131 Resume Writing Tips - The Most Comprehensive List of Resume Writing Tips on the Internet -

131 Resume Writing Tips - The Most Comprehensive List of Resume Writing Tips on the Internet -The resume writing tips included in this list follow the best advice and fruchtwein modern resume writing strategies available today so that you can write your resume with confidence. Ive divided the list into the major resume sections to make the tips easier to navigate.It was a passion for teaching others about resume writing that ignited my desire to start Great Resumes Fast almost ten years agoand that passion mucksmuschenleise burns brightly. Since 2008 my kollektiv of professional resume writers and I have worked with thousands of busy, career-minded individuals to create bewerbungsinterview-worthy resumes. This list is the culmination of ten years of resume writing best practicesI hope it blesses you and helps you reach your career goals.Resume Writing Tips for Contact InformationKeep your name prominent. Eye-tracking surveys from recruiters reveal that your name is the very first pla ce the recruiter scans. Theyll look at the top left and the top center to scan for your name. Your name should be in a bold font that is larger than the rest of your contact information and it should either be left-justified or centered. Its leid that putting your name at the right of the document is wrong per se. Its mora about increasing readability and placing it where recruiters are most likely to scan first.Headshots dont belong on your resume. Exceptions to this are if you work overseas and its required in your country or if youre in acting/modeling and a headshot is expected. Otherwise, leave the photo off your resume. menschenwrdig resources professionals are taught by their legal departments to exclude resumes with photos to eliminate any issues with discrimination. Its simply a factor for immediate elimination.Professional e-mail addresses Ive landlandseen some pretty controversial email addresses over the years. My advice is to use a non-controversial, professional email address that wont raise any eyebrows. Try your initials and a combination of numbers or your first name and last name with a combination of numbers.Dont use your work e-mail to communicate with recruiters. You also dont want to include your work email on your resume. Ive come across situations in the past where bosses were suspicious that their employees might be looking elsewhere and they started checking emails. It revealed their job search efforts and the people lost their jobs.Decide whether you want to include your address or elend. This has become a bit controversial over the past couple of years, and Ive seen both sides of the debate. Some people, in an effort to protect their privacy, are leaving their addresses off of their resumes. The issue with leaving it off is that now the resume will bedrngnis come up in a database search based on location. Recruiters check proximity when running their searches, so if you leave your address off completely it limits your resume coming up in search results.Relocation is another consideration. The best advice when it comes to relocation is to find a P.O. Box or UPS street address at the place youre relocating to and use that on your resume so that your resume will come up in search results for that area. You could also use a friend or family members address if you know someone in the area.Zip codes and ATS tend to be the biggest connection. You could probably safely leave the street address portion of your address off the resume IF you had concerns about privacy. Then you could use just the city, state, and zip code so that your resume will still come up in applicant tracking software searches.Include your LinkedIn profile URL within the contact portion of your resume. Make it a live link so that all the hiring manager has to do is simply click it and they can go directly to your LinkedIn profile and learn mora about you. LinkedIn is the best place to share your career story, elaborate on your personal brand, and p rovide verifiable proof of your accomplishments and soft skills through endorsements and recommendations on your profile. Did you know that recruiters are mora likely to connect with you when they can see who you know in common? LinkedIn will automatically show them mutual connections. Its a virtual version of who you know helping you to get your foot in the door.Professional website and blog URLs can also go in the contact information. This is another way in which you can directly lead employers to information you want them to see about yousuch as your portfolio, samples of your work, or simply the articles youve written in your area of expertise. It never hurts to give them opportunities to find mora information about you, and it also furthers their understanding of your personal brand and how you would fit into their company culture.ansprechbar branding statements are great for the top of the resume, right underneath the contact details. Its a great place to start laying the grou ndwork for the employer and setting the expectations of the value you can offerand the pain points and schwierigkeits you can solve for them. Consider adding a branding statement underneath the contact information, or even simply select three keystimmt genaus related to your branding and center those across the top underneath the contact information.Resume Writing Tips for the Heading of Your ResumeAlways put a job title or target sttte at the top of your resume. Bold this title. This portion of your resume is also another area that recruiters will scan first. You want to be specific about the font of fleck. Instead of saying something general like Management Professional, be specific about the job title. Say Project Manager, Purchasing Manager, Customer Service Manager or whatever other lage title you are targeting.Underneath the lokalitt title include industry-specific keywords. Its about branding and positioning. A great strategy is to select the top three keywords most relevant and highly searched for the position that you want. Obviously, you need to actually possess these skills. If you have the skills, then choose the top three keywords and put them in bold italics underneath the position title.An alternative strategy to using three keywords is to include a branding statement. This should be boiled down to something really notenzeichenworthy that speaks to the value you offer and the needs you can meet. For example, I always tell people that my hearts desire is to use my 12+ years of HR experience to help job seekers by creating interview-winning resumes for those who dont have the time, experience, or expertise. Thats what Great Resumes Fast is all abouthelping busy career-minded folks get interviews for their next great career move. My question is whats your hearts desire? Why do you do what you do? How do you help other people? Start asking yourself these questions because they form the basis of a strong and authentic personal brand.Consider bold te xt and special formatting when putting together the heading. You want the information to be easily scanned