Eric just graduated from an MBA program Monday and landed smackdab in the middle of our job-shriveling recession. So what did he do? To try to land a job at Microsoft, he bought Facebook ads that specifically targeted employees at the companies he wants to work for. It cost him less than $50, and he got over 20 Microsoft employees to contact him offering their help. Here’s how he did it:

via Arbita:

1) I chose Facebook for ads because it was unconventional, cheap, highly targeted and offered solid performance metrics. I targeted all Microsoft [one of his target companies] employees nationwide. Given that cost per click was so low, that I could manipulate my bid price and put a cap on it for the day I saw no sense in on limiting how wide I cast my net inside the company — you never know where help will come from. Besides, I’m open to relocation so geography wasn’t a concern.

2) At first when I was piloting the technique I wanted to see if it would garner any response at all (which it certainly did). I targeted a few select companies that I felt would be a good fit for my skills and interests but which may not be actively recruiting (Microsoft, YouTube, Netflix, Apple and IDEO). Essentially, I was hoping to be in the right virtual place at the right time for someone to recognize me as a great fit. I’m a realist, so I didn’t want to place my bets all on one company but I chose this targeted method because I’m very focused on connecting with the right organization where I feel my unique background will create value.

3) When you consider this little experiment in unconventional job hunting took maybe a half hour of my time and less than $50 in expense, it’s been wildly successful. My ad got over 50K impressions, over 500 clicks, and more than 20 people contacted me directly offering everything from a LinkedIn connection to the email addresses of recruiters to sending me the job description for specific roles in their division that they offered to submit my resume for. Because of the innovative nature of the technique I’ve also received requests from reporters/bloggers wanting to write about me. Considering my level of investment and the fact that I only need one job, I’d say this was pretty successful.

Jobseeker buys Facebook ad to find Microsoft gig [Arbita]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.