Candidates: The 7 Deadly Resume Mistakes
One of the most common mistakes job seekers make when initially going into their job search is underestimating the true importance of their resume as well as the role of it in the job search process.
Let it be known in no uncertain terms: Your resume is by far the most important piece of the puzzle to landing your next job. Why? Because without a resume that gets you recognized and shows your prospective employer why they need to consider you immediately, you won’t even end up being contacted and interviewed. Instead, your resume will join the countless resumes that are filtered into the trash.
So, with that said… read on to see the seven deadly mistakes that job seekers commit when writing their resume:
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 1- Not Understanding The TRUE Purpose Of Your Resume
The majority of job seekers write their resume with the intent of landing the job. Unfortunately, as great and logical as this sounds, it’s the wrong thing to do. Instead, you should write your resume for the sole purpose of getting the interview. Period. You’ll never get the job without first getting the interview. Don’t fill your resume with boring facts about your previous work experience. Instead, create curiosity, focus on how you’ll specifically benefit the company (and the hiring manager) and point out specific successes you’ve had in the past. Too many job seekers are so focused on getting the job that they forget they still need to get the interview first. Compare it to the person that wants to get married so bad that they almost forget they need to court someone first- and in the process, turn off most potential mates. Going from resume to job interview to job offer is a process, and one in which cannot we cannot short cut. It’s a common mistake many job seekers make, and it’s a deadly one.
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 2- Not Writing Your Resume With The Proper Keywords In Mind
Remember in today’s digital age, prospective employers are searching for your resume via keywords. So, if you’re a sales manager for an IT firm and have specific experience in working Cisco systems products, for example, you better be sure to have those keywords on your resume! Quite often, in a resume search on the job boards, employers will be entering in keywords such as “cisco” and if you don’t have these specific keywords in your resume, your resume will never be found.
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 3- Your Resume Doesn’t Pass The “So What?” Test…
A very common (and deadly) mistake job seekers make is having an extremely vague resume that doesn’t pass the “so what?” test. An example of this would be a salesman having a statement such as this on their resume:
Developed Midwest sales territory for 5 years.
What does this statement mean? What does it really tell your potential employer other than the fact you had a job for 5 years? Nearly 90% of the resumes we see have vague statements lacking in benefits that don’t come close to passing the “so what?” test. The “so what” test is essentially reviewing any statement you make and ask the question- “so what?”. If you cannot answer the “so what” question, the statement fails and you need to go back to the drawing board. Here’s an example of a statement that does pass the “so what” test:
Developed new business in the Midwest region for 5 years and was an average of 54% above sales quota throughout my tenure, which helped make our division the most profitable in the entire company.
Do you see the difference? Remember, in order to pass the “so what” test you need to focus on benefits. The benefit in the above example is helping his division become the most profitable in the entire company. Remember what the selfish needs are of your potential employer and show how them how you can specifically BENEFIT them and you’ll be way ahead of the rest of the other resumes in the pile, and maximize your chances of getting the interview over the other candidates in consideration.
Experience has shown us that by simply focusing on statements that are benefit driven and pass the “so what” test, your resume will be read over 453% more often, resulting in many more phone and face to face interviews. Employ this writing strategy in your resume today!
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 4- NOT Using Bullet Points
Nothing annoys a hiring manager more than seeing a resume that is a bunch of text, and our experience has shown us that hiring managers will not take the time to read resumes that are structured in this fashion.
Instead, structure your resume with small blocks of text a few sentences long laced in with powerful, benefit oriented statements that not only pass the “so what” test but also create enough curiosity from the hiring manager that they want to know more! And the only way they will know more is to interview you! It’s also important to note that you should have a nice balance of open space and text on your resume to ensure it doesn’t appear overly crowded.
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 5- Including “Of Course” Information On Your Resume
“Of course” information would be statements like “references available upon request” or “available for interview”. If you’ve sent your resume to a company then it’s assumed you’d do these things, so generally speaking avoid these stock phrases. Separating yourself from the competition is always what you’re looking to do with your resume and one of the ways in which you can do this is by avoiding commonly used “say nothing” statements and thus separating yourself from the pack.
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 6- Not Identifying The Employer’s Problem/Pain
Remember, even if you’re applying for a position in Accounting, you are always selling your services to your potential employers. With that said, you should understand one of the basic rules of sales, which is “the best-selling product in the world is a solution to a problem”. Keeping this basic law in mind, you should always position yourself to be the solution to their problem. And this can be both the companies problem as well as the hiring managers problem!
For example, if you’re a sales person and you know the prospective company you’re applying to needs to identify new business aggressively, you should point out how many new accounts you opened in the last quarter, year, etc, and sharing your passion for bringing in new business. On the same token, if the hiring manager needs sales people who consistently reach their quota (so they look good to their boss), then you also demonstrate that directly to the sales manager and show how they can directly benefit from hiring you as well.
Resume Writing Deadly Sin # 7- Not Getting Help!
That’s right! Most job seekers today are taking shortcuts and not seeking out professional advice nearly as much as they should be, especially when talking about how their resume is written and structured. When you see thousands of resumes a day like we do, it’s quickly becomes obvious that most job seekers are considerably missing the mark. We estimate that 90%+ of resumes cannot only be improved, but significantly improved, simply by following the advice we gave throughout this article coupled with a little creative writing.