and identified because it forms the recruiters first impression of your experience and fit for the position. I recommend bolding the position title, branding statement, and even the keywords. You could also leave the keywords in a regular font or italicize them. Feel free to adjust the formatting to something that suits you and looks pleasing to the eye. The main point to remember is to leave white space so that the content is easily digestible.Resume Writing Tips for the Professional SummaryWeve moved passed the era of resume objectives. No objectives on your resume if youre a mid-career professional or executive. Instead you should be using a career snapshot to give the employer the highlights of your accomplishments and a quick view of your ability to meet their needs and solve their biggest problems.No personal pronouns should be in your career profile. Remove any instances of I, my, or me. Using first-person pronouns is viewed as a basic resume error and usually will cause your resume to be screened out. Its a silly thing to cause removal from candidacy, but when recruiters are scanning hundreds of resumes and theyre pressed for time, they need a systematic way to narrow down the choicesand any small errors on a resume are cause for a no fit decision.Your career summary does not have to be a broad overview. So many professionals get caught up in trying to provide employers with a broad and general overview of their career at the top of their resume. The problem is that they end up sounding like thousands of other candidates instead of using the space as an opportunity to shine and differentiate themselves. Do not be afraid to be specificwhich leads me to my next two tips.Be specific about positions and accomplishments within the summary. I tend to lean mora towards a career-snapshot style that includes prominent client names, major accomplishments, a nd bottom-line numbers. Ill give you a prime example have you ever seen websites that readily advertise As Seen On CNN, Forbes, MSN, Washington Post, USA Today, and Money. unterstellung are prominent and easily recognizable names. Do the saatkorn within your career profile. Have you worked with Apple? Google? Microsoft? Has Amazon or IBM been a client of yours? Have you worked with other well-known Fortune 500 companies? Dont be afraid to share that information it grabs the attention and says you work with industry leaders.Include metrics and keywords within your snapshot. Try to select three to five industry-specific keywords and incorporate them within the career summary. Its also important to talk about numbers. Have you generated revenue? Cut costs? Improved productivity? Include those numbers. Theyre verifiable proofand those numbers attract the eyes and the attention of employers.Dont go overboard with adjectives. Even resume writers get tempted to string a bunch of adjectives togetherSeasoned self-starter and detail-oriented team player with 10+ years experience doesnt tell me anything specific about this person that is any different from thousands of other candidates. Try using only one adjective and choose one that describes you but isnt necessarily applicable to everyone else on the planet.Eliminate overused phrases such as excellent communicator or team player. They do very little to differentiate you from others. Theyre also widely overused. If you scan resume templates on the Internet youll see these phrases come up over and over again. Employers report that communication stylewhile very important to culture fitis usually assessed during the interview process so stating it on your resume is just taking up space you could use to identify another attribute about yourself that would benefit the company.While were discussing words that dont add value you can remove successful and results. The words themselves dont offer any valid proof that you can m ake a contribution. Its better to state exactly what the success or accomplishment was and what made it a success. You could state that you generated $3M in new business growth by and fill in the details. Perhaps the type of results that you deliver are in terms of increasing customer loyalty or cutting labor costs. Be sure to provide numbers with the results to make them meaningful and give them context. Otherwise, youre just making blanket statements that are hard to see the value in. The Keyword Section Avoid vague phrases that recruiters will not use when searching resume databases. Things like excellent communicator, team player, and detail oriented are all soft skills. Use hard skills in the keyword section such as payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payable, or budget allocation.Use keywords specific to the position youre targeting. Find the most-relevant keywords to the position youre targeting and select those keywords to incorporate into your resume.Use keywords specif ic to the industry youre in. Are there keywords that are not only specific to the role but also to the industry? Make sure that you include industry-specific and position-specific keywords.Formatting the keyword section You can bold this section and create three rows with three keywords in each section. The eye is drawn to odd sets and numbers and theyll balance well across the page. Theres no hard-and-fast rule that you cannot include more or fewer this is simply a formatting suggestion for the keyword section.Resume Writing Tips for the Work Experience SectionOmit Overused rogers. Demonstrated excellence and proven ability are two great examples of overused words. Heres a link with several others that you can review and eliminate from your resume. It also includes some great examples of what you can use in their place. Work Experience Bullets Right off the bat, make a list of your top achievements over the course of your careerincluding everything from leading a challenging projec t to a successful conclusion to turning around an unprofitable company division. Give yourself permission to remember (and savor) the highlights of what youve been able to do that brought you much kudos from others. Dont forget that the impact might have been external to the company, as many executives often earn praise from industry insiders or analysts, as well as from their teams.Youll want to create success stories from each of these accomplishments, and then put them in the classic Challenge-Action-Result format for your resume writing efforts. Describe the Challenge or situation first, then the Action that you took, and most importantly, the Result of each project or achievement. These stories will now become the foundation for accomplishment stories in your executive resume, and can be used to replace what would typically be the classic list of tasks performed at each job. In addition, youll want to add more facets to each story during the resume writing process, supplying em ployers with more proof of your leadership performance as you recall the details.Inject some personality into the process. Give some thought to the role you are seeking. What type of qualities does the perfect candidate for this job display? What are his or her professional attributes? This isnt