26 Tips

Tip 19

Don’t be afraid to follow up the letter with a telephone call. It’s a very good way of getting feed-back on the style of your letter and it shows that you are keen.

How do I find potential employers?
There are a number of directories that you can try. The most common is the telephone directory – especially Yellow Pages, as this will list employers by the type of business that they are involved in.

There is a website (www.yell.com) that provides the same information, making searching a bit easier. But remember, if you want an Apprenticeship in plumbing, you may need to think of other searches besides ‘plumbers’ - there are companies offering ‘building services’ who would also employ plumbers, so try to widen your searches.

There are other trade directories like Kompass and Kelly’s that you could use. You should find these in your local library and they also have websites at www.kompass.co.uk and www.kellysearch.co.uk although these may require you to pay a subscription to access the information.

There are many trade journals and professional publications that you could look through. They will contain articles about featured employers but there are also usually sections in the back pages on job vacancies.

You may find copies of relevant ones in your local college or university that you can look through. You may also be able to find information on potential employers through the relevant Sector Skills Council website. The SSCs were established to improve skills and productivity in particular sectors. There are 25 in total. For a list of these, including details on their websites and contact numbers, click here.

What more can I do?
There is no point in doing a lot of hard work to find a prospective employer if you don’t have the qualifications or skills that the employer is looking for, or that 'something extra' that will persuade the employer to choose you. So consider doing some of the following: Tip 20, Tip 21 and Tip 22.