Job fairs offer you an opportunity to talk to the people in the know. Employers are just waiting to answer your questions. It’s easy to get caught up in the crowds and the confusion. You move from booth to booth picking up a lot of fancy brochures, but with a lack of a clear impression on which employer has the right opportunity for your career. Here’s how to improve your job hunting results when you attend a job fair.

Making the most of a job fair means planning your strategy before you enter the building. If possible, through the internet or job fair advertisements, find out which employers will be exhibiting at the job fair. Choose those organizations that you may have an interest in. Check out their web sites or do some research at the library.

Look over the floor plan of the job fair. Mark out those employers that you have an interest in and plan the most efficient way to visit each one. This way you’ll be able to spend more time with those that interest you rather than wandering throughout the entire job fair. With time left over browse the other employers, you never know when you may come upon something that interests you.

Write out a list of questions to ask the employer’s representatives. Try to put together a list of questions specific to each employer. If the information is already on the web site, don’t waste your time trying to stump the employer’s representative. Look for information on the organization’s work place culture, future plans and career progressions. If the particular employer has no openings that fit your skills and career plan ask for referrals. The employer’s representatives are in the recruiting business and may be aware of other openings that fit your skill levels and job requirements. Get the name of the representative and their phone number and email address.

Take notes of each conversation. You will be talking to so many people that your notes will help you later if you elect to follow-up with a specific employer. If possible, don’t just drop off a resume. Get a copy of the job announcement, and with the information learned at the job fair, draft a specific cover letter, with appropriate changes in your resume, and then mail the application packet to the employer. This way your cover letter and resume will closely fit the announced needs of the employer. Your chances of getting a favorable decision to advance to the next step just went up.

At the end of the job fair, you’ll have a briefcase full of information, and hopefully a number of employers that have job openings that fit your skill set. If anyone helped give you a possible job referral send them a thank you note. Begin immediately writing appropriate cover letters and redrafted your resume to submit for possible job openings.

Most of the time, the best thing to do after an interview is simply to stay active in your ongoing job search. But in some cases, you may have gotten so nervous that you said something that should be corrected.

Let’s say, for example, that you applied for a truck driving job and told them you had two moving violations last year. When you got home, you realized that one was not actually a moving violation, it was only a warning. You should correct this, as it may help to alleviate their concerns about high insurance costs.

Most of the time, however, if you accidentally misspoke a tiny bit, it is best to leave it alone. The interviewer realizes that you are nervous. If you slightly underestimated your sales, for example, this should not be a big deal.

If you did not get the job, don’t punish yourself for it. Most of the time, another candidate was simply more qualified. Think of every interview as valuable experience that will help you on the next one. Each time you will get more and more confident at interviews.

If you really feel that you could have answered an interview question better, use this as an opportunity to improve before the next one. Practice makes perfect!