Beyond the Résumé

Video résumés

• Aw. Remember when video résumés were the province of Real World–ers and especially precocious college applicants? Nowadays, there are some 3,600 visumés on YouTube, most of them tragicomic. Websites like the New York–based Resume Video (resumevideo.com) strive to help job seekers stand out from the teeming pack. But with a price tag averaging $500 to $1,500 a pop, a pro video is a caviar dream to someone who is ostensibly jobless.

• YouTube is the broke man’s liberator, but sitting in your filthy shoebox of a bedroom yammering about your skill sets isn’t going to land you a job. Execs today want cool. They want hot. They want Valerie Baber . The Brooklyn Heights bikini model is a regular on YouTube. She uses it to post “lighthearted, sexy entertainment for men,” which usually means plugging a favorite product in nothing but lingerie. The intent is twofold: to titillate, but also to attract the attention of potential employers. “Before I knew it, sponsors came hunting me down,” says the 27-year-old Oklahoma transplant. “Although I didn’t get sponsorship for my all-time-favorite product [Ketel One], I did get to meet with the VP of regional sales. We now keep in touch, and who knows, it could lead to a job in the future.”

• There’s a lesson here: Know your audience and act accordingly. If the company you’re trying to bed is a prude, maybe you should seduce her on paper instead. Other golden rules: Turn the music low unless it makes sense to do otherwise (e.g., you’re a DJ). Keep your reel under two minutes and vary the angles only when necessary; this is not a Jenna Jameson DVD. Most important, if you screw up during the taping, start over. Once your vid is posted, submit links to potential employers. Just watch out for spammers and ill-mannered teens. It’s hard to convince someone you’re worth six figures when monkeyboy8me wants to hire you for $1 an hour.

WEB BONUS: See a few clips of the YouTube headline makers mentioned in this story. [CAUTION: Valerie Baber videos may not be safe for work.]

1. Aleksey Vayner: "Impossible is Nothing"

2. Valerie Baber prepares a baloney and potato dish.

3. Baber educates men on telephone etiquette.

4. Baber explains her love for Ketel One.