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>If everyone thought like that'd it'd be a race towards some pretty unethical and/or immoral behaviours. Strategies like this have been around for decades, yet

>If everyone thought like that'd it'd be a race towards some pretty unethical and/or immoral behaviours. Strategies like this have been around for decades, yet somehow most people are NOT willing to put in the extra work to execute on it. Donny Deutsch did something similar, "Donny pitched a TV account, Tri-State Pontiac dealers. (Just to get into the pitch, Donny sent car parts to the home of the Pontiac rep. He sent a fender with a note that read, “We’ll cover your rear end.” http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/features/n_8669/ http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/features/n_8669/ There was that fellow who ran linkedin ads to get investors attention to get into Angelpad http://thehustle.co/the-linkedin-hack-that-made-me-120000 http://thehustle.co/the-linkedin-hack-that-made-me-120000 8 Years ago I was trying to get an interview at Neo@Ogilvy as a search marketer. I sent my resume several times with no results. I spent the extra time to really think about what would make me stand out and I designed my resume to look like a search results page and got a call from them within 10 hours of applying. This was because the key to advertising design is imagery that supports the message. It demonstrated my appreciation of the nuances of effective advertising. Direct mail marketers have been promoting Lumpy Mail or 3D Mail as a way to make sure your mailer gets noticed, opened, and read. (i.e. putting bulky thinks in the mail so It can't be put on the bottom of a junk mail pile.) These are not really even hacks, it is one of the rules of the game. If you go the extra mile demonstrating you care enough to stand out, you earned the attention you get. I don't think these tactics are a slippery slope at all. It's no different than Sam Altman flying across the country to meet a company (that didnt want to meet with him) that was about to sign with a competitor, or PokerShare.com training a Chimp to play poker and bring it on tour. There is a world of difference between being clever and being unethical. Edit: Grammar

holografix 10y ago
Thanks for your response, between your comments and someone's previous answer it's clear how I disregarded how a Marketing professional would view this. I find your résumé example acceptable and easy to understand, by what you did, I as a recruiter looking for someone with graph design skills would get a better understanding of your skills. The direct mail and poker playing monkey examples I find poor - for me they get classified as the "who screams louder" type tactics they don't add anything of value, they just benefit the individual who wants an outcome of their target. Someone else here said something about how "Analytical types" find comfort in rules and I have definitely been described as an analytical even though I'm very comfortable breaking certain rules (bureaucracy mostly) I'm uncomfortable feeling like a "cheater", in other words: I want to deserve. Also coming from a 3rd world country where a lot of benefits, specially in government, are achieved through bribery and nepotism I'm probably overly sensitive about it. Jesus! Enough about me though!
- cestith 10y ago
  I think this particular candidate was comfortable breaking the usual hiring process as he felt that was bureaucratic. I don't think the cost of a box of donuts amounts to bribery in Silicon Valley, and he's not a friend or family member so it's not nepotism. What he did was get noticed, even though it's a bit of a gimmick. Do you remember the Million Dollar Homepage? That worked because it was a novel idea. Nobody made it big on a copycat site. Similarly, this fellow stood out and that got him interviews. However if lots of people start trying this same method it'll fail quickly as a means to get interviews. I do think sending a portfolio of work is much better than just a resume. This guy made himself part of his portfolio, which for a marketing position is a great thing but which won't scale to every candidate showing up with donuts for every position. Thankfully programmers can send code and graphic designers can send images.

holografix 10y ago

Thanks for your response, between your comments and someone's previous answer it's clear how I disregarded how a Marketing professional would view this. I find your résumé example acceptable and easy to understand, by what you did, I as a recruiter looking for someone with graph design skills would get a better understanding of your skills. The direct mail and poker playing monkey examples I find poor - for me they get classified as the "who screams louder" type tactics they don't add anything of value, they just benefit the individual who wants an outcome of their target. Someone else here said something about how "Analytical types" find comfort in rules and I have definitely been described as an analytical even though I'm very comfortable breaking certain rules (bureaucracy mostly) I'm uncomfortable feeling like a "cheater", in other words: I want to deserve. Also coming from a 3rd world country where a lot of benefits, specially in government, are achieved through bribery and nepotism I'm probably overly sensitive about it. Jesus! Enough about me though!

cestith 10y ago
I think this particular candidate was comfortable breaking the usual hiring process as he felt that was bureaucratic. I don't think the cost of a box of donuts amounts to bribery in Silicon Valley, and he's not a friend or family member so it's not nepotism. What he did was get noticed, even though it's a bit of a gimmick. Do you remember the Million Dollar Homepage? That worked because it was a novel idea. Nobody made it big on a copycat site. Similarly, this fellow stood out and that got him interviews. However if lots of people start trying this same method it'll fail quickly as a means to get interviews. I do think sending a portfolio of work is much better than just a resume. This guy made himself part of his portfolio, which for a marketing position is a great thing but which won't scale to every candidate showing up with donuts for every position. Thankfully programmers can send code and graphic designers can send images.