Winning Resume Format. How to get that Interview – Secrets Revealed

Choosing a favourite resume format can be confusing. There are hundreds of websites offering thousands of resume templates and examples. Each one of them will try to be picked up by you to become your favourite. A fancy font may catch your eyes or you may get attracted to a funny image at the top. You may just like a resume template because it looks official and makes a good impression.

You must read this article from top to bottom very carefully; ideally twice. Only then, you will be able to absorb the knowledge and forge a Resume Format that will almost guarantee you the interview and the job.

So, what is the best Resume Format for you? It’s quite simple really; the one that gets you an interview and then a job. I am not trying to be clever or vague with this answer. It’s quite accurate and focussed. Let me explain. It simply means to FOCUS on the GOAL rather than the TOOL. By focussing on the JOB i.e. the goal, you will be able to find the right TOOL i.e. the best resume format.

This is the tough part - There is no single generic best resume format that you can just email to all the vacancy advertisements and get interviews. Sure, you can get lucky; but we are discussing the things you can manage and refine. As you read through this article, the meaning and solutions will get clearer.

Each job, candidate, country, company and situation is different. There are just too many variables to have one generic “Best Resume Format”. In short – there is no “Magic Bullet” version of the Best Resume Format. Each job application will require its own targeted and customised Resume Format.

Resume is your advertising material to get a personal interview to close the deal (get a job). Just like a piece of advertising; the Quality, Placement, Timing and Presentation of your resume format will have direct impact on your job application outcome. It will also affect your first impression, career entry level and the salary you are offered. It is critical that you get your resume format right.

Just like an advertisement; you need to research and target your audience (prospective employers). You also need to “Pitch” at the appropriate level – not “Too High” to look boastful, pretentious and exaggerated or “Too Low” to look incompetent, sub-standard and unworthy.

There is a commonly known sales technique of “Mirroring” your target customer. That implies behaving, posing, moving and even thinking like your target customer. It has proven to be extremely successful in forming instant rapport and closing the deal, in sales terms. Your RESUME FORMAT needs to “Mirror” the Target JOB.

How do you do that? Read the Job Description or the Job Advertisement at least 3 times. I assure you that you will find new pieces of information every time you read it. It is not just what’s written but how it’s written. Just “Mirror” that and you are almost guaranteed an interview.

You still need to do all the other things right and mind the Do’s & the Don’ts. Refer to this useful article on this topic - Resume Tips for success in your Job Search. There is no point creating such a powerful tool if it is not delivered properly or if it gets lost. Please read the link above to ensure your resume gets to the right person, on time, in proper format and gets read.

I am going to give 2 examples now to elaborate.

Example 1 – Skills: Look at the following job advertisement tasks description and an example resume for an accounting position.

Job Advertisement:

An experienced accountant is required for our national head office to perform following tasks:

• Enter accounting data into the accounting program
• Generate monthly accounting reports and analysis
• Process Accounts Receivables and Accounts Payables
• Manage accounting information to Trial Balance stage
• Help with generating PNL statements
• Process time sheets and payroll

Suppose you are an accountant with 2 year’s experience. Make your resume format “Mirror the job tasks in the skills section.

Key Skills:

• Accurate Data entry into the accounting program
• EOM (End of month) Reports and Analysis of company accounts
• Complete Accounts Receivables and Accounts Payables (AR/AP) processing
• Independently process accounts to Trial Balance stage on timely basis
• Reporting and Analysis of Profit and Loss (PNL) statements
• Extensive experience in coordinating time sheets and processing payroll

Remember, the sequence in important as well. Just follow the sequence in the job description. Observe the positive adjectives like “Accurate, Timely, Complete, Extensive Experience, etc.). Create such a resume format that the reader HAS TO short-list you. This is not a license to cheat. Cheating and exaggeration won’t work. Be honest and only list truthfully. On the other hand, don’t be too modest and use positive adjectives with actions and tasks, as explained earlier.