hard to picture for example, a COO might be extremely analytical or improvement-focused, while the ideal IT Director would tend to challenge the status quo and take a firm stance with vendors. Now, tie these qualities back to your own experience.In what situations did you display these attributes, and what were the results of your leadership at the time? Whats important about this exercise? It allows you to start with an employer-side view of the ideal executive leader, giving you the same perspective theyll have when scouring your resume for proof of these qualities. As a result, you have some goals around which to center your leadership resume, rather than just starting with a list of mund ane tasks that everyone in your field performs.Ask others for feedback. This may seem like a backward step, but if you discuss your job search and resume purpose with trusted colleagues or friends before putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), youll actually have a better vision of the end goal. Specifically, most people around you can clearly see your value in ways that you cannotbecause they have likely benefited from your leadership qualities, organizational skills, and technical proficiency.Here are some great questions to ask your network, which will help generate resume ideas* What reasons would you have for recommending my work to my next employer?* What company-level problems did you believe I was able to solve when we worked together?* How do you believe Ill be able to add value as a leader in my next job?* What did you see as my top three contributions to profit, employee performance, or cost savings in my last job?Next, youll want to keep these ideas in a list next to yourself during the leadership resume writing process. Use them to add color to your resume profile and flesh them out in more detail in your executive work history.Forget the Phrase Responsible for Obviously, every job entails being responsible for something. Heres the thing saying on your resume that you were responsible for doing something doesnt offer any proof that you actually did it. Your resume is a personal marketing document with one message Because I succeeded at all of the above in the past, I am the best candidate for your job opening. Thats a very different message from outlining what you were supposed to be doing at your previous jobs, which proves nothing except that someone once trusted you with a certain level of responsibility.Action verbs Action verbs are a tremendous asset to your resume. They convey a great deal of information to befhigung employers as these action verbs express what you have done and how you have added value.When you are sitting down to wr ite your resume, it can be tiresome to try to think of all the different ways you have done something. That is where this taschentelefon reference list comes in. The next time you are stuck looking for the right action verb to convey emotion and purpose check this list and you will be sure to find the right words.Remove References available upon request. It takes up space on your resume and employers assume youll provide references if asked. What you could do instead is point employers to your LinkedIn profile to read recommendations from your connections. This provides great third-party validation of your experience.Resume Writing Tips for Personal BrandingStart with a Vision. Without a vision or direction for your career, its hard to chart a course and plan a strategy to get there. If you need clarity, start by asking yourself some soul-searching questionsWhat vision do you have for your career over the next 1, 3, 5, or 10 years?Which values are driving your goals?Whats your purpo se?What are you passionate about?Why do you do what you do?Speak to YOUR Audience. Your resume has an intended audienceand its not *just* the HR generalist, recruiter, or applicant tracking software program. You need to know who (which companies) youre targeting, which industries, AND their greatest pain points, needs, and problems.To get to the bottom of defining your target audience youll need to ask yourself a few more questionsAre there specific companies Im interested in?Am I aiming to secure a position in a specific industry?What advantage or benefit does this position bring to their business?What will the company be lacking or missing if theres no one in this position?Consider some of the struggles and obstacles facing the employer and the industry. Make a list of the most critical ones, and reflect on times in the past when youve confronted similar challenges.Incorporate yourselfbe authentic. Authenticity has been glossed over when it comes to careers, job searching, network ing, or how we present ourselves on our resume, titelblatt letter, and LinkedIn profile. Research and experience tell us, though, that the opposite is true. Were naturally drawn to authentic people. Employers are searching for genuine employees its why theyre drawn to your LinkedIn profilethey can put a face to the name on the paper. They can research you on social media to get a glimpse into who you really are.Dont be a generalist. Niche yourself. In the same way you choose a doctor who specializes in your need, the same is true as employers search for the best candidate. Theyre not looking for a generalisttheyre searching for a specialist. Be specific about your contributions and accomplishments within your role and industry. If you can feasibly do two different types of jobs that are not related, then create two separate resumesone that focuses on your contributions in one area and another resume that focuses on your contributions in the other position.Answer the question Who am I professionally? Deep down, I think what drives most of us is the desire to help others. Lets face it, a selfish life isnt a very happy, fulfilling, or successful one. Sure, we all want a great career and to be paid well for the work we do. But a life invested in others, a life built on your contribution to making the world a better placethats a life of purpose and passion. Its a life that offers long-term fulfillment and career satisfaction. Who are you professionally? What makes youand what you dodifferent from others with similar qualifications and backgrounds?Answer the question Why do I ? Why do you want to be in a particular position, or why do you do the work you do? If youre having trouble answering this question, or some of the others, I highly recommend Start with Why. It will help you to figure out your why behind what you do. Many people know what they do, and how they do it. Few people know why they do the work they do.Answer the question How do I add value? Start by a sking yourself some questions to uncover the distinct benefits you offer the employerWhat benefit or contribution do you add?What key accomplishments or successes have you delivered time and time again?What would you say is unique about yourself and how you do what you do?What are your greatest strengths?Ask others what they think about you.Reach out to friends, family, and your network and ask them which words they would use to describe you.What do others see as the value you add?Read through your LinkedIn recommendations and past performance evaluations and look for themes. When you put similar words and phrases together what picture do you get?What do others say are your greatest strengths?How do others describe you?What do your boss, team, direct reports come to you for on a regular basis?I realize that some of you may be introverted like me, and quizzing others on their thoughts about you may cause some anxiety. If thats you, I highly recommend the Reach Personal Branding Surve y. You can gather up the e-mail addresses of those you want to elicit answers from and send it out and let the responses roll in. Its anonymous, so people can respond without concern over judgementand the survey does all the work searching for common themes in your personal brand, then reports those back to you. It provides an external perspective of your personal brand.