Five Quick Tips to Creating an Online Searchable Resume

1) USE KEYWORDS: Resumes are skimmed initially by hiring managers and recruiters in 5 - 10 seconds, sometimes faster if they are keyword searching large sites like Monster or CareerBuilder. They are looking for specific information to fill a specific role. Be sure to include keywords in your resume that will zero in on your desired position. A resume with the pertinent keywords will ensure your resume gets found and gets a longer look.

2) NOT TOO MUCH INFORMATION: Resumes with too much information or too much "fanciness" get passed over quicker. The pertinent information is too hard to find. Keep it simple, straight forward and easy to pinpoint your experience and strengths. Refrain from fancy fonts, lines, headers and too many additional nonessential things.

3) SIMPLE FORMATTING: When you submit your resume through a website or ATS/RTS (applicant/resume tracking system), that fancy formatting is often removed or altered. This means that your resume doesn't look at all like what you intended. If it doesn’t get altered on the site you upload to it is likely to get altered when recruiter and hiring managers upload it to their company’s tracking site like Sales Force. Be sure you are looking at it from that perspective. The more straightforward you make it initially, the more intact it will stay as it travels through the screening process. In today’s hiring landscape it is best to stay streamlined, bullet pointed and easy to follow.

4) AVOID ALL CAPS & CATCHY TITLES: Catchy titles and placing your name in ALL CAPS were both “best practices” at one point in the hiring game. Today it is best to instead use the same size (not all caps) font and save your resume with a title that is just your name or even the year or something similar such as “Christy McDonald Resume” or “Christy McDonald 2015 Resume”. Eliminate catchy titles when using career websites. Instead of “dynamic sales professional” opt for something that is concise such as “Licensed Multi-state Health/Life Agent”. That way you are already ahead of the game on using keywords and giving hiring managers/recruiters a heads up as to exactly what type of sales you are in.

5) BE SURE TO HIGHLIGHT SKILLS PERTINENT TO YOUR DESIRED POSITION: It is really important to list out specific skills that are pertinent to the position you desire. For example if you are in healthcare claims processing and have used three different claims processing systems you will want to be sure to list them on the resume. I would suggest a targeted “Skills/Systems Experience” section on your resume that would bullet point them out. That way they are easy to find when someone is quickly looking over the resume and when hiring manager and recruiters are doing keyword searches on large sites like LinkedIn, CareerBuilder or Monster.

Here are two great FREE resources that will aid you in creating a great resume:
http://resume.monster.com/
http://advice.careerbuilder.com/?categories=Resumes

5 Steps for a Sucessful Job Search

1. Determine your goals & priorities.

What do you want to achieve in your life AND career? What kinds of jobs will allow you to achieve those goals?

2. Analyze your options.

Research companies of interest and create a company bucket list. What companies can you see yourself working for?

Once you’ve created your company bucket list, set up informational interviews with employees from those companies to learn more about the culture, hiring process, and anything else you’re curious about.

Also, do a little research on salary. Would you need to take a pay cut if you were to take a job at your dream company?

Once you gather those numbers, determine your “walk away rate.” What is the absolute lowest amount of money you’re willing to accept without having to eat Ramen noodles every day? If the company can’t at least offer you that number, then you know it’s not worth pursuing.

3. Recognize your strengths.

Determine the problem you solve. We’re all fixers – what do YOU fix? Make a list of your previous accomplishments, hard and soft skills, and unique selling points (what do you offer that other candidates can’t?)

Highlight your strengths – If you’ve worked at the same company for 15 years, showcase your longevity at the company, emphasize your extensive experience/skills in the area you worked in.

4. Establish your brand.

Now that you know what you want and what you offer, it’s time to brand yourself. Remember, everyone has a brand, but it’s up to you on how much you want to control it (brand or BE branded!).

Here are some things you can do to establish a bomb-ass brand:

Create a unique branding statement that showcases your unique selling points.
Update your job search materials (resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, etc) with appropriate content and keywords.
Build an online brand (update social media profiles regularly, create an industry-specific blog, etc).
5. Demonstrate your value.

Show employers that you’ll be a valuable asset to the company, don’t just tell them.

You can do this by…

Sharing accomplishment stories
Quantifying your accomplishments
Demonstrating how you can solve their problem
Showing enthusiasm for both the job AND the company

Read more at: http://www.careerealism.com/successful-job-search-approach