at frustration level orange in their full-time job search in the sports industry. They’ve applied to hundreds of jobs online and haven’t heard back. Not once. Zero interviews…which means zero job offers. At this point, they are faced with two options: 1) continue the search for a job in sports but be more strategic or 2) search outside of sports to simply “get a job”. I don’t necessarily like, but I certainly understand, option number 2. For the purpose of this post, let’s focus on option number 1.
The job search in sports is similar (read: not the same) to the job search outside of sports. However, the “post-and-pray” technique simply won’t get the job done. Yes, you can go to Teamworkonline.com, Workinsports.com, and NCAA.org, among the many other job boards, put your search criteria in, and click apply. Done, right? Absolutely…if you want to revisit option number 2 above.
Those sites, and those of the few best sports recruiters out there, are always a great place to start. However, it is what you do next that separates you. So let’s say you applied to jobs X, Y, and Z on one of the sports industry job boards; you submitted your cover letter and resume (thus making the HR people happy). The next step is crucial. From here, go to your sports industry network (your contacts a.k.a. people you know) and start to ask the million dollar question- “Who do you know at team/organization/college X, Y, or Z?” This is usually followed up by- “Would you mind passing along my resume and putting in a good word?” This is a version of networking in case you are keeping score at home. Ask your career counselor, your professors, current/old bosses and co-workers, or even family/friends. If any of your contacts can put in a call or email on your behalf, your chances of getting an interview increase exponentially. The sports industry is very much a tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone else in some way, shape, or form; a referral goes a long way as sports professionals don’t like to stake their reputation on bad candidates.
If this strategy doesn’t yield the results you were looking for, it is time to explore other ways to get your foot in the door. Here is where LinkedIn, your email, and even your phone come in handy. For example, if you applied to a Ticket Sales position at the Philadelphia 76ers, you should then search on LinkedIn for the head of that department; I typed in “Vice President of Ticket Sales” and “76ers” into the advanced search box and the results yielded Joseph Ondrejko. From there, I would attempt to connect with Joe on LinkedIn and then send him an email. If you haven’t heard back in 3-5 business days, now is the time to push this into the proactive, aggressive direction. Write out a phone script (what you want to say and what you want to ask) like a sales person or a recruiter might use, find a quiet place, and make the call. Especially in a situation like this for a Ticket Sales position that may be looking for a person who isn’t afraid to pick up the phone, your actions might very well put your resume at the top of the pile.
Don’t give up on your dream to work in sports; the job search takes time and patience but it will be worth it when you land the perfect job and love going to work every day…
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