**By the way, I dont get any kickbacks from recommending the survey. I recommend it to you purely because I enjoyed it and found great value in the feedback. Its very eye-opening, and I believe you will find value in it too.**Answer the question What would be missing if I werent in this role? It will help you determine how to differentiate yourself on your resume and what you can offer employers that other similarly qualified candidates cannot. It becomes the basis for your personal brand, which you can incorporate into your resume and other career documents.Metrics, facts, figures are important to your resume. Numbe rs attract attention from employers they substantiate the results you deliver and make the value you create for employers easily identifiable. If youre having trouble figuring out what metrics you have for your resume, or if you feel like you have none, this article will help.Impacting the bottom line Most employers want to see how the value you create impacts the bottom line. Theres also a general assumption that if youve been successful before you can easily repeat it. Answer questions like How much revenue did I generate this year? How did this years sales compare to last years or last quarters? Did I cut costs? By how much? Did I increase productivity? Did I impact client satisfaction? Did I increase efficiency? Did I save time? How much?Consider any ways that you impacted the bottom line of the company and be sure to include that information in bullet points under each employer.Resume Writing Tips for the Education SectionWhere to put your education I always recommend listing e ducation at the top of the resume if the degree or certification is a requirement for the opportunity and it has been recently obtained or will soon be completed. If the degree or education you have isnt required or directly related to the position, put it at the end of the resume. This is also the case if you want to share with the employer that you have some education, but you dont want to advertise that you didnt complete your education. If you are not planning on feinschliff the degree or certification program that you startedfor whatever reasonthen check out this article on how to include education information when you havent finished your degree and dont plan to complete it.What information should you include if youre still pursuing your degree or certification? There are two optionsState the college youre attending, degree youre pursuing, your area of study, current GPA (if 3.0 or higher) and include your anticipated graduation date this is very important if your graduation d ate is within the next twelve months.List the university youre attending, degree youre pursuing, area of study, current GPA (if 3.0 or higher) and the words In Progress. This works well if youre still going to be in school for a couple of years.What do you do if you dont have a degree? You should include any certifications, classes, continuing education, or other programs that youve attended. This shows that youre open to ongoing learning and development.What do you do if you didnt finish your degree and you dont plan to finish? Many people choose to not complete their degrees or return to school. The reasons are as varied as the job seekers themselves. Whatever your circumstanceswhether youve been forced to withdraw from classes, or if youve simply chosen to leavethere are ways to still include your education on your resume. I personally think its important to do so, especially when its related to your current or desired career field. There are two ways I would suggest tackling thi s1. List the college you went to, the program area you studied, and dates you attended school. Youre not including a degree here because one was not awarded. But you are showing that you did attend school and received some formal education. You can also include how many credit hours you completed.2. State the university you attended, relevant courses you completed (especially if theyre related to a position youre pursuing), credit hours completed, and dates you attended the school. Again, a degree is not included because one was not awarded.You have to be careful how to incorporate this information into your resume. You never want to mislead an employer into thinking you have a degree that you dont have. This can come back to bite you if youre offered the position and they fact check. Plus, the goal here isnt to deceive anyone into thinking that you have a degree you dont actually have. The goal is to include any education you have receivedwhich, in my opinion, is very important to show and will be valuable to employers.Resume Writing Tips for CertificationsHow to include certifications Give the certification title, the place it was issued from, and the date (if it was received recently or is critical in your field to show the length of time since certification).Where to include certifications Put certifications near the top of your resume if theyre critical to the position (this comes up frequently in IT). If theyre professional development certifications or not as critical you can put them at the bottom of the resume.Why you should include certifications Its important to list certifications on your resume that are required for the position so that when a recruiter searches a resume database for candidates with that certification your resume will come up in the search results. Its also important to show hiring managers that youre open to ongoing learning and development.Resume Writing Tips for Employment DatesDo I have to include my entire work history? You d o not have to include your entire career history. A resume is not meant to be a complete historical documentation of your career.How far back should I go? Its best to only include the past 10-15 years of your work experience.Relevant vs. irrelevant information bedrngnis all education is relevant to your current job prospects. If its required for the position, you may want to put it at the top of the resume. If your degree isnt relevant to the role or is not required for the position, you can usually put it at the very end. Recruiters usually look at the end of the resume to review education information.Chronological Format Chronological resumes list your work history beginning with