@Deb – I think the editor sounded a little too personal in the ad but maybe he wanted to sound approachable with people who work for him. Sending a nasty letter back, not so cool. Boy, is that going to come back to haunt Mr. Allen one day.

I found the open letter quite valuable, though, specifically for this little gem: “Perhaps the issue isn’t with my ability to write an ad, but rather your inability to read one.” It’s a good reminder for all of us to (1) leave the attitude at the door when we start working, (2) follow the directions, (3) make sure we followed the directions, and (4) ask ourselves again, “Did I follow the directions?”

Some job posters may be clueless and others may be sketchballs, but that doesn’t mean we have to take it personally or become clueless sketchballs ourselves because of how we react. Job opps we don’t like aren’t specifically engineered to piss us off, but if you’re already feeling cranky and maybe a little panicked because your workflow is tapering off, it’s easy to get your nose out of joint… I think we’ve all been there, even though most of us don’t hit “send.”

@Jenn (and anyone else, for that matter), if you want to talk privately, I’d be happy to see if I can offer some suggestions for your job hunting. There’s a contact page on my blog with my info. It’s probably just a numbers game, but who knows, maybe a fresh pair of eyes will improve your results.

kk

Have to add that in a ‘misery-loves-company’ way the debate actually made me feel better about a misunderstanding I had today with a client. While I was on holiday she completely misunderstood some copy on my website and rather than thinking rationally, and working it out with me, she flew off the handle and took some rather petty and bitter action. Sometimes, you will just never win, but at least an unwarranted bit of nastiness will let you see someone in their true light and help you to steer clear of them in all future dealings.

My rule? Sigh, move on, and be thankful that I have one less moron to deal with!

I didn’t find the ad vague at all, which is why I wrote to her. I will admit to writing an angry letter to a poster who said things that translated to, “I won’t pay you, why should I, it’s just writing not brain surgery…” , most of the time though, if I feel the ad is not to my liking, I skip it.

I fear Mr Allen is suffering from acute Writer Frustration.

The ad was honest, to the point and very aptly described what she was looking for, so his reaction seems a bit knee jerk.

What I do feel is truly frustrating to most writers, and I am sure you can relate, is to reply to an ad that is vague and get a nasty reply in regards to the fact that you were not what they were looking for.

It’s hard on both sides, but we need to respect one another in the process.

@the rude letter issue… I just read that posting, and laughed. Good for him for posting a response to the imbicile who felt necessary to post. I’ve ran into many people who post responses to ads on Craigslist criticizing them for either their ad, their pay rates, or something else they did “wrong” in their job posting, instead of just moving on to a listing that better suits their needs. We all know how cheap some companies can be, and with companies in other countries doing articles for $1 a piece, some people might not realize the value of our time. However, if I read a listing to a traditional job, say at McDonald’s, I wouldn’t write the McDonald’s corporation and tell them that $7 is not a good pay rate to flip burgers. It’s not professional, and completely unnecessary.
@Robin: I applied for this position too, and am also slightly annoyed that my response was probably set aside so that he could deal with this stupidity. Grr.

What’s wrong with that? I can only imagine the dregs that employers need to trudge through to find the people who apply who can follow directions and are qualified. With everyone and their mother trying to be a freelance writer because “it’s easy money and you can work from home and have all the free time in the world, too” there are bound to be dozens of unqualified applicants.

Seriously people, at the top of your monitor screen there is a little red X. If you don’t like what you are seeing. Use it. A nasty note is not going to change anyone’s mind. But it is going to tick me off, because now instead of focusing on my well-written, perfect application , the employer is focused on dealing with this.

Now about “that” ad: Maybe I just get into the “zone” when I’m looking at ads, but if it isn’t a good fit, then I just move on. I would never send a nastygram to a potential employer. It’s just wrong. And having been on the receiving end of a few of them, why would I do that to someone else? I didn’t find the ad offensive, just direct.

I can understand why this employer would take out his own ad – you just want to say something back sometimes. The ad just lets that person know that his comments weren’t appreciated, as I’m sure they were not.

@ Jenn: Glad you like what you have seen here so far! Applying for jobs is partially a numbers game. The more jobs you apply for, the more you will get. If you follow the directions in the ad and present yourself in a professional manner, then you are way ahead of most applicants. Just keep trying.

I thought the original ad was a little off-putting, but I simply clicked the back button on the browser and life was back to normal–not sure that spending my time drafting a nasty response is ever worth doing. The only time I’ve ever really considered it is for those advertisement “jobs” that just want you to sign up for their website–I mean come on, I’m out here just trying to make a living and you’re going to waste my time just to drive up hits to your site and your mailing list. Shameful.

My favorite part about the letter is that in preaching about learning how to write he makes a large omission typo in “Do you even what SEO is?” Pretty sure you needed to throw a “know” in there. That’s just embarrassing.

On the other hand, I’d recommend that your friend take this open letter down though. It definitely looks unprofessional and petty. In phrasing the ad the way he did, he should have had some expectations of possible negative responses and just hit the delete button. That’s my two cents anyway.

Of course I would just move on and not respond to any ad that bothered me. Sending the poster a nasty note is silly, immature, and isn’t going to change the behavior of the ad poster. I’m a professional. I behave professionally, which is one reason why I use my real name on my posts. I don’t even think the original ad was offensive – abrasive and aggressive but not offensive. The object of my post was to analyze it from the point of view of an experienced writer looking for work who has to sort through lots and lots of spam ads. If the poster is frustrated by betting tons of inappropriate responses, he should keep the other side in mind. Writers get frustrated putting time into responding to ads for jobs that aren’t as advertised or don’t exist. Ads on the Web don’t always convey the meaning and tone the writer intended, but professional-sounding ads are more likely to attract professional writers.

And sending nasty emails can come back and bite you in the butt somehow.

And for those who think Mr. Allen shot himself in the foot, I doubt it. I seriously doubt he (or she) uses his real name. He’s emailed hugs and kisses to me several times in the past, plus he’s posted using different names in the comments. So I doubt he’s sending nastygrams under his real name.

I LOVED the original ad! I was thrilled to have something so direct. I am a complete instruction follower… Type A to the core. Having a step-by-step layout made applying for the job a total peice of cake, and I didn’t have to wonder later if I “should’ve sent this or that.” I knew I had supplied him with exactly what he needed. That’s a GREAT feeling and more job posters should follow in his footsteps.