Vernon Hills man starts online video cover letter service for job seekers

As the unemployment rate continues to rise, more jobseekers need an extra boost to get noticed.

That's why Vernon Hills resident Steven Brooks recently launched Guugos.com, a service that creates a video cover letter for job-seekers and then posts the link to the site.

"It's always bothered me that cover letters often don't say anything," said Brooks. "Many times people will just put in what's part of the job requirements, like 'I have so many years of experience or can speak two languages.' "

That doesn't give much insight into the candidate's personality and ability to handle themselves, he said.

But Brooks believes a video cover letter will help boost a candidate's chance to be seen and heard, a step up on the pile of printed resumes and possibly provide a foot in the door.

So far, some attorneys, manufacturing executives and IT people have done videos via Guugos.com, he said.

To participate, go to the Web site and select whether you want the professional package, for $200, or the college level, for students about to graduate or who are recent graduates, for $150. The site provides a package of information, including questions to answer about character, personality, likes and dislikes and other items, Brooks said.

"We also do some coaching in advance," said Brooks, a former sales executive with Computer Associates and IBM.

At the studio in Chicago, candidates should dress as if arriving for an actual job interview. The studio staff will provide makeup and help to rehearse what to say before the lights and camera go on.

They'll shoot roughly 10 minutes of video and audio, as a director leads with questions for the candidate to answer. Later, those questions are cut out and the final version only features the candidate speaking for about 1 1/2 minutes.

Guugos.com then provides a link to the client's finished online video that can be circulated through social and professional networking sites, e-mailed to job prospects, and used on printed materials for one year, Brooks said.

"We hope they get a job by then," he said.

Surfing: Kids as young as 8 in Illinois are texting and using mobile phones, while those as young as 12 are setting up social media Web sites, according to a report issued this week by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan. The office surveyed about 4,200 schoolchildren.

•About 50 percent of information technology professionals said managing costs is their organization's business priority in 2010, ahead of improving customer satisfaction (42 percent) and leaving increasing market share in third place (37 percent), according to CDW Corp. study.

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