CONTENTS

• My Favourites (Colm Murphy of Stevens & Ross Ltd)
• Article One (Everything You Need to Know About Link Popularity by David Reilly)
• Article Two (CV Database Review – Exec2Exec by Louise Triance)
• Don't Miss This (REC News Roundup - Roving Reporter Course Reviewer for Immigration Training in Torquay - Equality and Diversity Free Breakfast Seminar, 17th May, Chester - PR: Win In-house Training to Celebrate National Learning at Work Day)
• Discussion Board Summary
• Online Recruitment Update (Hitwise Top 10 Recruitment Sites - Louise's UK Recruiter Blog - PR: Launch of CV Genie at Erec 07 - PR: Pay As You Go CV Search from LondonCareers.net)
• Subscribe/Unsubscribe
• Feedback & Advertising Information

Visit http://www.careersinrecruitment.com for the latest recruitment industry jobs.

My Favourites

http://www.linkedin.com - Will take some effort to build your network but an excellent way to acquire both leads and candidates

http://www.silicon.com -  Technology News, Opinion and trends.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk - With the interest in, and the questions being raised about Bank Charges (and more importantly How to claim them back), all the information and support you need is available here.

Provided by Colm Murphy of Stevens & Ross Ltd

Why not submit your 3 favourite web sites. See the guidelines at http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/articles.htm

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Article One: Everything You Need to Know About Link Popularity by David Reilly

The number of websites that link to your website is one of the factors that help search engines determine your relevancy for a search term. Link popularity and gaining new links from outside websites to your website have proven to be a popular concept for people seeking to improve their search engine rankings. 

What is link popularity and how exactly does it work? Search engines don't just look at the content of your website to determine if you are a match for a search. They also look at the number of outside websites that can validate, by linking, that you are a good match. 

Search engines have also begun to rank the importance of the sites that link to you. This means if the New York Times links to your site, your credibility is higher than if Joe's Online Newspaper provides a link to your website. Search engines also consider the text contained in the link that is pointing to your website. If the text in the links contains keywords you are trying to compete for, the search engines consider your site to have even greater credibility.

Since link popularity has become a factor that people feel like they have some influence over in determining their search engine positioning, many solutions have been proposed for growing your online link popularity. One of the more popular ways is also one of the least effective. 

Several software programs have been written that help you create lists of websites in your space that might be willing to link to you. These programs also help you gather the email addresses for these sites and even help you craft an email requesting that the site add a link to yours.

The concept sounds good but the results are often mixed. If you use one of these tools and simply follow the templates they give you, your email will read like a spam message that won't be taken seriously. 

The best way to build long-term link popularity is to offer good content and features that provide real value to your audience. As people discover your website and realize its benefits, the likelihood of them linking to your website naturally increases. 

There are several critical targets if you want to build up your link popularity without appearing to be a spammer. The first is good links from Yahoo and the Open Directory Project. Both of these sites are human based directories that have a lot of influence over search results. If your site is listed in the correct category and has a good description, links from these two websites are seen as validating you are the real thing.

The second place it's important to have a link from is topic specific or niche directories. These are websites that are dedicated to news and information that is an exact match for what you provide online. If you have a website that deals with tractor parts, being listed on sites that focus on tractors is very important. In the case where a niche website doesn't know about your website, it's okay to ask them to link to your website. But your message should be personalized to them and also tell them the benefit or feature their users will get from linking to you.

Another part of the web that helps build your link popularity is resource sites. Resource sites are lists of links that people put up on their own. These pages are often spread amongst friends and readers who find good information available from the resource. In order to reach this audience, a good PR campaign and press releases can ensure that these individuals know you exist and have a link to your website that they can easily include.

One of the most overlooked spots for building link popularity is links from partners and vendors for your business. Because you already have a business relationship with these companies or individuals, you are more likely to be able to request and receive a link from their website. These websites help validate your place online and also establish you within a community of websites online. If you are visible to the community, you are more visible to the search engines.

Link popularity also starts at home. You must make sure your link architecture is solid and easily followed by search engines. That's the first way that search engines see you. It's also the way that visitors find information within your website. The easier you make it on your audience to find good information, the more likely they are to link to it.

The final way you can work to increase your link popularity is to participate in newsletters and online forums that relate to your website. You don't want to just jump in and give a plug for your URL. You must participate in the discussion as an expert or authority who gives good advice. When you sign your name at the bottom of your posting, be sure to include a signature that includes a link to your website. If these forums and newsletters are archived and remain online, search engines continue to see them and the links they contain. 

If your website doesn't have a lot of content and you are wondering how you can build your link popularity you should think about building a tool or feature on your website that will be valuable to your online audience. Marketleap's Search Engine Marketing tools are a good example of a feature built to generate link popularity. 

