SEEK review – a way to find better paying roles?

SEEK is an Australian run website aimed at connecting job seekers with job opportunities. SEEK is also a platform for education, volunteering and businesses for sale. SEEK can be a useful way of finding a better paying role. SEEK also provides tips and advice on applying for vacancies to help job seekers improve their chances of success. Read on for the full Seek review.

Verdict: SEEK can be expensive for advertising, but for job seekers it is a reliable, comprehensive way to find a better role or to arm yourself for contract negotiations in order to get a pay rise.

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Introduction – Seek Review

SEEK is an Australian website for job seekers and job advertisers. SEEK as a company has grown over the past 25 years to become a large Australian publicly listed company, with international reach. SEEK the website can be a useful platform to find a better-paying job or a side hustle, which many Australians need to consider, especially with recent inflation. As well as job ads, SEEK also provides applicants with information on improving their application and resume to make them a more competitive candidate.

What is SEEK?

When most people talk about SEEK, it’s with reference to the jobs website, which also provides a platform for education and volunteering opportunities.

SEEK the company started as an Australian human resources company specialising in online job advertising. SEEK was started in 1997 and in 1998, the SEEK website was launched as an online version of employment classified adverts that, up until then, were mainly published in newspapers.

SEEK is now an Australian publicly listed company with its head office in Melbourne. Since its inception, SEEK has expanded to include 12 countries in the Asia Pacific and Latin American markets such as China, Brazil, Singapore and South Africa.

This SEEK review will focus predominantly on the Australian SEEK jobs website, seek.com.au

SEEK – Australia’s no. 1 jobs, employment, career and recruitment site

What do people use SEEK for?

Initially, SEEK was a website for advertising job vacancies. Employers advertise vacancies on SEEK and potential employees can then search and apply for jobs through the website. Over time, SEEK has grown to include course opportunities, volunteering vacancies and businesses for sale.

SEEK also has information tips and advice on how to make yourself a competitive job candidate, such as how to apply for a job, write a grammatically correct resume and what to put in your profile.

Resumes – SEEK Career Advice

Is SEEK a reliable website?

SEEK is a well-known job searching site and has a good reputation for hosting legitimate job vacancies. However, online reviews indicate scam jobs can also be advertised on the site.

As well as small businesses, SEEK is used by large companies, government departments and non-government agencies to advertise their current job vacancies. SEEK can be a useful way to find many job vacancies in your chosen field.

Is SEEK only for Australia?

The website seek.com.au is designed for the Australian jobs market. On the site there is a link to the New Zealand equivalent, seek.co.nz. When you are searching for jobs there can be positions located in other world cities such as London, in the location dropdown menu. So while the site caters to the Australian jobs market, some positions may be based overseas.

While the seek.com.au website is targeted at Australia, SEEK the company has many different websites that target different international jobs markets. This includes Zhaopin for the Chinese market and JobKorea for the Korean market, amongst many others.

About SEEK – About – SEEK

How long do jobs stay on SEEK?

When an employer advertises a job on SEEK, they have to pay for the ad and the usual timeframe they pay for a job ad to remain active is 30 days. If the employer finds a suitable applicant, the job may be closed earlier than that. Sometimes an employee may be appointed, and the employer doesn’t close off the ad straight away. So while an ad may be up for 30 days, it’s best to apply early to increase your chances of success.

How do employers contact you on SEEK?

If you apply for a job on SEEK, then the employer will have the contact information you have provided. Employers can search profiles and contact those job seekers that may be suitable for a vacancy. This means even if you’re not looking for a job right now, employers may still contact you about an opportunity. Employers may contact you via email. Also, employers can send you a link to their advert if they think you’re the right fit.

The ability of the employer to contact you rests in the privacy settings you have on your profile. So if you have your profile ‘hidden’ then employers won’t be able to contact you.

“I never dreamed about success. I worked for it”

Estee Lauder

Advantages of using SEEK

• SEEK is a well know job seeking platform
• SEEK provides access to lots of vacancies in many fields
• Provides tips and advice for getting the right job
• You can search the available jobs for free
• You don’t need to register or have a profile to use the job search function
•  If you have a profile, you are visible to employers who are proactively looking for candidates, unless your profile is set to ‘hidden’
• You control the privacy setting of your profile

Disadvantages of using SEEK

• Online customer reviews indicate some adverts may be scams
• Expensive for small businesses to advertise
• Some employer reviews may not be published
• Reviews of poor customer service – such as these on ProductReview.com.au

FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) about Seek:

Can my employer see my SEEK profile?