Example 2 – Knowledge: Look at the specific knowledge required and highlight it (not going overboard though).

Job Advertisement:

The candidates must have at least 1 year’s experience with SAP accounting program. Some knowledge of ABC CRM and MS Excel will be ideal; but not necessary.

You can incorporate this information in your resume format in the “Computer Skills” or “Education and Training” section.

Computer Skills:

SAP – over 2 year’s hands-on experience including initial program installation and trouble-shooting

Great experience with ABC CRM including reports and scenarios

Extensive experience with MS OFFICE including EXCEL, WORD, OUTLOOK, PUBLISHER, etc.

Other programs: Sage Accounting, QuickBooks, Photoshop, etc.

Observe how the items described in the Job Description are listed in “Bold” font in the resume. Increasing their font to double the size or highlighting with a bright colour won’t be necessary. The bold text will stand out if you keep the others in regular font. The employer will have no choice but to invite you to the interview.

Follow this mirroring technique all through your resume format for a particular job. Read the job description multiple times, if required. Again, don’t go overboard with highlighting or positive adjectives.

Before you create a great resume format and apply for a job, make sure you have the required competencies. You may be desperate for a job. However for example, if the job description states that you must have 10 years of experience and you have only 2 years of experience – then I would suggest you invest your energies and time on another more relevant job. There are some industries with extreme skills shortages and others with fierce competition. These strategies and techniques will work in all situations. You just have to make sure you pick a job you are suitable for (or nearly suitable – nothing wrong with being ambitious) and invest some time to create a customised winning resume format.

Many job seekers have successfully secured interviews using these resume format techniques and strategies. Let me know if you got one too. Good luck!

By

Olivia Jana

About the author: Olivia has been a Recruiter and HR Consultant for over a decade - in USA, Europe and now in Australia. She has received, read & processed thousands of job applications during this time and continue to do so. Over the years, she has successfully helped, coached and guided hundreds of jobseekers from all over the world. She has also tried, tested and perfected many variations of Job Search tools and documents over the years. We, at Austin Recruitment, treat each single application with respect and care. Each Job Application email is carefully processed by a qualified staff. We have strict anti-discrimination and privacy policies.

You can download FREE Resume Guides from our Job Search Resources Page.

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How to send a Winning Job Application email

           

  

There are numerous blogs and articles about “How to write a Resume or a CV” or “Interview Tips” or “Cover Letter Guides”. Most people overlook the fact that there is something very important before anyone gets to read your resume or the interview stage; i.e. your Job Application email.

It is crucial that you get this first contact right. It’s like the “First Impression” we all know about - you only get one chance to make a good “First Impression”.

So what’s wrong with just attaching your resume to your good old email address and clicking on “Send”? What’s this fuss about?

Well, it’s all about your chances of success. It is imperative to learn and follow simple Job Application email techniques to:

1. Give a lasting Professional Impression
2. Make it easy to process your Job Application email properly
3. Avoid missing any attachments in your Job Application email
4. Brand your email to enhance your chances of being read and selected
5. Make it easy for the recruiter or employer to choose you
6. Protect your privacy

Don’t you want to do all of the above? I am hoping you would say “yes”. We are going to discuss more about these 6 points and also look at simple techniques to make your Job Application email a success. Then I will show you the best and most effective Job Application email format.

For any employer or recruiter, it can be very expensive and time consuming to get to the Job Application email stage. Apart from the general cost of running a business, there are direct staffing costs, advertising costs, IT costs, etc. Contrary to common belief, recruiters or employers don’t want to lose your email, just file it somewhere or neglect it. Every employer or recruiter looks at a Job Application email with great anticipation - that “Yes” - this will be the right person we were waiting for. Unfortunately, 7 out of every 10 Job Application emails fail to impress.

We are talking about the stage before your resume file even gets opened. It is similar to your facial expression or body language when you meet someone the first time. It’s about appearance, efficiency and success. A qualified and experienced professional with a great resume can still have a poor Job Application email. Applicants would go to great lengths to dress up and impress at the interviews. Doesn’t it make sense to impress with your Job Application email as well so you can get that interview? I am hoping you would say “Yes, it makes perfect sense”.

