Job-hunting is tough. It’s even tougher if you want to join a specific company.

This is the story of how I got noticed for a job at Gumroad, a job I never thought I could get.

Gumroad’s Head of Design Jack

To give you context Gumroad is an online platform to sell digital products, which I have been personally using for the last 3 years.

There are 3 reasons I want to join Gumroad

  1. The product is outstanding.
  2. It’s a fully remote job with a team of freelancers.
  3. You decide your hours and workweeks.

That’s the coolest company I’ve heard of, and I really wanted to be part of it.

Before I tell you how I got noticed, let me explain why these kinds of jobs are so hard to get:

  1. It’s a global company that hires remotely, meaning anyone in the world can apply.
  2. They don’t hire a lot; they currently have just 20 freelancers and three full-time employees.
  3. They offer great perks, so everyone wants to join them.

Knowing how tough it is to get into such companies, here was my plan to get noticed by Gumroad.

This is something you can use to apply to your dream company.

1. Analyze Their Product Deeply

Use their product, understand its main offerings, and get accustomed to the user interface.

Gumroad’s Flow

2. Brainstorm Ways to Improve or Build a New Feature

Once you know the product inside and out, brainstorm new features or improvements.

Check their reviews or product roadmap(many companies have the public) for ideas. Sometimes, their job postings will mention the features they want you to design (Gumroad did this).

For example Gumroad

3. Build the Feature to the Best of Your Capabilities

Build the feature. Everyone has their own way of doing this.

I like to do a competitive analysis, set a basis for how we want to help customers with this feature, design the product components, and then build the feature. You can follow your own process.

Building the prototype

4. Post It on Social Media and Tag Founders, Head of Design

Record a video of the prototype with you narrating the flow, and post it on LinkedIn or X. Alternatively, you can create a carousel if that’s more comfortable for you.

Don’t forget to tag the company, the founder, head of design, and other design employees who are active on the platform. Here’s an example of a post I did.

Arpit Chandak on LinkedIn: If Justin Welsh made his website on Gumroad 👇 Here is how it will… | 24 comments

5. Reach Out to the Founder on LinkedIn, Email, and Twitter

Just posting isn’t enough. Reach out to the Founder, Head of Design, and senior design employees on LinkedIn, X, and email.

Simply share your video or carousel. Here’s a snapshot of the messages I sent.

A similar message to the Head of Design got me a reply saying they would get back to me as you saw in the screenshot above. They haven’t yet, but I will keep trying this process repeatedly until I get the job.

This is the prototype video I made if you are interested.

I believe this process works because it directly shows the company how you can add value to their product.

I hope you enjoyed this article. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions.

👋 Hey there, If you are interested in more UI/UX-related design topics or building side hustles do follow me on LinkedIn and Medium. If you want some guidance check out my Topmate.

Also here are some great free UI/UX resources on Gumroad & Figma Community. Do check them out 🙂

How Did I Get Noticed for My Dream Job? was originally published in UX Planet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.