WeApply LLC, a job application automation platform, wants to streamline the tedious process of searching for employment and has developed a positive profit margin – along with more than 200 paying customers a month – since its launch in January.

The downtown-based company began to break even on business overhead and operational costs by August, an accomplishment its chief executive, David Saxa, attributes to a significant investment in marketing, its quality-control measures and a focus on serving employees rather than employers.

WeApply users upload a resume and complete a short quiz on WeApply that asks about current employment status, goals for job compensation and title, qualifications, level of education and the urgency of their job search. The platform’s human data specialists and artificial intelligence technology engine then filter through job openings posted online and automatically submit applications to positions deemed to be good fits.

“First and foremost, we are a data company,” Saxa said. “This is something that people kind of overlook … but we collect a lot of data, not only on applicants in order to help them get a job, but on employers (to see) who is the most responsive, who needs candidates quickly, who is giving out the most interviews and who is giving out the most job offers.”

Client profiles

About half of all WeApply clients are employed with a good job, usually in a senior level or director position, and are looking for “greener pastures,” while most other customers are unemployed and urgently looking for work.

“We have a very advanced way to not only understand the profile, but also understand what the employers are looking for, to give them the right candidate in a manner that will prompt a positive response,” Saxa said. “It’s simple on paper but very complex on the technical end.”

Users do not choose which jobs or companies the platform submits applications to but can view which applications will be sent out to remove or prioritize certain jobs. Alec Levenson, a senior research scientist at the USC Marshall Center for Effective Organizations, said that handing over control of applications and their destinations would appeal more to individuals who critically need a job, rather than to higher-level professionals.

“Once somebody is far enough along in a particular career path, and they know the kinds of positions and the places they’d want to be, I don’t know of anybody that would want to give up control over their applications going out,” Levenson said. “There’s lots of reasons why you would not submit an application, even if you might be a good fit.”

Saxa said WeApply experienced more than 200% month-over-month revenue growth from March to August, which he said was largely due to increased ad spending. One key part of WeApply’s success, he said, was finding the right marketing channels and tactics to identify potential customers. The company is currently operating with a 26% profit margin, according to Saxa.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate declined to 3.5% last month, compared to 3.8% in September of last year. While a nominal difference, this is still drastically lower than the 7.7% unemployment rate of September of 2020.

“Without further marketing ad spend increases, we have seen a 10% to 20% growth in revenue weekly for the past eight weeks. The growth in revenue is due to better optimized marketing efforts, follow-up sales, referral sales and increasing consumer brand awareness,” Saxa said. “I am sure these numbers will eventually go lower as we capture more and more of the available market, but I think those figures showcase how much appetite there is for what we offer.”

WeApply is an independently funded venture, though it has fielded interest from outside investors. Saxa said that that the most popular industries for which users are submitting applications are technology, product management and medical sales. About 20% of WeApply applicants are looking for remote-only positions, which have become increasingly more competitive than in-office and hybrid positions.

Saxa said costs for WeApply’s staff, server costs and customer acquisition efforts contribute to a significant level of overhead. He added that the company aims to serve thousands of paying users per month by the end of next year.

WeApply has three application options that research and submit 100, 200 or 300 jobs applications on users’ behalf for a fee of $115, $179 or $249, respectively. Saxa said that the first and second tiers have been most popular with clients. The company assumes that if someone is purchasing the least expensive package they likely are looking for a job with some urgency and don’t have a lot of resources to spend.

Other companies that offer automated application services include LoopCV, Sonara Inc. and Downey-based Wonsulting LLC. Saxa said that he believes WeApply distinguishes itself in the market with its focus on finding relevant jobs opportunities – rather than using a “shotgun” approach – and the human data scientists it uses to apply quality control. He said that WeApply’s revenue model of avoiding recruiter firm cuts or monthly subscriptions – which he says make “no sense” when the goal is to get someone a job offer quickly – sets its business model apart. 

Early concerns

“Lastly, WeApply has a roadmap that includes opening additional revenue streams and working with strategic partners to maximize benefits to its future users,” Saxa said. “Realizing these plans will further set us apart from the other competitors and hopefully cement us as the go-to service provider in this space.”

One early concern for Saxa was how employers would respond to the automated job application process; he worried recruiters might disregard applications coming from WeApply. After attending a conference for human resources professionals to understand the mentality of employers, he found that companies were mainly concerned with receiving quality candidates and not being “spammed” with thousands of applicants for every job posting. He said that while there still may be some HR managers who are “old school” and won’t appreciate WeApply’s automated system, employers have generally not expressed any concerns.

“If this was mismanaged, if someone else ran something like I’m running and used a shotgun approach, sending out as many resumes as possible, I’m sure that would work to some capacity, but it would probably destroy the employment industry,” Saxa said. “I knew right away that we were not going to do that … we’re going to be very precise and very clinical with what we send and what we submit.”

Levenson said that, with the advent of online application options and third-party sites like Indeed Inc., the number of applications per job has gone up dramatically, which can make screening more difficult for companies hiring for a new role. WeApply’s reputation among hiring managers would depend on the quality of the applications being submitted, he said.  

“Any tool can be used positively or negatively,” Levenson said. “If what this company is doing is actually able to better match people to potential job opportunities than they would do on their own … the company would get business, but also the companies that are receiving the applications would then view it as a potential signal of a better match.”

Saxa said he is planning to expand his team, particularly by adding strategic business-improvement professionals. While WeApply is not actively seeking outside funding, it may explore this as growth continues to scale.

“At this point, we have thousands of registered users … we know there is a demand for our service, and on top of that, our model is actually profitable,” Saxa said. “We don’t need to perpetually fundraise in order to sustain ourselves, unlike a lot of other startups … but we do have some pretty ambitious plans, so we are open to it.”