your most recent position and work backwards through time to your earlier ones. This format is ideal for someone who has a consistent work history and tends to stay in a position for two or more years. It is straightforward, well organized, and is easy for a hiring manager to find the information he or sh e needs. This format will not work well for someone who has little or no work history, has been out of the workforce for a considerable amount of time, has significant gaps between positions, and tends to job hop. Using a chronological resume format will only call attention to these problem areas.Functional Format A functional resume highlights your skills and strengths without tying them to a particular position or period of time. You want to draw attention to the value you would bring to a position while downplaying any negative issues in your work history. These skills would be listed before any specific job history. The specific positions you held would be secondary to your particular skills, listing only the company, your title, and dates of employment. This type of resume works well for someone who is just starting out, is changing careers, has had numerous jobs within a short period of time, has gaps between positions, or is reentering the workforce.Hybrid or Combination Resu me Format If you have spent less than a year at your last 3+ jobs or if you have several significant employment gaps on your resume, another option is to push the chronology to the end of the resume and keep the focus on relevant achievements rather than on your career chronology.This looks similar to a standard resume, but rather than diving into the career chronology after the Career Summary or Introduction, it includes a section for relevant experience highlights.Downplay the appearance of job hopping. While job hopping is less of a concern now than it has been in years past, if youve switched positions every year for the past several years or you have significant employment gaps, it can send up a red flag to employers. Be strategic about the placement of employment dates on your resume and keep your current position short and sweet. You can read more about these two strategies and two more in this article on downplaying the appearance of job hopping on your resume.Resume Writing Tips for ATSTarget your resume to a specific role. Applicant Tracking Systems are built on the idea that a great candidate will have a very targeted, focused resume full of relevant keywords. Once you have a strong, achievement-based resume, some tailoring is still required based on the specific job posting.Review the job posting for important keywords and key phrases.Grab a highlighter and look through the job posting for important qualifications, skills, and experience. These are your keywords. Be sure to include any keywords that you can claim on your resume for that job application.Where to include keywords Keywords need to be woven throughout your resume in each sectionfrom the career summary to the individual professional experience entries. When you are tailoring the resume to a specific posting, the easiest section to swap in keywords is a Key Competencies/Areas of Expertise section, which is essentially just a list of keywords anyway.Different keywords carry different weig ht. Remember that not all keywords are equally weighted in ATS Some common keywords like full-time or collaborative wont be as important as specific technical skills or job functions (for example, risk mitigation for a financial tafelgeschirrs position).Play it safe with your contact info avoid headers/footers. Some versions of ATS cannot read content that appears in the headers/footers of a Word document. Avoid putting your name or Contact information in the header to prevent ATS from dismissing your resume.Play it safe with your name leave off Post-Nominal Titles. Some versions of ATS will read Post-Nominal Titles or abbreviations (i.e. Ph.D., RN, CFP) as part of the candidates name and cause issues with the system. Leave these qualifications to the Career Summary and Education sections instead.Use standard section headers. ATS needs to recognize section headers to scan each section correctly, so be sure to include standard headers such as Professional Experience and Education. Yo u should also label your Certifications as such to get credit for them.How to include Dates in your Professional Experience entries Include months with years this is particularly important if you held jobs for less than a year. ATS systems calculate the dates, so if they see a single year (2013) it will calculate ZERO time in that role, as opposed to a certain number of months (5/2013 to 12/2013).Avoid tripping alarm bells with live links. While you always want to include contact information including your name, address, email address, phone number, and LinkedIn URL, you can cause problems for yourself by making your email address or LinkedIn link live. Some ATS software will read a live link as a virus. (Not sure what constitutes a live link? If it is underlined and in color, it is live.)Remove Graphics/Charts/Graphs/Tables from the ATS Version. While some of the more-modern and cutting-edge versions of ATS wont be affected, older versions can react poorly to charts, graphs, and gr aphics in general, causing the resume to land in the reject pile. This doesnt mean that you shouldnt have a visually engaging and modern resume that does use these elements. Its important to consider when it is appropriate to use a visually engaging resume and when you should use an ATS-optimized version.If you include charts/graphs If you know the version of ATS your target company uses and it can handle charts and/or graphs, you should still be sure that the content conveyed in the image is also conveyed in a resume paragraph or bullet. You can also research Taleo since its the ATS system that 30% of employers use (the most highly used system of them all) and youll be able to find specifics for this type of ATSPlay it safe with symbols. Stick with symbols that are on the keyboard such as * or to avoid funky changes to your resumes look when being scanned by ATS.You dont have to be inordinately restrained, however. Some konzeption elements are safe. We spend a lot of time dissec ting what might NOT work with ATS, but some things are completely safe such as bolded text, lines and borders, and color shading. Your resume doesnt have to look blah to be compatible with ATS software.How to handle abbreviations The best practice is to spell out a term the first time you use it, such as Client Relationship Management. For additional uses, the abbreviation CRM is fine.Send in your resume as a .doc file for zugnglich applications. Again, erring on the side of caution with this approach since some ATS can handle PDFs or .docx files. For those that cannot, a .doc file is ideal, and will still look nice for a human reader (as opposed to plain text.)Test your resume for ATS. Since ATS essentially converts your resume to plain text to read it, you can double-check on your resumes success by saving it as a plain text ASCII file and seeing how it looks. If you see a blank