JOB SEARCH! The RESUME! Where you post it and are you maintaining the post to your advantage?

Authored by: Ron Cottick, CPC, CHRM

Many people post their RESUME to almost every RESUME database they come across and let it go at that. They may get some initial traffic but after awhile, usually 30 days or more, the traffic lessens or disappears. They don’t know why they are not attracting attention but they are not. What happened? How could this be? Positions are showing up for their skill sets! What is going on here?

It could be all in the way your RESUME is posted and even more how you are maintaining the posting. The way it’s posted and maintaining it? What good would that do! Well, it could do a lot to drawing more attention to you and your background. It could also get you closer to, of all things, the invite to INTERVIEW.

Let’s start with where it is posted. Most recruiters have access to the two most prominent RESUME database’s, Monster www.monster.com and CareerBuilder www.careerbuilder.com. If your RESUME is on one or both, you do not need to populate every RESUME database with your RESUME. You will in essence have full coverage. I look at posting the RESUME everywhere as spamming, not necessary. I will digress on one point though. That is on niche RESUME databases. Niche databases focus on specific industries, skill sets or any number of specifics. Posting on a niche site is a good idea. Many recruiters work what is commonly referred to as a desk specialty and they know which niche sites can help them find candidates. If you have your RESUME out there in this manner you will have all the coverage you need.

As well written as your RESUME may be, you still could be overlooked when a recruiter is looking for you. At one time the RESUME databases would sort search results by having the most recently updated resumes at the top. If a person did not update their RESUME for, say, 30 days they would find themselves far down the result list. Recruiters do not always look at the entire result list if they find 3 – 5 good candidates out of the first 50 results, out of, say 200 results listed. That is part why you should update your RESUME regularly, and, I suggest weekly. Here is a caveat to that though. The RESUME databases have gotten smarter. Monster www.monster.com for example can now sort by:

1. default (not sure what the parameters are for this choice)
2. resume title
3. resume updated
4. location
5. relevance

So where do we start here! Let’s start with:

1. Key words on your RESUME
   a. First and foremost you want an excellently written RESUME that is an attention getter for you, however,
       you should try to integrate “key words” that a recruiter would use to find someone like you. You could
       have a string of “key words” on the bottom of your RESUME that will be invisible. That is where you
       should consider putting a string of “key words” that are appropriate for your skill set and help you be
       found and read. These “key words” may be over kill for a RESUME, not fit the verbiage and make it
       look poorly written. That is why you make them invisible.
   b. How do you make them invisible? You chose white for the font color. I have never seen a case where a
       Recruiter, Human Resources or anyone in business use anything but white paper. Use white for the font
       color and the “key word” string won’t show up when the RESUME is viewed and/or printed.

2. Give your RESUME a title
   a. Having a name for your RESUME gives quick identification as to what you do, so, give it a title such as
       “Jane Doe, Automotive Applications Engineer”. Do not be so generic as to have a title such as “Jane’s
       resume 2010”. That will not serve you well. You want the person looking for you to have a quick
       identifier to draw them in so when they are looking for an “Automotive Applications Engineer” they will
       quickly recognize that before having to open up the RESUME. They will also be more likely to open
       and read it. You don’t want to have a Recruiter assume what you do, they don’t usually take the time,
       so, tell them in a title. Used, as a title behind your name, is a great place to have your title. You should
       also avoid having multiple titles for your resume, it can confuse and doesn’t serve you as well as having
       multiple resumes applicable to each titled skill set.

3. Have a target job title
   a. This somewhat dovetails with the above but the additional intent is to be specific. You don’t want to
       have something as generic as “Project Manager/Account Manager/Engineer”. The “and/or” doesn’t
       work well. You particularly don’t want something as broad as “open to anything” (I have seen this).
       Candidates who are open to anything usually get nothing.
   b. The purpose of being specific is you surely have a preference and a background that would support that
       so let the reader know what you want to do. If you have several preferences it is suggested you have a
       different RESUME for each targeted position you would like to have. There is absolutely nothing wrong
       with having more than one RESUME posted and you have more clarity to what you are about and
       looking for with each one.

4. Refresh RESUME weekly
   a. Refreshing your RESUME weekly will help keep you at the top of the result list for recruiters looking for
       your kind of talent. It is a wise thing to do and only requires something as simple as adding a middle
       initial to a name one week and taking it out the next. If when you make a change and the site you are on
       responds with RESUME updated, you have updated.

5. Have a concise and direct career summary on your RESUME and the profile when setting up your
    account
   a. The profile for your account could be something as simple as “Automotive Applications Engineer for
       interior design, BSME”. This shows up on the result list as well and again is a quick read to help draw
       the recruiter in to identify the RESUME as what they are looking for and get them to read it. The career
       summary on your RESUME would be more expanded but still should be concise and direct.

More on this; when you are posting your RESUME be sure to review it so it looks like you want it to when recruiters view it. I have had a number of times when I would ask someone something about their RESUME and they would say “ it is not suppose to say that”. It was obvious that they did not preview the RESUME before they posted it. When you review it you will see what, if anything, should be changed to make it look like you want it to. Very important, don’t over look this.

And last, do your resume in a word doc format! Do not use a RESUME builder program or any preformatted program. It will work for posting purposes but does not work well for the Recruiter, Human Resources or whomever is interested in it when they want to download it. It doesn’t work well with some of the company databases. I wouldn’t even use “rich text” “wps” or any other of the other formats. Some can be easily converted to a word doc but creates extra work for the interested party. Something you do not want to do. And, absolutely, no PDF files. It is best and easiest to just use the word doc format. You will be better off for it and not regret it.

These pointers on posting your RESUME will help you get to the goal line. In past and future BLOG’s you will find help in getting over the goal line.

Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life! Go out and SEIZE THE DAY!

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I welcome comment and if you wish me to address a specific subject let me know in the comments section.