Ypulse Youth Website Profile: Brazen Careerist
The latest installment in our Ypulse Youth Website Profile series is a review of the much-buzzed about professional social network recently recently launched by Brazen Careerist.
What is it… a professional social network seeking to connect Gen Y’ers with prospective employers
Who it’s for… Gen Y job-seekers and prospective employers looking to hire Gen Y’ers.
What works for us… a Gen-Y friendly user experience that connects users with an established network. The familiar Facebook-esque interface with a LinkedIn revenue model — free subscriptions with pay-for-hire services for companies — allows members to define the boundaries between personal and professional social media space, while staying in a content comfort zone, i.e. a basic static profile (goals, interests and specialties) and a regularly updated import from their blog, twitter feed and other social links. I see entrepreneurial recent grads short on resume fodder, but long on ideas and eager to collaborate, embracing the site as a platform to stand out. Also, for the many recent grads who find it hard to leverage LinkedIn’s networking capabilities when their only contacts are fellow graduates, CEO Penelope Truck says that the site will focus on bringing employers to the job pool.
The Challenges…while some “brand-ividuals” will stand out as big fish in this pool of candidates, users who produce less relevant content, or less content in general might feel intimidated and overshadowed. I can see the pressure to maintain a living “ideas feed” with personable, yet professional insightful content that appeals to a broad spectrum of jobs (considering the times, I’m guessing recent grads are casting a wider net right now), frustrating some and exasperating others. There is also a certain amount of faith required of the users to trust that companies will follow. Will HR reps from companies, especially those outside of the marketing and media industries, go out of their way to seek out this new crop of employees? Depends on what the user-experience is like for them. Right now there’s only a basic filter on keyword searches for candidates and no system for recommendations. We’ll be sure to check in on testimonials in a few months time.
For more coverage of youth marketing, go to the Ypulse Youth Marketing Channel sponsored by Youth Marketing Connection.