This all depend's on where you are aiming for. Yes, I would imagine being hired into a trade is mainly about word of mouth as it is very hard to judge a person on paper in this sector.
If you want an office job/work for any larger company, it is going to make a huge difference as this is very much no longer word of mouth.
It all depends where you want to go in life.
Yes, that is what they are trying to say.