Looking for jobs in new places

The easiest places for job hunters to begin their searches are the classified ads -- either in printed publications such as newspapers or trade magazines, or on online job boards such as Monster, CareerBuilder, or Yahoo's Hot Jobs. In the last year or so, Craigslist has become a hot spot for help wanted ads as well. And there are many online job boards that cater to specific fields, such as JournalismJobs.com for journalists and Dice.com for the tech field.

These resources will get your job hunt off to a solid start. But they are by no means the only resources that you should rely on to help you find a job. In addition to using your network, you'll need to do some research to find out who is hiring.

Many companies have taken to advertising open positions on the "Careers" pages of their Web sites, and not anywhere else. This way, they are guaranteed that job candidates will be familiar with their history, mission statements, products, and anything else that can be read on the Web site. While this is great for the companies, it means that you'll need to invest some time into finding companies in your area that offer the types of jobs you're looking for.

To get started, try these research methods:

1. Check the archives of your local newspaper. Or better yet, get a subscription and read the paper every day. You'll find news about local businesses in several of the paper's sections, and reading the paper regularly will familiarize you with local hiring trends and business growth. Here in Richmond, the local newspaper publishes several annual features that you can use to find hot area businesses. Check out the Richmond Times-Dispatch's list of the area's Top 50 employers and the fastest-growing Rising 25 businesses. These lists area great resources, because these companies are most likely to be hiring and relying on word-of-mouth advertising to find new employees.

2. The Yellow Pages. Believe it or not, traditional phone books can be great job-hunting tools, particularly for career changers and college grads. Look up your field, or topics related to your field, in the Yellow Pages to find local companies that can use your skills. Then use the Internet to research the companies and find out whether they're hiring.

3. Head to the library. The reference librarians at your local library should be able to supply you with tools to help you with your local job hunt -- it's among the services that they offer.