Marketleap's free tools provide unique data for search engine marketers that they can't find other places. We've also made it possible for people to place our tools on their sites easily by cutting and pasting a piece of HTML code into their web page. Because the tools are valuable to our community, many websites have linked to the tools or added the tool to their own website. Consequently, if you search for "link popularity" at Google, Marketleap will usually appear in the top 3 results on the first page.

Link popularity will continue to be an essential factor in successful search engine marketing initiatives for the foreseeable future. Links are a helpful tool for search engines trying to wade through billions of documents and find ones that are relevant to their users. 

With over 7 years experience in the digital sector, David Reilly is Managing Director of specialist Search Marketing Agency, Barracuda Digital. Barracuda Digital provides dynamic search engine optimisation and paid search marketing solutions for both clients and agencies delivering exceptional return on investment. www.barracuda-digital.co.uk 

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Article Two: CV Database Review – Exec2Exec by Louise Triance

Site Name: Exec2Exec
URL: http://www.exec2exec.com

Site Statistics:
Sectors covered: Generic site covering 28 sectors
Target Candidate Level: £30,000 + basic salary candidates
Number of CV's held: 16013
Geographic Split: Mostly UK candidates but a proportion worldwide too.
Site launched: New Site Launched early 2006

Costs: £150 per month.

Who to contact: Matthew Cotton on 0113 3075011 or matthew.cotton@exec2exec.com 

How it works:

When you first enter the recruiter section of the site you can either browse or search the CV database. By browsing the CV database you can see the people who most recently added or modified their details. 

To search the CV database you complete a search form where you can enter the candidate’s name, keywords (for free text searching), chose an industry sector, salary bands, location, languages and work permit situation. 

The results are shown in a table where you view the name of the candidate and the date they added and modified their details. You then click on the surname to view the candidate’s profile. This document is formatted the same for each candidate. You see their name, address, contact numbers, profile, current job title, current industry sector, current salary, skills and qualifications. You can then click on a hyperlink to view their own CV or a link to send them an email. 

They send weekly newsletters to registered candidates asking them to update their details and upload their CV's again if they update them. 

Strengths

• You can select more than one option from the industry sector, location, salary and age drop down menus.

• As well as being able to search within a specified location from a drop down list you can search for candidates within a certain number of miles from a postcode or town that you enter.

• The candidate profile is an easy to read snapshot of the individual and helps you determine if you should click through for the CV. 

• Having the date last modified showing on the results page was useful, especially as some of my test searches returned candidates who had last updated their details 11 months ago.

• The candidate’s CV is in his or her own format; allowing you to see all the information the candidate wishes to make available.

Weaknesses

• When you view the list of matching candidates all you can see is their name and the dates they added and updated their details. It would be good to see either a personal profile, geographic location or job title. Ideally all three. 

• You can’t see which candidates you have already viewed. So if you do two similar searches and the same people turn up in them you might not notice and waste time viewing the same person twice. Simply changing the colour in which their name is displayed would alleviate this.

• You can’t add candidates to a shortlist folder to revisit. Nor can you “bulk” email to candidates. These would allow you to select and make contact with candidates for a specific vacancy more quickly. 

• There is no CV Alert/Watchdog service to allow you to see the details of candidates who match your criteria as they register. 

Summary
The CV search functionality is good, striking a balance between allowing you to conduct targeted searches and not forcing you to select from dozens of fields. However, the way in which CVs are returned and the flexibility you have to deal with them is a bit weak, I would have higher expectations of a database targeted at senior level recruitment. Their main competition have, in my opinion, better functionality although most of them are more expensive to use. Considering the high number of CVs on the database and the moderate price this is a CV database worth looking at if you recruit in the £30,000 to £70,000 salary bracket. They offer a reasonably priced trial to new users interested in finding out if the site suits so if you recruit in this area it’s definitely worth a look. 

Louise Triance is the Editor of the ukrecruiter newsletter. This article is the eight in an ongoing series of CV database reviews.  We have reviewed CV-Library in issue 273, Monster.co.uk in issue 275, Constructionjobsearch in issue 277, Jobsite in issue 279, Jobs in Credit in issue 281, Executivesontheweb.com in issue 284, Justconstruction.net in issue 290 and CVCentral in issue 305

If you would like us to review a CV database you are considering using please contact Louise at contact2@ukrecruiter.co.uk 

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Don't Miss This

REC News Roundup
These are links to a selection of press releases the Recruitment Employment Confederation (REC) have produced in the last 7 days since the newsletter was sent.  

