Even with your best efforts, you can end up with an overlooked typo on your resume that can cost you opportunities. When looking for ways to boost your resume, most people suggest design and organization changes.
However, there are other ways to boost your resume. One of the most important things to keep in mind when trying to improve your resume is your industry. Things that work for one industry may not work for others and vice versa. Look at the resumes, if available, of successful people in your industry and see what made them stand out. Besides this, let’s take a look at what you can do for more callbacks!
Number One: Cut It Short!
One of the most common mistakes when making a resume is to make it as big as possible. No one is going to sift through everything you’ve done in your life! Recruiters receive hundreds of CVs to look through every day. If they can’t find relevant information at a glance, your application is going straight into the bin.
Instead, tailor your resumes to the job you are applying for. Research the company you are applying to and find out the KPs you will be expected to handle. Only include information in your resume that has direct relevance to the job you’re applying for. If you have tried to narrativize your work journey, cut it out of your resume. If they have asked for a personal statement or writing sample, include this information there. This keeps your resume clutter-free.
Number Two: Get Trained
A lot of people complain that companies ask for excessive work experience before they want to hire you. However, the only reason companies want that work experience is to ensure that you have learned about specific aspects of the job. If you don’t have work experience, one way to make up for that is to get certifiably trained.
For example, imagine that you’re looking for a job in the medical field. Even if you’re applying to be a receptionist at a clinic, you can make your resume stand out with a certificate for first aid training. For content writers, you can get SEO training. Find out what certifications are relevant in your field and get started today.
Number Three: Use Keywords
As we mentioned before, a recruiter is looking at hundreds of CVs a day. They usually spend less than a minute skimming through a resume before rejecting it or sending it through to the next level of scrutiny. So how do you ensure that they read the critical points of your application? By using keywords, of course!
Keywords are specific words that will register with a recruiter. Use keywords to get your foot in the door with your job applications. It can’t ensure a job, but using them can increase your chances of getting an interview. Trawl through listings for the job you want and see if any words are repeatedly used. These should give you an idea of where to begin concerning keywords.
Number Four: Reorganize Your Information
When making a resume, people generally tend to list things chronologically. This means you list your work and study experience as they have happened. However, this is not helpful for recruiters, especially if you have a long work history. They want to know what you did last, what you learned that is freshest on your mind.
They are usually not interested in what school or college you went to unless you’re a fresher. In that case, make sure you list as many extra-curricular activities and optional activities you participated in. This shows you have initiative and can take charge of your workload, which is an excellent quality to have.
Number Five: Get Creative
One of the best things about modern resumes is that you can have more fun with your resume than before. You can use colors and patterns to highlight your resume and make it look visually pleasing. This is an excellent way to stand out if you’re in a creative field like design or architecture.
Even if you are not in a creative field, there are creative ways to enhance your resume. Since CVs are generally in PDF format, an easy creative resume idea would be to use linked text in your resume. Thus, if you’re listing a piece of work on your CV, you can embed the link into the resume itself so your prospective employers can take a look at the relevant work directly.