SEEK does not have a way of hiding your SEEK profile from your current employer. You can set your profile privacy settings to limit the visible information, but that setting applies to any employer that may view your profile.

Sometimes employers may actively look on SEEK for potential candidates, however, they can only see the information you have uploaded onto your profile, and you control the profile visibility settings. Employers use SEEK Talent Search to access profiles.

If your employer places an ad and you apply for it, then they would be able to see the information in your application, as well as your profile. What employers can see on your SEEK profile can be restricted by the privacy settings that you control. Your privacy settings can be set to show a lot, a little, or to hide it.

SEEK profile settings are much like any platform on the internet, where people balance what to reveal online, versus maintaining privacy. However, the more information a potential employer has about your work skills, the better your chances of getting the job.

How much does SEEK cost?

Seek is free to use for job candidates. However, SEEK charges employers to place an advert on the site.

Generally, there are 3 price levels for an advert. Ad prices tend to change depending on a variety of factors, such as the type of job being advertised and job demand. As an example, SEEK jobs ads can cost the following:

·        Classic – $285 plus GST for a standard ad for 30 days

·        Premium – $650 plus GST with a featured ad for 30 days

·        Guaranteed Hire – $1 495 plus GST for 30 days, with SEEK writing the advert for you and guaranteed results or your money back.

SEEK Employer: Login & Find Talent

Can I see how much the SEEK job pays?

When an employer submits an ad to SEEK, they select how much the job pays, and whether to display that information in the advert or not. Even if the employer has elected to withhold that information, you can still get a rough idea of the pay rate by setting the “Pay” range in the dropdown menu of the job search function. If you’re looking for a betting paying job, this can be a good way of working out if the job is a step up, step sideways or a step-down.

What company owns SEEK?

SEEK is a publicly listed company on the Australian Stock Exchange, so essentially, the shareholders own SEEK.

Do I need a SEEK profile?

While SEEK aims to position itself as a one-stop shop for job hunters, the truth is, you don’t need to register or have a profile to use SEEK to find or apply for many jobs.

Anyone can jump on SEEK to see which positions are being advertised right now – just read to the end of this SEEK review before you go though!!

Some advertisers, like government departments, may advertise on SEEK, but they usually have the same job advertised on the government jobs site. Not all government jobs are on SEEK, there is usually a policy that dictates which jobs need to be advertised widely enough to warrant the expense of a SEEK advert. So you may become aware a job is available through SEEK, you don’t always need a SEEK profile to apply for the job, you could just apply through the government site.

If you create a profile, you need to set your privacy setting to control the information that potential employers can see.

Let’s say you’re a pilot and are looking for a side hustle as a beekeeper. You will (or perhaps, should) have a different resume to tailor it to the type of job you’re applying for. If you apply for a beekeeper job and submit a beekeeping resume, the employer will be able to see it. But if you’ve uploaded a pilot resume to your profile and have the settings open, then the employer will also be able to see that version as well. While you may be happy to discuss at the interview how you’ll make the two jobs work, you don’t want to be ruled out of a job by an employer making an assumption on what your other commitments may be.

Alternatively, if you want to apply for a job through SEEK, then you will need a profile.

SEEK – My Profile

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.”

Steve Jobs

Summary – Seek Review

SEEK is a website for job hunters and employers advertising a job vacancy. SEEK is an Australian based company. SEEK as a company has been around for 25 years and has grown to become one of the top 50 Australian publicly listed companies.

SEEK is a comprehensive platform when looking for a side hustle or better-paying career. As well as access to a wide range of job ads in multiple fields, SEEK also gives job seekers information on how to write a resume and apply for a job. SEEK can also provide job seekers with information on training and volunteering opportunities. Overall, SEEK can be a useful ally for finding that better paying job.

Don’t forget, you can always train yourself up by educating yourself. There are a wealth of business/personal development books out there to build your knowledge or inspire you to continue with self-education – check out my library here.