Marketing Headhunter

Social Media and Your Ecommerce Job Interview

NEW YORK, NY - Let's face it: Even after three years of exposure to the medium, there's still a lot more heat than light surrounding the use of social media in ecommerce marketing. I know I'm going to get this statistic wrong, but it's directionally correct: Kevin Hillstrom of MineThatData.com reported earlier this year that social media seems to account for half of the trade show chatter in the multichannel ecommerce space but only 4% of the revenues. That number sure feels right.

Here's why I bring this up: Almost all of my ecommerce candidates these days are being asked to address social media in their job interviews. Like, across the board: Email marketing managers, affiliate marketing managers, paid search candidates, merchandising and usability folks, Directors of Online Marketing, VPs of Ecommerce.

Everyone, it seems, is expected to have a teachable point of view [page 2] on social media and know how this channel will influence their own functional area.  Now more than ever: In lean, flat, knowledge-intensive, team-based organizations -- to teach is to lead.  You can't just hit home runs while being a lone wolf in the clubhouse.  You gotta raise the batting average of everyone in your dugout.

Which is why I think you ought to take three minutes and watch Andrew Davis, Chief Strategy Officer at Tippingpoint Labs, as he explains the social media influence pyramid.  This is a simple, back of the envelop concept that will make any ecommerce job candidate look smart in an ecommerce job interview. Check it out for Andrew's content -- but notice also how he presents this material.  Food for thought.

UPDATE: Check out this FREE special report from Bain & Co. on social media and ecommerce.  Very nice.

Salary Negotiations: "Why salary ranges are B.S."

I wont beat around the bush: Salary ranges are total bullshit. There. I said it.

I mean, what's the point?  When you bought your house, did the seller quote a range?  And if he did, which end of the range did you hear?  The low end or the high end?  The low end, of course, and that became your starting point in the final negotiations -- unless you're smart, in which case you started negotiating below the lowest end of the range, making the seller work you back up to his stated minimum.

Irregardless, as a negotiating concept, ranges are ridiculous and tend to destroy a deal's momentum.

Why do clients use them?  Well, because when a client tells her recruiter "The range for this position is $170K to $220K," what she actually means is "We want a $220K candidate for $170K" -- even though she might have added some nonsense like "Well, for the right person, we'd pay $220K."  Like, duh.  It's not as if you'd pay a search fee for the wrong candidate.  Obviously.

Now here's the tricky part:

How should a recruiter market this search?  Should he advertise $170-220K?  How about the mid-point, say $195K?  The problem is one of managing the candidate's expectations.  A higher number always helps to attract the best candidates, but there's always the chance that the client will low-ball any eventual offer, thereby pissing off the candidate and possibly rupturing the deal.

On the other hand, a lower number will suppress the response of the market's best candidates.  Trust me, there is a correlation between price and quality in the world of talent, and it's the recruiter's job to source the world best candidates for his clients.  Sounds audacious, but it's true.  The recruiter must protect the client from their own process.

What's the solution?

ON THE CLIENT SIDE:  The recruiter needs to make sure that his client understands that the spread between his client's and candidate's needs will be lost in the rounding of the value that the candidate will create in the new role.  Specifically, the recruiter must credibly establish how his candidate has historically increased sales while decreasing cost of goods sold, operating expense, tax exposure, accounts receivable, inventory, accounts payable, fixed assets, and accrued liabilities.

If this sounds unrealistic, it isn't.  In fact, this is what a $200K general manager is supposed to do.  Yet most executive level candidates do a lousy job of quantifying the value to potential employers.  I have several spreadsheets I use with my candidates to help them assess the cash value that they created for their previous employers -- and they can use these tools to estimate their impact on my client's top and bottom lines.  For real.

ON THE CANDIDATE SIDE: The recruiter must brace his candidate for a low-ball offer and coach him not to take it personally.  Any recruiter worth his salt simply must tell his candidate to expect the client to bounce their first pitch in the dirt.  It's all part of the game, and deals fall apart when candidates take these things personally.  (And they do.)

Beyond that, all candidate's must not only understand what the "market" is for their skills, but also what the client can fairly afford without feeling burned by the process.  To quote any economist worth her salt, "You are looking for the optimal point on the efficiency curve."  After all, candidates, you'll need your honeymoon period in the new job -- and running roughshod over your new employer in a salary negotiation will only shorten it.  Leave a few bucks on the table, but not so many that you feel cheapened by the process.

To understand what the client can fairly afford, ask your recruiter:

1. What did the last guy make?
2. Does the company feel like the last guy was underpaid or overpaid?
3. Why did the previous guy leave?  Have your recruiter find out!
4. What did he make in his new job elsewhere?
5. Are there any internal candidates under consideration for the position?

Internal candidates are often underpaid, and even if an internal candidate got a raise in the new job -- her comp would likely be less than what an external candidate (like you) would cost in terms of base salary.  As with any negotiation, it pays to do one's homework.

For future reference, please bookmark this post in Delicious.

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