Since company culture is usually just a general feeling, it can be hard to know if it will be a good fit for you, but there are a few things you can look for at your next interview to help you get a better idea.

1. As you walk through the office, are people being social? Do the employees smile at you? Do they seem to enjoy their work? Or are they unfriendly and unsocial? If you see the latter, it might be a red flag.
2. What are the employees and the interviewer wearing? Dress code often says a lot about the company’s culture. Is it casual? Or is everyone expected to wear a suit?
3. When discussing the details of the job, does it sound like it will provide you with some flexibility? Are their perks to the job, such as bringing your dog into work on Friday’s or free lunches? These types of perks can be clear signs of how relaxed or uptight a company’s culture is.
4. What gets mentioned during the interview? Does the interviewer bring up high stress and deadlines repeatedly? If so, this is a good indication of how it will be to work there.

Finally, when it’s your turn to ask questions you should ask what your interviewer likes most about working there. This usually reveals something about the company’s culture. If the interviewer says that he likes the people, the casual environment, the flexibility provided, or anything else indicative of the company culture it can really help you figure out if it will be the right place for you.

Often, appropriate job titles can be perplexing during a job search. There’s entry level to executive level and everything in between. Not sure what job title you should target when searching fore a job? Here’s a guide to help you figure out what level your skills and experience fall into.

Entry Level

This title can be confusing because it’s not just for job hunters entering the working world for the first time. Entry level often can include job seekers with five years or less of experience.

When applying for an entry-level job, make sure to convey your enthusiasm. Since most people that apply for entry-level positions have little experience, to help yourself stand out, show the employer that you’re excited for the opportunity and let your personality shine.

Mid Level

A mid level position is ideal for job seekers who have experience directing other people, departments, functions, projects or budgets. Mid level positions usually require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and five to 15 years of related work experience. These positions require experience, so it’s crucial that you convey to employers that your experience and skill set match what they’re looking for. You should show how you can fit into their company’s chain of command and how you will make a positive impact as an employee.

Senior or Executive Level

Because there are many definitions for the words “executive” and “senior-level,” it can be hard to determine if one of these positions is right for you. Corporate structures vary depending on company size, so just because you were at a senior-level position at one company doesn’t mean you’ll be qualified to fill one at another. So make sure you examine the description and qualification requirements for each position carefully. Then, if your skills and experience do match their requirements, tailor your resume and cover letter to show that you have those specific qualifications.

And while the basics of job searching are the same throughout the year, it’s important to realize that the leaves aren’t the only thing changing.

Many other job seekers’ also start to buckle down on their job hunt this time of year, meaning more competition, in addition to other factors that can affect your search.

More competition. More people start to buckle down on their job searches in the fall because during the summer some stop looking for full-time employment and opt for seasonal or summer work, such as construction or landscaping. Furthermore, people often completely take the summer off of job searching because they want to take a long vacation or need to stay home with their children, so when school starts back up, so does their job search.

Less distractions. Due to the changing weather, you can also expect less distraction from your job search during fall. It’s hard to be cooped up inside during the summer months, searching for a job, but when the nice weather starts disappear, so do the distractions that come with it. You’ll be able to focus more on your job search and hopefully cut down on the time it might take you to land a new position.

Seasonal work. While there are seasonal work opportunities during the summer months, these significantly increase during the fall and winter months. Stores and retailers often hire on more employees for the holidays. And while temporary or seasonal work may not be ideal, it can help make ends meet until you find something permanent and help get your foot in the door at a great company.

Expect the unexpected. Job-hunting in the fall can throw some unexpected situations your way. While some companies may go through hiring freezes because of end of the year budget balances, others might be scrambling to fill an opening as quick as possible. So come to expect the unexpected in during your fall job search.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 37,000, to 391,000, the Labor Department said, well below economists’ expectations of 420,000. But the department cautioned that the way it adjusted the data for seasonal fluctuations might have overstated the improvement.

Separately, the Commerce Department said the nation’s gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 1.3 percent in the second quarter instead of the previously reported 1 percent. Consumer spending and export growth were both stronger than estimated.

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While there are many rules that apply to every resume, depending on where you are in your career, format can vary. Here are the three most popular resume formats and why they might work for you.

The Chronological Resume

This resume format is the most frequently used and also the most traditional. It allows you to emphasize you work history in reverse chronological order. It highlights dates, job titles, organizations and education.

