Marketing and Job Finding - Is it the same?

Many times I have been in conversation with friends and colleagues talking about making that career move. I think everyone who has ever worked before is familiar with this.

Aside from useful suggestions, there are warnings as well. 

"Oh, you don't want to go there. They pay peanuts"

"I hear the boss is a control-freak. She's a nightmare to work with."

"The office politics is just horrible. You don't want to get into that!"

"Everything works so slowly there. It's a wonder anything gets done."

"The work is uninspiring. You'll get bored easily."
Before I go any further, let me just say that this post is not about taking a stab at former employers or would-be employers or anyone. Nope. Not going into that for this post.

Instead, I would like to draw comparisons between marketing and jobs. One finds that both tend to be too similar, that it's worth taking notice of.

But what's marketing got to do with jobs, you ask?

There's plenty of information out there that talks about how to market yourself as a job candidate, how you present yourself, that your CV is your advertising...etc.etc.

That's just the one side of things. How about the part of the would-be employer?

Well, let's look at it this way.

You = 'the customer' who's looking for a new job.

The job = 'the product' you're trying to acquire

The would-be employer's name and reputation = the 'brand'

The would-be employer = the owner of the 'brand' and 'product'

The would-be employer would have its reputation precede them before anything else. Its awe-inspiring name could probably make anyone catch their breath.

Then, like anyone thinking to acquire anything of value, the real fun begins.

You begin asking around. Trying to dig more info. Is it a good employer? Are people happy there? Is the workplace far from home? Is it ok if I wear jeans to work? All types of questions, the answers of which would help you form that decision.

So, if the fact-finding leads to a negative conclusion i.e. no-go on taking the job (assuming of course, that they've made you an offer), doesn't it mean then, that the would-be employer's marketing failed? That even though it has well-known and respected 'brand' name, as a 'product', it failed?

And how does something like that, then affects its 'brand'?

Think of it as a domino affect. The 'brand' is stuck with a 'product' that's not selling. So, in desperation, it's being sold to pretty much anyone willing to step up to the plate whether it's right or not.

And somehow, the output gets compromised because as a company, they're just making do with what they have instead of fixing what's wrong internally.

Finally, before you know it, that awe-inspiring 'brand' is no longer in the consideration list of job-seekers.

Very simplistic way of looking at things, I know. But I think looking at it that way, evens the playing field. That it's not just the job-seekers that needs to market themselves as if they're at the mercy of would-be employers but it works both ways too.