If a Job Application email appears to be difficult to navigate, some employers may not even open your resume file. Do you want to miss out on a job you really want or do you want a business to miss out on a fantastic opportunity to hire a great person like yourself. I am hoping you would say “No” to both. Just get few simple things right and you will increase chances of your success multiple times.

Let’s explore the 6 points I mentioned earlier-

1. Give a lasting Professional Impression:

Try to have a decent, or better still; a professional sounding email address. Let’s have a look at the first part of some of the email addresses that came to us recently as Job Application emails. Pinkdevilwithtail@, sexywitch@, mumwithmonkeys@, daddysgirl@, iamcute@, baldgorilla@, killerwayne@ - should I go on or do you get the picture? These are some of the not-so-offensive ones – believe me, there are much worse ones. Would you use any of these as a Job Application email? Would a business hire someone like that? May be – but; do you want to risk it? You can get free emails easily these days. Please get a simple email like jobapplication@ or application@ or apply@ or even Resume-David@ (if your name is David), etc. It will also help you to keep track of all your applications in one place.

Keep it polite. The body of the email should be concise and polite. Think of the employer or the recruiter for a moment. 500+ Job Application emails in the “Inbox” can be daunting or at least stressful. On top of that, time is always limited. You don’t want to raise anyone’s blood pressure further at this stage by frustrating them. Remember, the email is not your cover letter or resume; so keep it brief. Just mention the job title and reference number again in the body because some of the email programs or email display screens are not so intelligent. Also, make sure to mention the attachments in your Job Application email body.

Simple Formatting. You should not make the body of your Job Application email hard to read. Try not to use highlighting. Bold text is fine, in moderation. Strange and fancy font which is hard to read won’t impress, even if you are a designer. Please don’t write all your text in Capital Letters.

Keep it short. A lengthy discourse should be avoided at this stage. You would have spent time and/or money to get your resume and cover letter perfected by now. Get them read by the right person. That should be the focus and purpose of your Job Application email. Try not to outshine your masterpieces i.e. your resume and cover letter. Your brief message here should introduce them and prop them up.

Check your spellings and grammar. Just like your resume and cover letter, the email message must be perfect with no mistakes. Also, try to avoid slick texting shortcuts like: “4u” instead of “for you” or “gr8” instead of great.

Addressed to the right person. Try to find out the name of the manager or advertiser and then address the email to that person. The job advertisement or the email of the company may suggest the name. If you can’t find the name use “Dear Sir/ Madam”.

2. Make it easy to process your Job Application email properly

Name your file attachments properly. Ideally, David’s resume should be named “Resume-David.doc” or “David-cv.doc”. The cover letter can be “David-CoverLetter.doc”. Files and documents are eventually extracted from the emails for processing. If you name your files after your name and also indicate the types of files; then you eliminate chances of your files getting lost or mixed up. It also makes your files so much easier to recognise compared to a generic name like “resume.doc”. Imagine getting 30 applications with attachments named “resume.doc”. It does happen, I assure you.

Write the Subject of email properly including the Title of the Job and any Reference Numbers. Most people would include a reference number. It would be much better to have a job title to go with it. Imagine a Job Application email with subject line: Ref: 58d/52. That’s fine with just 1 Job Application email; but recruiters or employers get hundreds of emails and there can be tens of different jobs being processed at any time. It saves lots of frustration and time if the Job title is mentioned as well. I know, rules can be made in Outlook or other programs to direct emails with reference numbers. We are talking about being professional and making it easy for the employers and the busy recruiters. Ideally, the Subject of your Job Application email should be: Job Application for “Title of the Job” – Reference: 58d/52. You may add your name to it, if you like.

Right File Format. It is advisable to send your resume in the required format. For example- If the job advertisement requests resumes in WORD and PDF formats only, then it is advisable not to send jpg images of all the pages of your resume.