• Latest Quarterly Labour Market Stats

• REC responds to BBC investigation on rogue Gangmasters

• Report gives insight into future changes in recruitment

• New REC initiative will help search for top recruiter talent

• REC’s Head of Legal Services appointed to Gangmasters Board

Roving Reporter Course Reviewer for Immigration Training in Torquay, 15th May 
We are looking for someone to attend and review a one day Employing Non-UK Nationals course in Torquay (Devon) on Tuesday 15th May. If you attend as the ukrecruiter roving reporter you'll get a free place in return for writing up a review for the newsletter. A course overview can be obtained by emailing Ian Westwood at ian@twolimited.co.uk. If you are interested in reviewing the course for the newsletter email contact2@ukrecruiter.co.uk.

Equality and Diversity free breakfast seminar, 17th May, Chester
m3training are holding, in conjunction with Mace & Jones Solicitors, a breakfast seminar in Chester on the 17th May entitled "Equality & Diversity - Who needs it?" The seminar will cover Equality & Diversity, how the law has changed and new case law, how this affects you and your employees, what is respect and dignity at work, why policies and procedures are important, how to cope with the legal minefield and how it can benefit you. Contact jackie@m3training.co.uk for further info.

Press Release: Win In-house training to celebrate National Learning at Work Day
"Recruitment Matters, one of the foremost providers of training to the UK & European staffing industry, is supporting National Learning at Work (LAW) Day on Thursday 24th May 2007 by running a competition to win an in-house training day. Trainer Matt Wilson will visit the winning company on May 24th to deliver the winner’s choice of a day’s training in either interview skills or telephone skills. LAW is organised by The Campaign for Learning. In order to be in with a chance of winning its free competition, Recruitment Matters is inviting entrants to state, in 60 words or less, why their company deserves a free day’s training. Closing date is May 11th. Every entrant will receive a pdf copy of trainer, Warren Kemp’s best-selling book ‘Recruiting in a Tough Market'. For further information, contact Ken or Emma on 0800 0749289 or email info@recruitmentmatters.com. 

Discussion Board Summary

Don't forget to visit The Discussion Board. Current topics on the site include:

• A 3rd party recruiter going it alone and asking How can I improve?

• Don asks if anyone has experience of Outsourcing CV processing

• Dave says Job Boards have had their day 

• The debate around Gifts for placements continues

• MrWall is looking for a A free bit of software for his recruitment business

• Scanty is Launching a new job board and would like advice of job aggregator sites

Any postings you or anyone else makes will be included in the weekly digest. Sign up for the free digest here or hit reply to ask me to include your email address

It is free to use the discussion board and you don't have to register to view messages. Visit the site, ask questions and share your knowledge

Online Recruitment Update (sponsored by http://www.broadbean.co.uk for "the UK's favourite job posting system")

Hitwise top 10 Recruitment Sites, week ending 28th April 2007
The most visited UK recruitment sites last week, starting with the most popular, were www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk, www.jobs.nhs.uk, www.totaljobs.com, www.monster.co.uk, www.reed.co.uk, www.jobsite.co.uk, jobs.tes.co.uk, www.jobs.ac.uk, www.jobsgopublic.com and www.eteach.com. Hitwise don't aggregate data from sites who form part of a network such as fish4.co.uk For more information about Hitwise, visit http://www.hitwise.co.uk

Louise's UK Recruiter blog
In the past week I've talked about cleaning up your internet reputation and corporate gift giving, I've done an interview with Dom Sumners, discussed a Video CV database and mentioned National PA Day.  You can read Louise's UK Recruiter blog at http://ukrecruiter.typepad.com. You can keep up to date with other the recruitment blogs from the UK via the UK Recruiter - blog watch page at http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/blogs.htm.  

Press Release: Launch of CV Genie at Erec ‘07
"National general job board, OnQ Jobs, launches CVGenie, its CV-matching tool, at this year’s Executive Recruitment Conference (Erec). The bespoke new resource allows recruiters to post jobs through posting tool idibu, and then immediately receive CVs that match the job – suitable candidates delivered right to your desk. If your agency will be at Erec, visit stand F11 for a quick demo and to register with both companies – we’re giving away six months’ free use of both companies (worth £594), three bottles of Moët and £100 in cash. If not, go to www.onqjobs.co.uk and www.uk.idibu.com to request a call from our teams.

Press Release: Pay As You Go CV Search from LondonCareers.net 
"LondonCareers.net is proud to launch a brand new CV Search system, enabling recruiters to log on and search our CV database in seconds. Credits are then purchased and suitable CVs are then downloadable directly from our site. LondonCareers CVs have been collected within the last 4 weeks, giving us a database of the most current job-seekers in London. For more information call Serena Robertson, Online Sales Manager on 020 7005 5319. www.LondonCareers.net" 

This section is sponsored by http://www.broadbean.co.uk; "the UK's favourite job posting system".

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