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The overall appearance of your resume must make the
employer want to read it. Presentation is everything.
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Your resume layout must be modern, professional, and
eye-catching.
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Information must be organized for easy reading. When the
recipient first glances at it, key skills and accomplishments must be
easily seen. Remember, five to twenty seconds is all your resume gets in
the first screening round.
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Does the quality of the print look great? Don't mix fonts.
Highlight and capitalize relevant job titles.
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Quality paper is a must. Avoid coloured paper as most
recruiters prefer white, ivory, or beige. If you are faxing the resume,
use only white paper.
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There must be no typos or grammatical errors. Remember,
this is an indication of your best work.
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Your writing style must be clear and concise. Do not use
inappropriate jargon or slang.
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Statements should begin with action verbs, and should
communicate results, accomplishments, and the value you can offer the
company.
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Verb tenses must remain consistent. Sentences must be
parallel.
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If including a career objective, make sure it is clear and
well-written. Your resume should focus on this objective if you want it to
accomplish its purpose. Which is to get an interview.
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Are your strengths relevant to the objective, and do they
stand out? The reader must see that your qualifications are what the
company is looking for.
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Stress accomplishments and skills, rather than
responsibilities and job duties.
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Make sure you show the reader that you are a troubleshooter
and can solve the company's problems. Include examples and quotes from
previous supervisors - this increases your credibility.
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Include community, volunteer, or unpaid work experience
that might be relevant to the position you are seeking.
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Keep your resume to one page if possible. However, it is
imperative not to leave out relevant points. It's extremely common for job
seekers with less than seven years of experience to have only one page.
Experience over that will more than likely require two pages.
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Keywords and industry buzzwords are a must. Use these words
in your resume to ensure it arrives in the "Yes" pile.
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When you are sending your marketing documents by email,
send both an ASCII text version (fix the formatting after the conversion)
and an MS Word attachment to ensure your documents are read. Many
companies don't open attachments for incompatibility and virus reasons.
