Summary:
Job searching in today’s economy can be very difficult. This article will help the reader conduct a comprehensive job search campaign that will help ensure success. Learn what to do (and not to do), where to look, and how to be successful.

Keywords:
career, career advice, job, job search, online job search

Article Body:
Conducting a job search is a daunting task, even for seasoned professionals. There are many pieces to the puzzle, and each piece plays its own important role in the process. Knowing the pieces of the process is a crucial element for your success.

While there is no such thing as doing too much, there is a basic guide to follow. It consists of five painless steps that will outline your work ahead. Together, they form the foundation of a job hunt that will yield exceptional results.

1. Put together a great resume.

Before your job search ever begins, you need a resume. The resume is the first contact you will have with a prospective employer. It is an extension of your life and a summary of your accomplishments. It is how a manager will pick you out of hundreds…possibly thousands of applicants. It can mean the difference between exciting job interviews and a phone that never rings, between success and failure.

This is a complex task for two pages (maximum) of paper. That’s right, two little pages to talk about your education, job experience, accomplishments and awards, special skills, training, professional experience/affiliation, and so on. Basically, you need to sum up your life, and make it interesting, in two pages.

There are numerous websites that can help with writing a bullet proof resume. Some offer free information and examples for you to follow, and some will write the resume for you (for a fee of course). Careerbuilder.com is an excellent website for writing and posting your resume.

Professional resume writing, when done by a human resource expert, can give you a significant edge over the competition. You can expect to pay $100 or more for this service, and can be well worth the money. However, before hiring someone to write it for you be sure to check their credentials.

2. Determine the locations you may want to live.

Once you have your resume polished and shiny, its time to think about where you want to live. Determining a location can have a significant impact on your income earning potential. Some jobs are concentrated in certain areas and the pay can be dramatically more than where you live. For example, the vast majority of computer programming jobs in the U.S. are in Silicon Valley, California. Jobs there can pay up to five times more than other parts of the country.

Unfortunately, pay isn’t everything. To accurately assess your situation, other factors must come into play. Cost of living, for example, can be dramatically different from one city to another. A $50,000 a year income in Mobile, Alabama is equal to over $122,350 in Manhattan, New York, a 145% increase.

Other factors,