3. Avoid missing any attachments in your Job Application email

Try not to forget to attach your resume to the Job Application email. It can be frustrating to read an email saying: “My resume is attached…..” with no actual attachments. It then takes extra work and time for an employer to reply back requesting the resume. Some may not do it. There are some email programs or add-ons which can be used to remind you, in case you forget to attach a file. In my opinion they are not very reliable and still work-in-progress. I would welcome any suggestions in this regard. The important attachment could also be something specifically asked for in the job advertisement, like your portfolio or certificates. Remember to attach the files to your email before you click “Send”. You should also mention the attachments in the body of the Job Application email. It is not necessary to name the files. You can also write (Encl. 2) or so at the end if you like.

4. Brand your email to enhance your chances of being read and selected

This is really simple; but so effective. Brands help to have an immediate impact, to get identified, to have differentiation and to persuade getting chosen. Brands also work subliminally. When you send a Job Application email, it shows your email address as well as the “email name”, at the other end. You can use this “email name” to brand your Job Application email. For example: David (an accountant) could name his email as David-CPA or David-Accountant. His Job application email will show up in outlook as: David-CPA<email-david@bestemail.com>. As soon as your email is received, the employer knows your name, and you have established yourself as a qualified accountant before the employer even reads your email or opens your resume file. Chances are that you won’t be forgotten. Later, when that employer thinks of an accountant, your name will pop up in the mind first – before anyone else – that’s what we want. As we discussed about the brands earlier, it will help you to have an immediate impact, to get identified, to have differentiation and to persuade getting chosen. Caution: Don’t exaggerate - it will only work if you keep it honest.

5. Make it easy for the recruiter or employer to choose you

Mark your email with “High Importance”. If you are using Outlook to send emails, mark your email with “High Importance” tag to stand out from the crowd. "Request a read receipt" can be annoying, so leave that out.

Request an action. Suggest/ request possible actions and show that you are keen.

Ending is crucial. This is so important and neglected so many times. Mention your name at the bottom of the message in your Job Application email. Then, write down your phone number and your email address. Yes, email address as well. Some employers and recruiters can be unorganised, careless or just rushed. Make it easy for them to contact you and quickly.

6. Protect your privacy

We see this a lot. Try not to name your email after your birth year. For example try not to send a Job Application email with address like: Wendy1963@ or david1986@. There is no need to disclose your birth year in the job application process.

Now, for the best and most effective Job Application email format - after evaluating many different concepts and styles, we found the following as the best and the most effective Job Application email body text:

Dear Judy,

Re: Your Financial Controller Position – Ref: 58d/52

I would like to apply for the abovementioned position. Please find attached my resume and a cover letter for your perusal.

I am really excited about this opportunity. I look forward to meeting you at the interview soon. Please call me at 111 222 333 to discuss further.

Kind Regards,

David Smith
Phone: 111 222 333
Email: resume-david@

Your goals are to keep it simple (Short & Sweet), get the employer to read your resume & cover letter and to get a response. You can elaborate more or vary it, depending on the situation. This is the basic format that you can change and build upon. It will also do an excellent job as it is.

Obviously, there can be some variables and each circumstance will require a customised response. These are general issues that recruiters and employers confront on daily basis. Make their lives easier and your Job Application email a success by following these simple techniques. Let me know if you have any suggestions as Life itself is work-in-progress.

By

Olivia Jana

About the author: Olivia has been a Recruiter and HR Consultant for over a decade - in USA, Europe and now in Australia. She has received, read & processed thousands of job applications during this time and continue to do so. Over the years, she has successfully helped, coached and guided hundreds of jobseekers from all over the world. She has also tried, tested and perfected many variations of Job Search tools and documents over the years. We, at Austin Recruitment, treat each single application with respect and care. Each Job Application email is carefully processed by a qualified staff. We have strict anti-discrimination and privacy policies.

You can send us your resume from our website’s Jobseeker Page.

Read more...