Cheezhead Recruiting News and Opinion

Zolio – an online job searching identity site based outside of Cleveland, Ohio – is hoping to revolutionize the way job seekers and employers connect.

Zolio helps job seekers “create your professional identity to get the best job.” In essence, the site allows users to create, manage and showcase their professional identity through one online platform. The site offers job seekers a resume builder, a place to upload work samples and a place to link to other sources such as LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter profiles.

Zolio benefits the typical job seeker in that it allows candidates to present themselves through a multi-media element. Instead of only having a paper resume to show a potential employer, Zolio allows job seekers to showcase their work and experience.

“You’re in essence saving them time,” Andria Trivisonno, co-founder and chief marketing officer with Zolio, said.

Trivisonno said that about 84 percent of employers Google a candidate’s name to find out more information about them. A Zolio gives a job seeker one place to post information an employer might want to know, and the site is indexed by Google, meaning it will automatically show up when an employer searches a candidate’s name.

“It’s really increasing their chances of being seen for the right reasons,” Trivisonno said.

When it began in November of 2007, Zolio was an e-portfolio site for students and recent graduates. However, as more people began signing up for the site, it became clear that many users were older, established professionals. Because of this, Zolio shifted with the changing economy.

“We wanted to figure out what is the need when it comes to job searching,” Trivisonno continued. “Our idea behind it was to make it very, very simple.”

Along with some seed funding and the company’s own contributions, Zolio also received a $100,000 matching grant from the Great Lakes Innovation and Development Enterprise through Lorain County Community College. Overall, the company has received about $250,000 in funding, but says it is always looking for further funding for future initiatives.

Since it launched, Zolio has been growing at a rate of about 30 percent. However, the company hopes growth will continue to increase as it adds more core features and as viral marketing catches on.

“We’ve seen the increase and we’ve seen the users come,” Trivisonno said. “It’s not just Cleveland, it’s all over.”

To help market the site, Zolio has been using the Internet and any other free resources to its advantage, as well as search engine optimization and viral tactics, including Facebook ads and a Facebook fan page.

The company has been conducting some focus groups to see what exactly it is that job seekers need. According to Julie Fink, co-founder and creative director at Zolio, one focus group at Ohio University found that because students are applying for 30 to 50 jobs at a time, they are more concerned with time management than the act of how to find a job. Zolio hopes to focus on that aspect of the job search in the future.

As for other future plans, Trivisonno says the company isn’t short on ideas for the next three to six months. She hopes the site will be able to integrate with other sites, and has been in talks with iViioo about using that company’s video services. She also hopes to add some management tools to the site. She said Zolio as it is now is simply a foundation for a future site that will potentially include new features, applications and software.

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