![]() |
Careers & Employment Information |
|
|
How to Create a Great Electronic Resume
After creating the perfect resume, you then need to distribute it. You'll likely be sending some professionally printed hard copies, especially to "A list" companies or organizations you've set your sights on. But just as likely, you'll be distributing other copies electronically. Presuming you've written a great resume to begin with, here's what you really need to know about your electronic version: 1. It must be searchable. 2. It must be in ASCII format. Searchable: Someone searching the Internet resume banks for the perfect candidate (you) needs to be able to weed out all the unqualified candidates, which potentially number in the tens of thousands nowadays. Typically, they'll enter search terms intended to eliminate the vast majority of posted resumes and select the most promising. They do this much as one might perform an Internet search on Google or another search engine, by entering key word search terms Their search might be limited to a certain geographical area, a certain skill set or qualification, or a certain job description, among obvious search categories. The geographical part is easy - your contact information will help someone looking for a software designer in San Francisco Bay area or a pretzel maker in Milwaukee find you if you are qualified and live in the right part of the world. However, if you have technical qualifications that can be searched in different ways - "Bachelor of Science" and "B.Sc." for example, your resume should use both variants so that a search engine finds you either way. And if you possess job experience that's highly relevant to the job in question, be sure to describe it in the most common ways that it would likely be searched on. Tip: Read through your completed resume and see if you can't describe qualifications, degrees, or job titles in multiple alternative ways throughout the resume. This will increase the chances you'll be found in an online search. ASCII Format: Your professionally laid out and formatted paper resume may end up looking like gibberish if simply transformed into an electronic copy. Programs like Word allow you to format nice looking documents with features such as tabs, bullets, centering, bold, italic and other word processing niceties. Unfortunately, when converted to electronic form, many of these word processing features are lost. Worse, what's left over may bear no resemblance to the exquisite resume that you labored over to produce. Fortunately, there is an easy solution. You can prepare a simple text version in a text editor like Notepad or any of the dozens of other text editors out there. In this case, you'll replace many of these text effects. For example, you'll replace bullets with asterisks, word wrap with a hard carriage return, and tabs and justification effects with simple spaces. Another solution is to use a program specifically designed for writing resumes like WinWay Resume Express. (See the "Do It Yourself Resumes" page at www.Impressive-Resumes.com to learn more about this inexpensive handy program.) It features an easy way to transform your resume into a searchable electronic version with very little effort after you've created the word processing formatted version. No matter which method you use, be sure you've taken these simple preparations for electronic distribution before you hit "send." This will greatly increase the chances that your resume will reach its intended audience. Copyright 2005 by Vincent Czaplyski, all rights reserved. You may republish this article in its entirety, as long as you include the complete signature file above without modification. Copywriter and consultant Vincent Czaplyski is founder of http://www.impressive-resumes.com, your online source for professionally written "industrial strength" resumes and cover letters guaranteed to land you an interview.
MORE RESOURCES:
Employment - Google News |
RELATED ARTICLES
Three Steps to Writing Your Own Resume While most professionals hire a professional resume writer, some draft their own resume. People who write a lot for business usually have more success in putting together a sharp, focused presentation; still, anyone can learn the basic steps to prepare his or her own resume. Change Your Career, Change Your Life Change Your Career,Change your Life!Lots of times I see and talk to people who are tired, bored and burnt out of their current jobs. I'm not sure what causes this dis- satisfaction. What You Should Never Put on Your Resume Liars Get Caught! What NOT to Put on Your Resume"Everybody does it" as they say. Face it, the job market can be a very tough place to compete. How To Resign Gracefully Once a new job has been accepted, you need to consider the timing of your resignation. Since two weeks' notice is considered the norm, make sure your resignation properly coincides with your start date at the new company. The Changing Values Landscape of the U.S. and How It Impacts Midlife Job Searchers, Part Two The values landscape of our nation is changing, and with it your personal values landscape is changing as well. What does this mean and what does it have to do with midlife? Researcher Dr. Job Search Tips - How to Increase Your Success Finding a job can be a painful and difficult experience. Here are three things that you can do to minimize the pain and increase your chances of success. Oil, Lube and Filter Employee Pay We have been studying the labor rates of Oil, Lube and Filter Quick Lube Facilities and we are finding that the pay is lower than you might expect. We also believe this is part of the problem with recruiting and retaining key employees. Master Responding to Selection Criteria and Win Your Next Job! As a human resources specialist for many years, I've seen it all when it comes to job applications. Most disheartening were those applications in which applicants had not addressed the specified selection criteria . Turning the Table: Questions for Your Interviewer (DES MOINES, Iowa - January 26, 2005) The fateful final question of all interviewers may carry more weight than you would think. Upon hearing "Now, do you have any questions," you are given a chance to show the quality of your character and interest in the company. 15 Tips for Writing Winning Resumes The thought of writing a resume intimidates almost anyone. It's difficult to know where to start or what to include. Blogging for Candidates 101: Nuts and Bolts A "blog" is simply an internet (web) log. Blogs are created for personal or professional use. Do Your Very Best in All Things -- Because Someone Is Looking.... Your job is to rise ABOVE the challenge. Do more than is expected. Youre Fired! One-day you're minding your own business and your boss comes in and says "You're Fired", perhaps he was a bit more polite than that but the end result was the same, you're now out of work!!Now what do you do?Well get over the initial shock and look at the whole experience as a positive, this maybe the break you have been waiting for, no more excuses for not doing what you've always wanted to do, that is too work for yourself and if that's not what you always wanted to do, it is now, because you may not have any other choice.Okay, just got the sack and now suddenly thrust into the world of the entrepreneur! What next? First thing is to think about what you have been doing that actually had someone paying you previously to do it. Top Ten Guidelines For Working With Executive Recruiters 1. Select the right type of recruitment partnerDetermine whether you would be best served by a retained, contingency, contract or research based partner at a global, national or local level. Job Layoff: Confronting Why Me? Perhaps you saw it coming. The fall in company stock prices. Job Interviews -- The Real Reasons Why You Need to Follow Up Effective follow-up after a job interview is often a key reason why someone gets a job, even though there are other equally qualified candidates. Many candidates treat follow up as an optional add-on to their job search. Bringing Our Family to Work Let's face it, most of us consider professional success and personal success the same.In other words we become our careers. Ask Me No Questions, Ill Tell You No Lies If only there were no questions involved in getting a job!If you've been following NBC's "The Apprentice," you know who Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth is. She's had the honor of being fired by Donald Trump (and others, according to "People" magazine). Home Healthcare Careers One of the fastest growing sectors of the medical industry is that of home health. There are many reasons for this growth, but most important are:The number of aging and infirm citizens in the country. How To Write A Resume, Avoid These Resume Mistakes HOW TO WRITE A RESUME-MISTAKE #1NEVER USE THE WRONG PAPER! What kind of paper should you choose when typing your resume? The color of paper you will want to use will be white or ivory. You will also want to type your resume on a heavier paper, such as a 20 lb. |
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |