You’ve applied to remote jobs but you still haven’t gotten any remote job offers. What gives?
Chances are it’s because of one of the reasons listed below. Some of these reasons indicate areas you can improve. Others you can’t do anything about. Focus on the areas that you can actually work on to improve your chances for the next position.
Reasons You’re Not Getting Remote Job Offers
1. Your experience didn’t indicate that you could work well remotely.
If you’ve never had any experience working remotely, this can work against you. Working remotely requires you to be self-motivated and have excellent time management skills. Employers want to know that you will do the work how and when you need to.
Tip: If you’ve never worked remotely before, then make sure to highlight past experiences that demonstrate the above skills.
2. The qualifications listed in your resume or highlighted in your interview did not match the needs of the employer.
The hiring committee just didn’t see you as being sufficiently qualified for the job. This could mean that you don’t have a needed credential or there was something missing from your past experiences that gave them pause.
Tip: You can follow up with a hiring committee after you hear that you didn’t get the job. Ask if there were any specific qualifications, skills, or experience that they were looking for in particular but you did not possess.
3. You were negative about a former employer, position—or really anything.
Bad-mouthing anyone, but especially a former employer, is a huge red flag. You can talk about negative experiences, but make sure to highlight the positive outcomes or how you learned from those situations.
4. You’ve applied to any and all jobs that are out there.
It may seem like you’re increasing your odds of landing a job, but you’re not. Make sure to only apply to jobs that you would actually like to have. That way you reserve your energy for the jobs that are worthwhile and you can make a better impression.
5. You didn’t do your research on the company or show that you were really interested in working there.
You don’t have to know everything about a company, but you should do your due diligence and at least have an idea of what the company does and how your role fits into that organization.
Tip: Prepare yourself by coming up with questions about the organization and your role before the interview.
6. Your interview lacked compelling stories.
Stories let people know who you are and how you work – exactly what they want to know in a job interview.
Tip: Prepare stories well in advance. Read our post on how to ace the remote job interview here.
7. You didn’t seem like a good fit for the culture.
The specific reasons may be hard to pin down, but there was something about you that let interviewers feel you wouldn’t fit into the culture. An example would be if you are extremely competitive and the culture was more collaborative in nature.
8. You were unprofessional.
You showed up late, or asked inappropriate questions, or you commented on the interviewers’ age, appearance, etc.
9. There were just too many candidates.
Especially if you’re applying from a remote job search platform, you might be competing with hundreds or thousands of other candidates. Sometimes, the reason you’re not getting remote job offers is as simple as you not standing out in an enormous pool of applicants.
10. They had someone else in mind already.
Every so often you will find positions that are not “true” job postings. Sometimes an organization is already considering someone—or may have already hired them.
11. The position no longer exists.
This one’s a real bummer—sometimes an organization will change its mind completely and decide that the position wasn’t needed (or critical) after all.
So now, what can you do about not getting any remote job offers? Here are our tips:
- Ask for feedback from the hiring committee. There’s no guarantee you’ll get a response, but it’s worth a try.
- Keep on crafting your stories and working on your interview skills. Get the free InterviewUP! ebook from Carole Stizza at Relevant Insight.
- Hone your remote-specific skills with a certification and Acework’s Ultimate Guide to Landing a Remote Job Interview
- Be more intentional about the jobs you choose to apply for.
