As a resume strategist, I get asked the same resume questions all the time. I thought it would be nice for you to have one place to get all your questions answered. I made a video series where I answered one resume question a day for 30 days! #30daysofresume
Here’s the first video.
Day One: The importance of tailoring your resume.
You need to customize your resume for every position you apply for. I know, I know But, if you send the same plain resume to multiple companies, they can tell. This technique might have worked earlier in your career when there was less competition, or the roles weren’t as senior. Things have changed.
Here is the big news, no one has told you. If you send a sub-par resume for a great job, you look like an average or below average candidate. If you send a resume that worked in 2005, it’s not going to work in 2018.
Again, I know, I know.
A tailored resume gives you a chance to show the employer exactly what you can do for them and highlight the stories they would care about. Sending a generic resume shows you are a generic worker.
The biggest difference between generic and tailored resumes are:
Generic Resumes:
- often look like they were copy and pasted from a job description
- don’t allow the potential employer to see you super skills
- can make you look lazy and/or desperate
- don’t hook the reader
- Make you look like you don’t really care about the job
Tailored Resume:
- Ultra-specific for the job and company
- Uses the company’s language to build commonality
- Allows you share the stories that company will care about
- Makes the company feel special
Which would you want representing your employment brand?
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