Why Only Using Job Boards Could Be Hurting Your Job Search

If your whole job search lives on Indeed, LinkedIn, and CareerBuilder.…you’re missing a huge chunk of real jobs. At Next Step Resumes, I see this all the time. Job seekers get stuck surfing the boards and miss opportunities that live elsewhere.

The truth is that companies don’t post every opening on job boards. Many employers only post on their careers page because job boards are super expensive. If you’re not checking company sites, you are seeing maybe half of the actual openings. For smaller companies with limited marketing budgets, you could be missing all their job postings.

Job boards are also full of stale or ghost postings. If you think this isn’t true, take it from a recruiter who worked for a company that lived and died by their ghost posts – it’s true. Jobs may already be filled, canceled, or posted just to look busy. Company websites give you the most accurate picture of what is really available.

Another benefit of applying directly is that it shows intentionality. Hiring managers and recruiters notice when someone takes the time to go to their site and submit an application. It demonstrates genuine interest in the organization and the role.

At Next Step Resumes, I don’t recommend abandoning the job boards altogether. They’re great for setting up alerts and doing research, but using company websites to submit your applications increases your chances of getting noticed. It also helps you avoid wasting time on positions that aren’t really open.

Helpful tip: You can use AI tools to search for jobs at specific companies by name, location, or role. While it won’t uncover “hidden” jobs, it can save a lot of time compared to checking each company’s website manually. Because who’s got time for that!