Blogging For A Job...Doesn't Always Work?

The Wall Street Journal enlisted eight bloggers in December to write about their experiences being unemployed. Since then, just four of the original bloggers and three additions have found jobs, the WSJ reports, and almost none of them are completely satisfied with the jobs they found. Five took pay cutsas much as 80 percenttwo relocated, and four changed industries. Only one of the candidates who mentioned the blog in interviews or on a resume said it led to getting the job. That candidate was Amanda Sundt, 36, formerly a senior marketing manager at Orbitz. She was able to parlay her blogging experience into a job at a small adventure-travel web site. "She brought it up when asked about her social-media experience and says her interviewer was impressed." The other bloggers worked in finance, business, and other less communication-heavy professions. 27-year-old Matthew Vuturo, a B-school grad who eventually took a 50 percent pay cut after being un- and underemployed for 18 months, said that his blogging "sparked interest," but didn't lead to job offers. A banker put her unemployment blog on her Linkedin, which "helped her expand her network, and prompted a few recruiters to contact her, but none that led to the job she got," the WSJ says. Spencer Cutter, a former investment banker, used his blog as a way to stay dedicated. "I had to be committed to it and be prepared for the consequences if what I wrote ended up cutting off other options," says Mr. Cutter, who wrote in one post that he "was probably never really cut out to be an investment banker." Lesson? Even if the majority of folks are saying blogging isn't useful, remember the industry we're in.

Fishbowl

Blogging For A Job...Doesn't Always Work?

Rachel Kaufman

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Rachel Kaufman