page or everything is out of order, you need to revisit your Word version before submitting.Dont assume you are above ATS. Many executives and C-level job seekers assume that at that level, they dont need to be concerned with Applicant Tracking Systems. However, it is important to keep in mind that many companies use ATS for regulatory compliance with fair hiring practices, so an ATS scan might still be a part of the process, even for high-level employees who network their way to an interview.Resume Writing Tips for FontsFonts You may not think the font you choose for your resume is very important, but it communicates more than you think. Use a font thats too small, and the documents will be too hard to readand the hiring manager wont even invest any time in it. Use one thats too large and youll seem inexperienced and juvenile. Use Times New Roman and youll send a subliminal message that youre boringa mediocre lemmingthat youre just like everyone else. Just as the outfit you wear to the interview provides a first impression for the hiring manager, so do the font and design on your re sume.There are two font families that recruiters and HR managers seem to like the most Serif and Sans Serif. The Serif font family means that the fonts have tails and Sans Serif means they are missing the tails on the ends of letters.Popular font types in the Serif family include Georgia and Times New Romanwhile popular Sans Serif fonts include Verdana and Arial. Its a good idea to note, however, that some managers have disdain for Times New Roman and Arial because they tend to be used so often.Find Fonts That Work on All Types of Computers. There are some cool fonts out there that you may be tempted to use because they look both professional and appealing. But if you want to ensure that your resume translates well on PCs (Windows) and Macs, its better to pick fonts that are available on both.For instance, you may love Palatino zeilensetzmaschine as a Serif font on your PC. But since it doesnt have an immediate translation on a Mac, aside from the similar Palatino, it could look dif ferent from your original copy when pulled up on anything other than a PC. Its good to keep this in mind as you choose your fonts.Which fonts to avoid I highly recommend staying away from Times New Roman. It seems to be the font most people choosebut thats also the reason to avoid using it. There are lots of other options that will help you stand out. Heres a neat list of resume fonts to use and which to avoid.Resume Writing Tips for Design and FormattingUsing color draws the eye in to the resume. Research has proven that the strategic use of color can actually catch and hold the attention of recruiters.Heres a great video from Reach Branding that Ive referred to many times that explains different colors and the associated brand/image. You may choose to use a color that represents your brand. Its important to note that studies have proven resumes receive an initial six-second eye scan to make a fit/no fit determination. First impressions are criticaland theyre visual. While its cert ainly OK to omit colorif it positively affects an employers first impression and causes them to invest more time in a fit/no fit decisionit makes sense to include a color that supports your personal brand.Reach Personal Branding Whats Your Brand Color Borders and shading are great tools to draw attention to information that you want the employer to read. Using borders around blocks of text or shading a specific section on the resume will attract attentionand it doesnt affect scanability with applicant tracking software. So feel free to use borders or shading without worry.Text Boxes can be inserted into the resume or you can simply create a border around a portion of text that you want to call attention to. The issue with text boxes if you insert them into the resume is that most applicant tracking systems will not read the information in the text box. You may want to consider a simple border instead.Visuals and graphics Graphics, visuals, and resume design affect your resumes impa ct. They can also support your personal brand and communicate vital information. As the saying goes A picture is worth a thousand words. Although you have to balance the impact these have on applicant tracking systems, the visual impact they have with recruiters is also important.Use a modern resume design that is easy to read. Employers scan your resume and search for your summary, position title, employment dates, and past positions. Make this information easy to locate.Create graphs or pie charts that convey important information or tell a story. It could be a pie chart that breaks up the different keyword/skills areas you want to bring attention to or highlights the main industries you know. The charts and graphs dont have to be numbers only.Sales data are great to convey in a graphic. Of course, numbers are always great to include in a bar chart to show growth.Industry memberships or leadership organization logos are great ways to highlight industry-relevant associations or lea dership experience, and they bring a visual element to the resume.Testimonials or quotes can be offset in nice visuals. Youre also conveying validation/proof while doing so with a great visual. Double bonusBold, italics, and underlines are another way to capture the employers attention and direct it to specific information you want them to read.Resume Writing Tips for Different Files and FormatsMicrosoft Word is the most common format used to create and deliver your resume. Almost all applicant tracking systems will accept a Microsoft Word version, and I dont know that Ive ever heard of an employer not being able to open a Word doc. The only issue with Word is that you never know which version of Word the employer is opening your document in. Save the file in a compatible format to ensure that it gets read and converted properly.Adobe PDF is a favorite of mine. I love PDF docs because you know that the reader is seeing the exact same format as you aretheres no question about which v ersion theyre using and whether its compatible. You know that what youre seeing they are seeing too. I recommend sending a PDF file whenever you email a Word doc of your resume or if you can upload a PDF send it instead.ASCII plain text Save your resume as a plain text file to remove all the fancy formatting from the regular Word doc. Doing so will ensure its readable by archaic applicant tracking systems.Other formats You can create resumes in other formats too. Weve used InDesign, Illustrator, and Pages to design more creative style formats for our clients. Its important to remember, though, that not all employers have access to these programs, so be sure to save your visually appealing resume in a PDF and Word format once youre finished creating an engaging design in one of the other programs.Resume Writing Tips for Proofreading and EditingProofing it yourself is always a good idea. If youre going to go that route, I suggest walking away from your resume for a day or twoor even a weekand coming back with a fresh set of eyes to review your resume and check for any spelling, punctuation, or