I know that another think that frustrates job seekers is the lack of response they receive from HR. I recently encountered a situation with a client that can and will prevent potential employers from contacting you.

She had an automated spam blocker and response section on her e-mail. The problem was that the ISP she was using for e-mail did not make the spam blocker user-friendly. I had to input it my information multiple times over the course of a week.

Be advised, employers will not be nearly as patient and will move on to the next candidate. Make yourself accessible. You may say, we’ll if they’re really interested, they will call. Not necessarily, if they want to communicate exclusively through e-mail then that’s how they will communicate. Don’t assume an employer will go out of their way to contact you. In this market, they won’t.

To eliminate the possibility of this, create an e-mail account exclusively for job search. I recommend Google e-mail or gmail. It has excellent spam filter settings on it, is compatible with everything, and doesn’t require an extra step. The only spam I have received on gmail are from the businesses to which I have responded.

Employers rarely send anything by snail mail anymore, so you don’t necessarily need to worry about including your home address on the resume. Including your city, sate, and zip code along with e-mail, cell phone, and possibly home phone is becoming more and more acceptable.

Another issue I tend to occasionally encounter is with voice mail messages. Job seekers, everything you put out there is noticed by employers. I’ll save social networking for another post. Think of your voice mail. Most employers are either going to e-mail you or call. If they encounter your voice mail, ensure that you give a professional presence.

Rather than an automated voice mail message where they’re not sure if it’s you or not, leave a short and sweet personal voice mail message. Something like, “This is (state your name). I’m sorry that I missed your call, please be sure to leave your name, number, and a brief message and I will return your call as soon as possible.” Don’t include messages with music in the background, or with barking dogs, laughter, children crying, or any other noise.

On home phones, leave children off of the answering machine. Again, short and sweet. If you’d like to say, this is the (last name) household, please leave a message and the appropriate family member will return your call as soon as possible.

Keep these tips in mind if you want employers to leave messages. Good luck.