Looking for an online job can be a daunting project for even those of us who’ve been online for several years. But for someone just starting out in this digital employment world, it can be nothing short of overwhelming. Helping us out on our journey, we’ve got another great article by Tammy:

The Classic Do’s and Don’ts of a Work At Home Job Search
By Tammy Embrich

Many work at home job seekers are on a mission today, especially due to the critical, economic conditions of today’s society. It’s unfortunate that a significant number of individuals have lost their brick and mortar jobs and are in desperate need of some income. Some of these job seekers are steadily searching for their ideal job online.

Sadly, I see people everyday go about searching for a home job the wrong way. Basically, they simply don’t know WHERE to search and end up looking in the wrong places. Well of course, this puts them more at risk of getting scammed. Also…they go about searching with the wrong attitude or they are searching for only one type of job and are set on finding that specific job and nothing else. One needs to realize…there are various work at home options available.

I have put together some helpful do’s and don’ts when searching for an online job. Take your time in reading through them.

Do take the time to create a professional, well-written resume, including a cover letter. A legitimate company will require this from you. You will need to proportion your resume for the specific job you are searching for.

Below are some helpful sites for creating a resume…

http://www.quintcareers.com/resume-dos-donts.html

http://www.resume-resource.com/ – offers free resume templates, guides, and more
http://www.jobsearchtech.about.com/library/weekly/aa082597-3.htm – lots of free and inexpensive resume sites
http://www.tbrnet.com/resumes/resume-examples-and-formats.php3 – offers a free trial account

Do keep submitting your resume and applying consistently. It may take several times before you land a job. You need to be patient and submit to a LOT more than just a handful of companies.

Do make a chart of the job companies that you have submitted your resume to, including the date. This will come in handy and won’t result with you double submitting.

Do take breaks from your time on searching. If you devote ALL your energy on job searches, you’ll get stressed out, frustrated, and most likely give up.

Do visit job boards regularly.

Below are a few job boards for your searches…

http://www.careerbuilder.com/

http://www.indeed.com/

http://www.genuinejobs.com/

http://www.ratracerebellion.com/

http://www.careerbank.com/

Do visit work at home forums regularly. Set up an account on these forums and ask questions about specific companies and find out some of the well-known scams out there.

Below are a few forums for your searches…

http://www.real-wah-jobs.com/forum/

http://www.worldwideworkathome.com/forum/

http://www.wahm.com/forum/

http://www.wahcheck.com/forum/default.aspx

http://www.freelancemom.com/forum/index.php

Do visit work at home related websites

Do visit work at home blogs. Blogs have become progressively popular and a lot of them list job leads regularly.

Do tell all your friends to spread the word that you are searching for a job online. These friends will tell their friends and so on.

Do your own research on the companies that you would like to apply. It’s so easy these days to fall for all the scams that clutter the Internet.

Now for the Don’ts

Don’t approach your work at home search with a bad attitude and think that all job opportunities are scams. There are legitimate positions to be found.

Don’t set your mind on just one type of job. Be open-minded and explore all your options, according to your skill sets.

Don’t apply for a job online before researching the company first to check for scams.

Below are a few sites for searching for scam companies

http://www.bbb.org/

http://www.ftc.gov/

http://www.ripoffreport.com/

http://www.scambusters.org/

You can also type the company name into Google.com and the word scam to find any bad reports.

Don’t pay for a work at home job. Of course there are a few exceptions to this. For a customer service position, you will most likely be required to purchase a head set. For transcription work, you will need a foot pedal. A company may also require a background check from you.

Don’t be afraid to ask for assistance with your search. Forums are excellent for asking questions. Create a career-networking relationship with the members of the forum.

Don’t let the poor economic conditions of society stop you from consistently applying for jobs.

Don’t quit your brick and mortar job before securing a work at home position that matches your income.

Hopefully, the above tips will assist in securing a legitimate home-based opportunity. Happy job hunting!

Article Written By: Tammy Embrich

Tammy owns and operates two work at home websites, a work at home forum, a recipe site and three blogs.
She offers free work at home job leads for the job seeker, business work at home articles, tips, and more. You can visit Tammy at Work At Home Jobs and Work At Home Forums/.

There are a lot of scams out there and there are a lot of opportunities that would not fall into the ’scam’ range, but, are just not exactly worth your time. You have to be smart and keep your wits about you when trying to obtain work at home. Tammy Embrich has seen her fair share of scams, rip offs and just plain crummy opportunities and she has written a great article to get you thinking about how to protect yourself – and your time and your money – in this arena.

Work At Home Jobs–3 Questions To Consider Before Applying
By Tammy Embrich

I’ve been in the work at home industry for nearly ten years and I’m still dismayed at all the work at home job scams that I see. But there is one difference over the years…unfortunately, these scammers have grown much wiser at scamming the average home job seeker. These same desperate searchers keep falling for these scams time and time again and of course, this only sets them up for even MORE fear of being scammed. And sadly, it all makes perfect sense that they end up giving up.

What most people don’t know…there is a solution to this. You can prevent yourself from being the fallen victim of a deceitful Internet scam! The secret is knowing exactly what to look out for when conducting a search for a legitimate work at home job.

Below are the three basic factors to look for in the legitimacy of an online company

1) Does the company provide contact information?

Contact with the employer is the most important. If you’re going to work for an employer, of course you will need to easily communicate with that person. Same as an offline job…you need communication. A legitimate company will always provide a real working phone number and/or a email address.

2) Does the company explain in detail exactly what you will be doing?

If the company is vague about what you will be doing and also states that you will easily earn X amount of dollars in a very short time, then you can bet it’s a scam. If you see this on a company website, don’t read any further…move onto the next job lead.

3) Does the company ask for start up fees or registration fees?

You should never have to pay for a work at home job. A legitimate company will not require start up or registration fees from you. The only fees that may be required from you is from a background check, headset (usually for customer support work), or a foot pedal (for transcription work). Sometimes you will find a company that will pay for all equipment needed to complete the job duties. But, if a company requires fees other than for stated above, then they are a scam. Don’t waste your money and fall for these schemes.

By following the above tips, hopefully your job search will be considerably less difficult and more importantly…you won’t be scammed from your efforts.

One Last Tip: If the job sounds “too good to be true,” than it most likely is.

For example: If the company states you will have guaranteed earnings of $25 per hour or more, I’d be skeptical of such a statement, and I would be sure to contact the employer directly to back this up. Always follow your gut instincts.

Much success to you with your work at home job search!

Article Written By Tammy Embrich

You can find more articles by Tammy by visiting Work At Home Jobs

Tammy also offers free work at home job leads, free business tips, work at home articles, and more work at home resources at Work At Home Forums