grammar errors. Another trick is to read the document backwards to help you catch any mistakes.The problem with spellchecker is that it doesnt catch everything. Dont put all your trust in it, because as soon as you do, it will miss somethingGrammarly is a great application you can use that will catch errors that spellchecker doesnt usually catch. I use this application on my desktop and phone so when Im typing e-mails or social media posts it catches any errors and suggests changes before I post. You can choose whether to accept the change or to skip it.Getting three friends to help you out is another option. Choose three friends who are experts in spelling, punctuation, and grammar and have them each review your resume for mistakes. Dont be surprised if they also weigh in with their opinions on your resumeand the possibility that all three of them have differing opinions. Resumes can be like a piece of art You can show it to 100 people and get 100 different opinions.Resume Writing Myths and MistakesThe one-page resume is such a common mistake that people assume it is mandated. There is no resume rule that states your resume can only be one page in length. This would be incredibly detrimental to a mid-career professional or executive with great content to share. Theres no way you can cram ten to fifteen years of valuable contributions onto one page.Resume template sites are damaging to your job search efforts. Resumes are meant to be unique to each individual. You want your resume to impress employers and be memorable. You want to be set apart in a group of 500 others vying for the same role. Unfortunately, resume templates damage your opportunity to distinguish yourself because your resume ends up looking like thousands of others that employers have seen. Review them for inspiration, but dont copy them it will only hurt your gunst der stundes.Using content from online resume samples is another mistake for the same reason as using a template. Templates all look the same, and when you borrow content from online resume samples then you end up sounding the same as other candidates. The problem is that youre not supposed to look and sound the same as someone elseyou want to be authentic and help the employer see YOU and how YOU are a great fit for the company and the position. Reusing content from online resumes takes away from your authenticity and branding.Resume Writing Tips for Using Professional Resume Writing ServicesNot all professional resume writers and Resume Writing services are the same. Each service has its own process, quality, and style. Speak with the Resume Writing service before signing up, or review their process and samples online to be sure it aligns with your expectations about the way you want to work with your resume writer and the quality of the resume youre expecting.Deciding on the right resume writing se rvice for you comes down to your expectations in quality, the way you prefer to work with a writer, and your budget. One of the biggest differences youll find between resume servicesaside from the qualifications of a writeris the process they use. Some resume writers work via telephone consultation to get to know you and gather information critical to writing your resume other services may only communicate via email and worksheets and questionnaires. Think about your communication preferences and whatever feels most comfortable to you.Resume writing service prices can vary from $100-$3,000+. Essentially, theres a resume writing service for almost every budget. The old adage that You get what you pay for is especially true when it comes to resume writing. On the lower end of the spectrum youre not going to get much in the way of time, attention, personalization, or experience and credentials of your writer. Heres an infographic that you can review to determine if youve found a trustw orthy and credible resume writer.Quick resume writing services are available if youre up against a tight deadline. A word of caution here, too, that you get what you pay for so decide whether you want a template with canned phrases for $50 or a custom resume with your unique branding and value contribution. You can usually find services that will offer a 24- or 48-hour turnaround for an additional fee. That fee usually ranges from $50-300 depending on the speed of the service you need, qualifications/credentials of the writer, and time involved in writing your resume.The process that resume writers use varies. As I mentioned earlier, each writer has their own process. Its important to consider whether you want to communicate via phone or email with your writer. Is a call important to you? Do you want to complete lengthy worksheets and questionnaires or would you rather chat on the phone or do you want a combination of both? Research how many rounds of revisions the writer offers. Tw o rounds of revisions is about industry standard, although youll find services all across the spectrum offering one round of revisions or unlimited. The revision process is typically set up to allow you to provide changes or feedback, which the writer will then incorporate and send back to you for review. Ive been in this industry a long time, and I can say every resume writer Ive ever known genuinely wants you to love your new resume and will work with you to ensure you do.Evaluating a resume writers experience is important. I recommend you start by reviewing samples on their website. This will immediately alert you to whether their quality aligns with your expectations. Look for certifications, awards, and publications. Typically these three indicate the level and experience of the resume writer. There is also credentialing.Resume Writing Tips for Printing Your ResumePaper Im a fan of the linen resume paper that you can get from Office Depot. I think it creates a professional imag e and, in a small way, helps you to stand out from the other candidates using plain white paper.Paper clip It seems like something small and insignificant, but using a paper clip to keep the pages of your resume together makes it easier for the employer to review them during the interview. Using a staple instead would not cost you an interview thatd be ridiculous. Its just a simple detail as a matter of preference.Mailing I recommend the linen paper and envelopes for printing and mailing your resume to employers. You dont hear much about mailing resumes to employers anymore now that job searching has moved online. However, this method can actually be very effective at capturing employer attention.Hand-addressed envelopes may seem counterintuitive, but in todays day and age its so rare that it does attract more attention than a printed envelope. You typically only see hand-addressed notes that are personal in nature like thank-you notes, Christmas cards, or wedding invitations. Its a nother small way to ensure your resume will be opened and read.Extra resume copies and a list of references are important to bring to the interview. You never know if more interviewers will be there or if the interviewer printed off the copy of your resume that you had originally sent in with your