Cheezhead

Amid buzz that CareerBuilder’s foray into video resumes failed because of poor execution, a second experimental project by the job board has been quietly gaining traction in the business networking community.

BrightFuse, a business-oriented social networking site that CareerBuilder launched back in February 2008, has accumulated a following of around 75,000 members, according to Richard Castellini, CB’s VP of Consumer Marketing.

“We looked at social networking and at the networking arena and we saw that it’s something that’s not going away, and that CareerBuilder should be involved with and understand it, so we launched BrightFuse,” Castellini said. “What’s always been the number one way for people to recruit is referrals, which is essentially networking, and it makes sense for us to provide our job seekers with a platform for which they can develop themselves from a professional standpoint.”

BrightFuse’s membership base is small compared to competitor LinkedIn’s 27 million members, but CareerBuilder’s Consumer Products Director Liz Harvey said they are targeting an entirely different demographic than the average LinkedIn user, reported to be in their 40s with an average salary of $100K per year.

“LinkedIn is a place where you can come and document the network,” Harvey said. “We have a very different user base on CareerBuilder and Brightfuse. It’s more of a place for the masses and not that upper echelon of candidates. We really want people who might be early in their career and don’t have a professional network yet to be able to establish those relationships. ”

Castellini added, “If you look at the world of Linkedin and if you even talk to the folks there, they will tell you that they’re wanting to stay in the world where the candidates in that area are more the ones that are going be recruited via a retained or contingency search, while someone like a CareerBuilder is more built for a whole wide range of candidates. We surveyed our users, and less than 20 percent had even heard of LinkedIn.”

Castellini said with some marketing strategies that he’s unable to discuss because they’re still in infancy stages, he’s confident that the network will grow rapidly over the next 12 months. So far membership has been driven by word-of-mouth and different touch points on the CareerBuilder site.

“We’re using all of the CareerBuilder weight behind it and pushing it where it’s appropriate,” Castellini said. “We’re still in a beta/alpha-ish phase which is why you haven’t seen us doing a massive amount of press releases or major advertising to promote it. We’re evolving the product every day.”

Setting up a profile on BrightFuse was quick and easy and took about five to ten minutes. I was immediately sent 115 contacts of people with similar backgrounds in my area. As a member of LinkedIn who does not fall within their average demographic (I am in my 20s, and if a journalist out there is making 100K+, someone please tell my boss), I found the contacts to be more accessible. And the best part is, it’s all free.

Castellini said that one of the most exciting parts of this particular product launch for the CareerBuilder team is being apart of something that’s on target with an entrepreneurial spirit but still within the CB family.

“For someone like Liz or myself, who have both been at CareerBuilder a long time, we’ve been excited to be a part of something that’s young and growing. It’s fun to be rolling up our sleeves again and digging in to craft what the vision of this product, what this community is going to look for. Because it’s a social network you get that feedback from the network that is helping you craft and helping you better understand what they’re going to want.”