The ultimate resumé-writing guide
From basics to bells and whistles — get noticed and get hired
By Leah Macpherson
In a competitive global job market, a cleverly written, well-designed resumé is the most effective way to land a job.
“Your resumé is your most powerful marketing tool,” says Martin Buckland, principal at Elite Résumés and resumé expert at monster.ca. “You only get one chance to win over a prospective employer, and if you don’t get an interview you have zero chance of getting the job.”
Sound intimidating? Putting together a winning resumé is easier than you think. A smart combination of simple basics, smart design and carefully selected language can help you get hired.
IN THIS STORY
Back to resumé basics
Even in today’s job market, the golden rules of resumé writing remain unchanged:
- Proofread: Vimal Sharma, an HR generalist at Yahama Canada Music, and Buckland both emphasize the importance of an error-free resumé. “It’s surprising how many applicants submit resumés with typos and spelling or grammatical errors. It’s a major detractor for potential employers,” Sharma explains. Have someone check your resumé for errors before you begin distributing it.
- Length: Both experts emphasize a two-page maximum. “Unless you’re a top sales executive, two carefully crafted pages are enough to get you noticed and booked for an interview,” says Buckland.
- Font: Many resumés are scanned by recruiters and employers, so choosing an easy-to-read font is critical. To stand out in a crowd, Buckland suggests avoiding ubiquitous fonts such as Times New Roman in favour of attractive, lesser-used fonts such as Century Gothic, Bookman or MS Trebuchet.
- Formatting: “To get noticed, you’ve got to have a “wow” factor,” points out Buckland. “Design your resumé to seduce the eye and entice them to read on.” He recommends condensing basic personal and contact info, and using design features such as lines, boxes, bolds and italics to highlight your accomplishments. If you’re submitting your resumé electronically, be sure to use a universal format, such as PDF, so it can be easily opened and read.
Marketing yourself
Your resumé is a form of advertising — and you’re the product. “The main thing employers are interested in is your accomplishments,” says Buckland. Avoid clichéd phrases like “looking for a challenging position where I can help the company grow” in favour of more potent and persuasive language that highlights your accomplishments. Words such as visionary, industrious, experienced and outstanding pop off the page and attract attention.
In addition to your accomplishments, employers are most interested in your employment history, education and community involvement. “Don’t leave off your volunteering information. It shows potential employers that you’re a community-minded, caring person,” Buckland says.
Many companies will also do an online search on prospective employees, so be sure to have a professional web presence. “I recommend that my clients join as many networking sites as possible. Being listed on sites like Linkedin, Naymz, zoominfo and Ziggs will reinforce your professionalism and the positive characteristics of your personal brand.”
Sharma suggests being cautious about the information you share online through social networking sites. Images of you partying at a nightclub or wearing a donkey costume at Halloween may be amusing for your friends but can be a big turn-off for potential employers.
A few quick dos and don’ts
Don’t
Exaggerate. While emphasizing your accomplishments, Sharma suggests keeping language realistic and appropriate. “You obviously want to make a good impression, but using language that is too far over-the-top might make an employer suspicious about the truth of your claims.”
Detail hobbies or religious views. Keep the information you share relevant to the job, suggests Buckland.
Do
Use your letters. If you have letters behind your name (B.A., Ph.D.), use them at the top of the document so the extent of your post-secondary education is revealed at first glance.
Keep it relevant. Focus on relevant work experience. Your post-high-school fast-food gig is unlikely to enhance your current resumé.
High-tech job hunt
While neither Buckland nor Sharma have seen many resumés on video or DVD, both agree that multimedia resumés will become more widely used in the future. “Canada is a late adopter of hi-tech resumés. It’s something that we’re seeing more of in other parts of the world but hasn’t really caught on here yet,” says Buckland.
For now, he says, the good old paper resumé is still your most powerful job-hunting tool.
