Planning a college career fair requires a combination of attention to detail and creative problem-solving. How do you put on a successful career fair with a limited budget, overextended staff, and high expectations? Learning from the mistakes of others is always a worthwhile endeavor. Let’s look at three common mistakes and how to avoid them.

As you plan your promotion of the next career fair, for your career services department, you are likely thinking about the ways available to get your message out. In our modern world, there are more and more ways to advertise. Our first instinct is to post on social media or send out an email blast - but what happened to traditional career fair promotion? While you create your Facebook events and craft compelling Instagram posts, keep in mind old-school methods, such as fliers, radio ads, and television spots.

Are you still organizing career fairs the old-fashioned way? If you didn’t know there was a new way, then the answer is yes! Utilize career fair technology and make your life as a career fair organizer easier than ever.

So you’re planning a career fair? Take a deep breath! The thought of organizing an event like this can be overwhelming. There are many factors to consider, like the who, what, when - and most importantly - where. When figuring out where you should hold a career fair, be sure to account for the size of the venue.

Student clubs and organizations are often-overlooked resources for marketing events. Most college campuses have hundreds of these organizations that often attract the brightest and most ambitious students at a university. Involving student clubs is a highly-effective and inexpensive way to promote a college career fair.