It might work for you if you’ve been in the same industry for a significant period of time and this aligns with the job you are seeking. It allows an employer to see a clear progression in your career and emphasizes that your current or most recent position is one that gives you the experience necessary to succeed in a new role.

The Functional Resume

This resume format places emphasis on what you know and what you have accomplished, rather than when and where you’ve worked. Unlike the chronological format, it focuses on your skills and qualifications.

It might work for you if you have changed careers frequently or have gaps in your employment history. This format also works best for recent college graduates, people who have taken time off from work for various reasons, or those who are overqualified.

The Combination Format

This format combines elements of both the chronological and the functional resume formats. It usually starts with a functional resume format that emphasizes your skills and accomplishments and is followed by the chronological resume format that features your work experience.

It might work for you if you have little work history, you’ve worked for the same company for a long period of time or you’re making a significant career change. Because this format allows you to showcase your skills before revealing a troublesome work history, it can be beneficial.

Even if you don’t have any questions, you should still figure out something to ask in order to show that you are interested and have done your homework. Questions are the best way to demonstrate that you understand the company’s challenges and have genuine interest in the job.

Furthermore, it’s important to ask questions in order to learn more about the company and the responsibilities of the job than what you simply discovered from their job ad or website.

So what kind of questions should you ask? Well the best questions usually come as a result of listening to the types of questions the interviewer asks you. Ask relevant questions in order to supplement anything that they may have left out.

More specifically you can ask questions pertaining to the company’s values, management style, company culture, goals, duties of the position or the company’s challenges.

Regardless of what questions you ask, use this as your opportunity to decide whether or not you want to work at that company. The best way to do this is to prepare before the interview and have a list of at least 10 questions that you would like to have answered.

You can prepare particular types of questions based on the person that will be interviewing you. Here is how.

• If the hiring manager is interviewing you, focus your questions on the job, what they’re looking for in a candidate, the daily tasks of the job and the challenges you might face.
• If the human resources manager is interviewing you, the main focus of your questions should be about the company, what their goals are, the company culture, the department and the management.
• If someone in a management role is interviewing you, ask about the company’s competition, the industry and the company’s future. This is your chance to show what you know about the industry and the company.

And while you always want to ask a few questions, you should also always use your best judgment of when and how many questions to ask. Think of the interview as a conversation, allowing you to discover more about the company before anyone makes a decision, and asking questions is your opportunity to do that.

The purpose of your resume is to grab employers’ attention and make them want to hire you, so instead of being another candidate claiming to be a “hard worker,” revamp your resume and exchange those overused words for others that will be sure to get you noticed.

Replace words that are unsupported claims of greatness, such as claiming to be a “great communicator” because these mean nothing to employers. Instead, describe the accomplishments that show you are a great communicator.

By giving specific, quantifiable reasons that demonstrate why you’re a “strong leader” you will be able to showcase your credentials while also backing them up. Focus on words that will prove you are the right person for the job.

You should use action words that show what you have accomplished in the past. Employers would rather hire the person who “increased product sales by 5 percent” than the person who is a “productive manager.”

If you are still unsure about which words catch employer’s attention and which ones are useless, here is a list to help you get a better idea.

Scan your resume for useless words such as:

• Outstanding
• Energetic
• Driven
• Seasoned
• Effective
• Strong
• Exceptional
• Good
• Excellent
• Motivated

On the other hand, use words like these to catch employers’ attention:

• Created
• Under-budget
• Increased
• Reduced
• On-time
• Improved
• Won
• Developed
• Researched
• Accomplished

More and more people are discovering that in today’s competitive job market, being able to tell an engaging, action-oriented story in an interview can set them apart from their competition and essentially land them a job.

The idea is to give a clear example of how you can contribute. Employers need to feel that you are the answer to one of their problems and if you can show them how you met or exceeded the needs in other places, they may conclude that you can do the same for them.

Here are a few tips for telling a good story during an interview:

• Make employers feel that you are the solution to an issue. By telling action-oriented stories that show how you have demonstrated a particular skill or personal quality in the past, you can make yourself irresistible to employers by becoming a solution to their dilemma.

