An engaging and professional resume is your job-hunting secret weapon. Whether you’re looking for your first position or are ready to take the next step on the career ladder, your resume is what gets your foot in the door.
If you get it right, your phone will be ringing off the hook with interview offers. Get it wrong, and the silence will be almost excruciating. So, that begs the question, do you know how to make a resume stand out?
If this crucial conundrum has you stumped, you’ve come to the right place. Here at Resume.io, we have everything you need to empower your job search. We’ve got a massive library of writing guides along with cover letter examples and resume examples.
In the following guide, we will be delving into these key topics to help you out:
Your resume is a hiring manager’s first introduction to you and your skills. Unfortunately, at the same time, many other candidates will also be trying to introduce themselves.
So you need to grab their attention right away: in the professional summary. Here are some tips to make your career summary that can help you immediately stand out from the competition:
Research reveals that hiring managers spend an average of seven seconds reviewing each resume. That’s not a whole lot of time to make the right impression. Recruiters see a bunch of generic resumes every day. Make yours snappy and catch their attention from the first line.
“Detail-oriented and analytical Data Analyst with 5+ years of experience extracting meaningful insights from complex data sets.”
The focus of your application must be about the value you bring. You could be under-selling yourself in your resume. If you’re afraid of tooting your own horn, you could be losing out on remarkable job opportunities. Don’t be afraid to show off your biggest accomplishments.
“Adept at leveraging market research and data analytics to create compelling campaigns that resonate with target audiences.”
It can take sending out up to 100 resumes to get an interview. When you’re searching for your next opportunity, that can sound overwhelming. However, resumes that stand out are more likely to get the hiring manager’s attention for the right reasons. If you’ve struggled to get to this stage in the past, it may be time for a revamp.
Consider this underwhelming professional summary:
By adding action verbs and focusing on keywords found in the job description, it can transform into this:
“Proactive and detail-oriented Software Developer with 6+ years of experience designing, developing, and implementing innovative software solutions. Passionate about leveraging cutting-edge technology to solve complex problems and enhance user experience.”
Now, let’s focus on how you write a professional resume. The content of this document needs to perfectly show who you are and what you bring to the table. To kick things off, before you put pen to paper, take a look at these core writing tips and see some examples of what you might include in various sections of your resume:
For best results, we recommend keeping a resume to one to two pages in length. Consider what you need to include on your resume and what information is superfluous. Ask yourself: “What does this information add to my resume?” If you can’t answer that easily, you may be cramming your resume with details that don’t add value.
If you send the same tired resume out to every employer, you’re not doing yourself any favors. If you want to boost your chances of success, you should tailor your resume to the requirements of the job. Go back to the original job advert and make a note of the specifications.
You should also do some research on the business and the particular role in question. Look for obvious overlaps between your experience and the demands of the job. Highlighting this common ground is a surefire way to make your resume stand out.
Consider this sample job description:
A tailored summary might look like this:
“Results-driven Marketing Manager with over 7 years of experience developing and executing innovative marketing strategies that drive brand growth and customer engagement. Proven ability to optimize campaign performance through data-driven insights, compelling content, and market trend analysis.”
Language has power. The tone you use can impact how the reader perceives you. When you’re writing your resume, make sure you adopt a formal and positive tone. The style of language you use can also make a big difference here. You’re not writing a message to a friend or emailing someone you know well. Instead, you need to choose words that convey professionalism.
Consider this sample employment history section:
Sales Associate
A&B Stores | Chicago, IL | June 2020 - August 2023
Upgrading that same past employment description with quantifiable achievements and action verbs gives it a professional—and powerful—tone:
Sales Associate
A&B Stores | Chicago, IL | June 2020 - August 2023
Your professional summary is the most creative part of your resume. In just a few sentences, you need to encapsulate who you are as a professional and why the hiring manager should care. One of the best tips you can use here is to find your “hook”. In other words, the thing that makes you unique. Answer the following questions to get started:
The majority of businesses now use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to filter incoming applications. The system ranks resumes based on how well each of them aligns with the job criteria using keyword ranking.
Optimizing your resume is the name of the game. First, you need to follow a solid structure and ensure the content is easy to read. You should also pepper your resume with keywords and phrases. To do this, take a look at the job posting and highlight any words that stand out to you or align directly with the core duties of the position.
Add accomplishments to your resume, but quantify those achievements where possible. To demonstrate this, let’s take a look at a summary:
If we add quantifiable accomplishments, it can look like this:
“Qualified sales executive with 16 years of industry experience and a 97% customer satisfaction rating.”
Do you see how the second version adds more value than the first? When you’re writing your professional resume, quantify your claims whenever possible.
One traditional marketing principle says that adding details to your points makes them more memorable than generic statements. When you’re writing about your past experiences, add details about your specific duties and achievements.
For example:
Made more specific, that same line can become:
Developed and executed digital marketing campaign for launch of new eco-friendly product line, resulting in 30% increase in lead generation and 20% growth in overall campaign engagement in first three months.
When it comes to your skills section, include a balance of hard and soft skills that will pique the hiring manager’s interest. Hard skills, often technical skills, can usually be found in the job description. Soft skills demonstrate your ability to work well as part of a team and get the job done efficiently. They could be “communication,” “time management,” and “organization”.
Don’t overlook the look of the document. If you’re new to the world of design, we’ve got you. First, take a look at our example resume, then review our tips that focus on the design of your resume:
White space is vital. It makes your resume easy to read and stops it from looking “busy”. You may want to cram loads of information onto your resume, but you don’t want it to overwhelm the reader. Leave some space around the edges of each section. This visual trick allows the person looking at your resume to quickly scan it for the finer details.
Professional resumes are consistent. Using a broad variety of font styles appears chaotic and is a quick way to put the hiring manager off. Generally, you should use one or two fonts on your resume. Pick typefaces that are legible and professional.
Have you spaced your resume out correctly? If there is not an even amount of space between sections, something will look “off” about the document. While the hiring manager may not be able to put their finger on the problem, they will know that it’s not quite right. Take the time to ensure that the spacing of your professional resume is on point.
If you’re wondering how to make your resume stand out, using one of our field-tested resume templates is the answer. Most of the time, it’s smart to opt for a classic design over anything too experimental. However, there are exceptions to this rule. Should you work in a creative industry, for example, you can use a resume design with a tad more flair.
We’ve covered all you need to know to create a resume that stands out. But before you get started on yours, there are some final things you should know. Let’s take a look at some of the most common mistakes you should avoid when creating your next resume:
You only have a few seconds to make an impression on the hiring manager. Having a resume that stands out will increase your chances of success. Use the right tone and language, proofread, and quantify your accomplishments whenever possible.
Using Resume.io is the easiest way to build a professional resume in minutes.