Job hunting is balls, especially when you're fresh to the industry and have little more to your name than some spec work and a wild hope. Where do all those LinkedIn job submissions go, anyway? Nowhere you can follow, my friend.
The worst, though, is when you finally do get the recruiter's name and it's like trying to decrypt the Riddle of the Sphinx just to get them to look at you. That's why designer and maker Cassondra Bazelow is coding up Responsive Recruiter Bot, a Facebook Messenger bot that, if nothing else, will at least give you the time of day. (Just don't expect to get many words in edgewise.)
Open the link. Click on "Chat now." When Messenger opens, hit "Get Started" to launch a dreamy recruitment convo:
She kicks off with flattery! She responds so fast! And while you may never learn the agency's name, you'll be told its princely perks: No banner ads. No client reviews. An open floor plan desk by a corner window. Do what you want, put it on TV, everyone will love it. See your family. Guaranteed 8+ hours of sleep. But the best line by far is "I've been authorized to offer you more money than you're asking for."
In short, it's a sex bot for people who are sick of hearing "We'll keep your portfolio on file." To fully complete the fantasy, just close your eyes, lean back and fill in the agency's name for yourself.
Doesn't that feel good?
The bot's still in development, so we won't spoil its ending for you, but we also don't recommend you throw your Bamboo Pad in the air and quit right now. Meanwhile, people on the recruitment end of things can play with a bot, too: Bazelow has her own Cassondra Bot, which is right on her portfolio contact page. She's a fun interviewee. We played 10 Things and a Lie with her:
Unlike with Rosie the Recruiter, however, we sense that playing with Cassondra Bot may actually lead to a happily ever after—one where a real person appears in a real office, ready to jam.
We know. We checked.
If there's a moral to this story, it's probably this: As expectations have changed for brands and agencies, so too have they changed for people. It's no longer all that efficient to simply push content—be it a wordy print ad or a wordy CV—and expect flocks of interest.
Build experiences. You know the rest of this speech, so we'll leave you to it.
