Resume Mistakes & Fixes – part 2

You probably know that you have 5 to 7 seconds to capture a recruiter’s attention. We’re here to give you the strategies you need for a better understanding of how screeners are reviewing your background and to get you a high return rate of response for your resume.

Last time we talked about three resume mistakes many of you are making and how to fix them so you can cut through the competition and land the job. Today we have two more important mistakes we see all the time and how you can structure your documents to avoid getting tossed into the reject pile.

FAILURE TO CRACK THE KEYWORD CODES

Keywords build the connection. A lack of keywords kicks you out of the application tracking system. One of the important mistakes and fixes we talked about last time is avoiding the ATS blockers. Many employers implement ATS to help them process resumes and will program particular key words into this system. If you fail to choose your terminology strategically based on what’s most in demand in your niche, you’ll fail to get past an ATS and also the hiring manager who may not be using ATS and is screening your resume herself.

THE FIX

There are a couple of easy ways to figure out what keywords to include. First go out on Indeed, LinkedIn jobs, whatever sites you like and collect five or so job ads that have descriptions that appeal to you. They don’t necessarily need to be actual jobs you would apply to (for example not geographically ideal) but jobs you would like. Strip each ad down to just the meat of the content: the responsibilities. Take your list of the positions and the responsibilities described and put it through an analysis system.

A quick one to use is WordClouds, www.wordclouds.com.  You’ll see WordClouds creates pictures of representative terms in a body of content. The bigger words are the ones that are repeated most often. This will help you prioritize your content in your document.

A lack of keywords loses the reader and shows you’re out of touch. The screener wants to see the keywords that will prove you know exactly what you have to offer toward the opportunity. Are you speaking their language?

Think of the process of creating your document as creating a masterpiece. Your goal is to include the terms and phrases that are most important to the jobs you’re targeting, that convey you look the part for the position you ideally want to land. Doing a quick analysis of keywords will help you choose your terminology based on what is most important to the hiring managers in your niche.

A DATED TEMPLATE

I like to call this a fusty template. Fusty dusty. If you’re using a format you’ve had access to for more than two years, chances are it looks dated. Just like clothing styles, resume styles continually evolve. Homemade can look unprofessional. Recruiters can tell a homemade verses a professionally produced resume. Think about if you designed and sewed your own clothes. What might that look like? Some of you may be very skilled at sewing, most of us are not.

If you put together a resume of your own, it will most likely look less than ideal as compared with your competition in the market. If there are hundreds of people applying for the position you need to catch the attention of the recruiter.

You want to show you’re current, in the know, relevant. Many people complain to me that they’re being rejected because of their age. It seems as soon as a person turns 40 they start worrying about that. I know that some age discrimination exists but in the last couple of decades of my experience I’ve seen it’s largely how you present yourself that will get you in the door. If you’re using a dated template you will come across as older, dusty, and fusty.

THE FIX

Hire a professional, or model your presentation after professionally produced resumes.

There are some very good resume example books out there. I go through resume training ongoing to keep myself current, and in my research I have seen some good books out there that provide examples. Check the publication date to make sure you’re getting up-to-date information.

Here at Career Solutions Group we offer a free initial consultation/resume review. I’d love to have a conversation with you over the phone; our consultation lasts just about 15 minutes. I have a Master’s Degree in career counseling and am a licensed professional counselor and a certified professional resume writer. A professionally produced resume will generate a 20-50%   response rate as compared with the average 10% response rate. Let’s work together!