application. Its one way to show youre prepared and proactive.Testimonials and letters of recommendation are great to bring to the interview along with your resume. Theyre positive, reinforce the value you can offer the company, and are third-party proof of your success.I always recommend referring them to your LinkedIn profile recommendations. LinkedIn profile recommendations provide proof of the valuable contributions you offer.Additional Tips for Writing Your Resume and Using It While Job SearchingCreate a master resume and keep it updated frequently. Anytime you take on a new responsibility, meet or exceed a goal, earn a new certification or credential, attend a training program, win a n award or celebrate a new accomplishment or success, add it to your master resume. A master resume isnt one that you use while job searching. Its a source to help you create your resume. Its also a place to keep your career documented so youll remember all of your achievements and it will make writing your resume later much easier.Discuss how you meet needs, solve problems, and relieve pain. Write your resume and cover letter in the context of how you meet employer needs, resolve their most pressing problems, and relieve their greatest pains.Customize your resume every time you send it out. No two positions or employers are the same, so make little adjustments to the resume and cover letter as you submit them.Be creativeuse an infographic resume. People love visual information its much easier to digest than bulk content. Consider creating an infographic resume or having one created for you as a complement to your text resume. Here are some helpful tips if thats a direction you want to consider.Video resumes are gaining in popularity, and while they may not ever replace a traditional resume, if it is something you want to consider as part of your job search strategy heres an example of what to include in a video resume.Start a professional blog or share your advice and experiences on LinkedIn, Medium, Twitter, or other professional network. This positions you as a subject matter expert and can open doors to opportunities in the future. You never know when a potential employer may read an article you wrote and reach out about an opening.Tips for Tapping Into the Hidden Job MarketUnderstanding the Hidden Job Market To be an informed job seeker in 2018, you need to understand the Hidden Job Market. The Hidden Job Market refers to the majority of jobs available that are not advertised, but instead filled through internal promotions, word of mouth, referrals, and to a lesser extent, recruiters.Consider the disconnect between job seekers and employers. Most job seek ers spend their time applying to endless applications via job boards like Indeed, LinkedIn, and Monster. But only about 5%-20% of hiring happens through these platforms. The numbers do not add up, and there are more effective ways to spend your timeFocus your search and your priorities. While it may seem like you are limiting yourself by focusing your search on a specific job and industry, in fact you are avoiding the problems inherent in a broad search. Not only is that type of search overwhelmingit is proven to be less effective.Build a target job list to focus your search on companies of interest (anywhere from 20-50.) This is a great starting point for a focused search. Having trouble assembling your list? Manta and Vault can both be used as company directoriesHow to network your way into a job A great starting point is to write down everyone you know, from professional colleagues to friends and family to your hair stylist, your banker, and your alumni community. Rank your conne ctions using this helpful guide https//careerdirectors.com/use-centers-influence-boost-networking/.If you struggle with networking You may be approaching it in a less than effective way. There are a lot of misconceptions about networking, the most common one being of a person who is trying to build a bridge to a job using their friends and colleagues as the steps. But networking is really more about building relationships. You can read additional information here https//careerdirectors.com/5-problems-networking/.Using a Networking Power Letter Once you have a good list of people you know, it is time to start reaching out to ask for advice, guidance, and second-degree connections. Use a networking power letter to reach out here are some examples.Referrals the golden ticket Job seekers who get to the interview stage have about a 25% chance of landing the job IF they have a referral. Those candidates without a referral have only about a 2% chance of getting a job offer. It is always w orth your while to seek out introductions and build relationships with people at target companies.Cold and Warm Approaches In networking, there are cold approaches (reaching out to people you DONT know) and warm approaches (reaching out to people you DO know). For cold approaches, a Value Proposition Letter is a great way to convey your ROI to, say, a key decision maker at a target company.Professional Associations Not only should you reach out to your existing connections, but also continue adding more through networking events and Professional Associations. Career One Stop is a wonderful tool for finding associations by industry and/or position type.Recruiters Reaching out to recruiters is particularly worthwhile if you are not a career changerif you have held less than three jobs in the past eight years, and if you have the proper qualifications for the job in question. People in industries like Pharma and Tech see the best results from a service like the one offered by GRF for r esume distribution to recruiters.Target growth opportunities You can use Google News Alerts to receive alerts for your target companies, or to learn about industry or company growth that translates into opportunities for job seeking. Simply insert keywords like growth companies + pharma + location and set yourself up for batched alerts to put yourself ahead of the curve when an opportunity arises.Use social media and technology to your advantage If you are not on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter, it is worth finding out whether any of the companies from your Target job list are. Most likely, the answer is yes, especially for LinkedIn. Being invisible online can be just as bad as having a negative footprint, so consider investing time into creating an online identity that you are proud ofPhew feels like it took me forever to compile all 131 resume writing tips. The tips and resources included here will help you to create a well-written resume that will impress employers. Id love to he ar your tips for a great resume or your thoughts on any tips Ive left off the list I really enjoyed putting together this comprehensive list of Resume writing tips, and I hope that it will be a great benefit to you and those you know as you set out to write your own resume. Please feel free to shareResume writing can be a challenge. If you decide youd rather not go it alone, wed be honored to help. You can find out more about what my team and I do on my website Great Resumes Fast.