• Demonstrate you varied skill set. Because you can use stories to tell employers just about anything about yourself, be sure they highlight the skills that you can bring to the table such as detail orientation, dedication, leadership, independence, researching ability, creativity or problem solving inclination. Employers always want well-rounded, skilled employees, so telling a story is the perfect time to inform them of those things.

• Add substance and evidence to what the employer already sees on your resume. By supplying the employer with specifics that back up what they already know, you will stick out in their mind and you can give yourself credibility. Remember, your degrees, titles and resume won’t seal a job offer for you on their own.

• Success breeds success. Tell stories the clearly show how you’ve been successful in the past. The types of success stories you tell should show an interviewer how you resolved a workplace problem, innovated something new in your past job, or one that demonstrates how you used a unique skill on the job. The point is to prove to the employer that you know how to succeed in a work context and essentially make the employer actually picture you working for them.

• Don’t just state facts and figures. Numbers and statistics are dry. You want to paint a vivid picture in the employer’s mind, so show, don’t tell. Stories with color, context and realism are more memorable that the dry numbers, names and dates you have listed on your resume. And because people enjoy drama, telling a story adds substance behind those facts and figures.

• Remember the elements of telling a successful story. Good stories offer a setting, a situation and a solution. Although it may feel like you are bragging, the overall idea is to show how your actions or decisions made the difference.

So don’t reserve your storytelling skills for just cocktail parties anymore. Unleash your abilities during your next interview and stand out in the employers mind. It could mean the difference between landing a job and remaining unemployed.

This is what Kelly Shepherd discovered during her 10 month long job search. Exhausting her funds and not knowing where to turn, Kelley finally asked a friend who had gone through a similar situation for advice.

Her friend referred her to ERI Personal Marketing and Kelley said she has never been more thankful.

“My marketing director was very helpful,” Kelley said. “He regularly followed-up with me and was very personable. He also regularly encouraged me and helped to keep my spirits up.”

In addition to this constant encouragement, she said that her marketing director also frequently shared stories with her that helped reassure her that the next opportunity would materialize and she just had to stay positive.

“He had great insight and was always ready to listen, interject his experience and help pull me along with a positive perspective,” Kelley said.

She also said that the work ERI did to help her with her resume, letters and personal marketing plan was first class. She said that when she’d come to her marketing director discouraged and full of complaints about the current job market he would give her the encouragement she needed to move forward.

Thanks to ERI’s guidance and support Kelley was eventually able to land a job as advisor for a business consulting firm and now makes $126,000 a year. She said that she’s now happier than ever in her new position and feels that she has a much more promising future at her new firm.

“With ERI’s help I was able to overcome having been unemployed for almost an entire year,” Kelley said.

If you are struggling with unemployment and feel that you could benefit from the advice and encouragement from ERI Personal Marketing you can visit their website at www.executiveresumes.com.

Just ask Larry Williams who learned this valuable lesson the hard way after getting passed over for multiple positions solely because his professional image was under par.

That was until Larry decided to employ the services of SET Personal Marketing. Larry said that with their help he was able to reinvent his image completely, which eventually helped him land a job.

“Reinventing my brand and image became paramount to my success,” Larry said.

He said that, while unspoken, age discrimination was an issue for him during his job search because most companies gave preference to younger candidates. But with the help of his marketing manager, Larry said he learned that selling seasoned skill sets while also projecting a healthy image was key to overcoming that bias.

“I’ve lost 40 pounds over the past year and worked myself back into great shape,” Larry said. “All in an effort to project a younger, healthy, engaged image.”

Before he started working with SET, Larry said that he had a lot of complaints about his personal image, and while he knew it was setting him back in his job hunt, he didn’t know how important changing that was.

He said that SET handled the sensitive subject with class and essentially reminded him how important his own health was. After that, he put SET’s plan into action.

“Interviews proved this to be the correct course of action,” Larry said. “As prospective companies wanted someone with high energy levels, along with expanded skill sets in sales and business development.”

Now, Larry makes more than $150,000 a year at his new position as Senior Sales Executive for a growing firm in Texas.

Larry said that in addition to his increase in income he also has much more challenge and enjoyment in a new industry that offers him better opportunity for advancement.

“In a tough job market, SET’s help reinventing my professional image enabled me to land this great job and make some overdue personal changes,” Larry said.

You can learn more about SET Personal Marketing’s services and read some of their other client’s reviews at www.executivejobhunting.com.