As a job seeker, you may believe you are doing all the right things. You have a resume, you’ve posted it on all of the job boards, you’re on LinkedIn, you’ve let your friends and family know that you are looking for work, so why isn’t anyone calling?
It can be frustrating when this happens week after week, and for some, month after month. Well, I want to show you what you may be doing wrong from a recruiter’s perspective (click that link) and then help you fix it.
- Typo filled resume: Believe it or not, I’ve had some folks with great experience turned down by hiring managers because there are spelling errors in the resume. Spell check is your friend, but especially in the case of submitting your resume to employers. If you have 1 or 20 misspelled words, for some companies, that is enough reason to skip your resume. Employers view it like this, if you couldn’t be bothered to correct your spelling errors (when it’s so easy to do nowadays), then what type of employee will you be? They would rather not find out.
- Hard to read resume: This is another one that will lead to the recruiter hitting the reject button on your resume. Make sure your fonts are all the same, the size of font doesn’t require a magnifying glass, and that things are appropriately spaced, punctuated, and bullet-pointed. For great resume samples, click this link here.
- Graphics on your resume: In today’s world, the first time anyone will see your resume will usually be online, via the company ATS system. Graphics sometimes translate into crazy characters that do horrible things to the alignment of your resume. When recruiters see rows of crazy characters, they don’t try to find the actual words, they just hit ‘reject’ and move on to an easier to read resume.
- Inappropriate email addresses: I don’t care if this is your first job at Target or your 50th job at a fortune 500, please get a free email address that is professional. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen addresses like “Bigpeen694u@whatevermail.com”. Some recruiters may call you, and some will not – why take the chance?
- Resume does not match the job description: Your resume should come as close to the description of the job as possible. For example, if the opportunity is for an administrative assistant and your resume highlights your sales ability, you probably won’t get a callback. Recruiters and hiring managers are going to go with the most obvious match to the role. Make sure your resume is clear.
- You are applying to all the jobs on a company job board: Contrary to popular belief, a live person is sitting behind that applicant tracking system, and we can see if you’ve applied to 5 jobs or 30 jobs. The truth is, you are not going to be a fit for every role, so be more targeted in your applying. If you apply to an administrative assistant role and then a software developer role and then a store manager role, it makes you look unfocused and as if you don’t have a good grasp on your strengths and what you bring to the table.
- Unprofessional voice mails: True story: I called a candidate once who I’m guessing was in the middle of some type of crisis because her voice mail said, “Thank you for the call. I am making several changes in my life at the moment. If I do not call you back, YOU are one of those changes. And I mean YOU Jack” I don’t know who Jack is/was, but needless to say, it was a hilarious voice mail, but one that made her seem pessimistic and unprofessional. If she was willing to risk putting her business on a voice mail for strangers (during a job search), what type of energy would she bring to the office?
- Low Energy: Being professional does not mean being “cold”, nor do you have to sound like you work for a mortuary (unless, of course, that is the job). When you answer the phone, you should sound upbeat and enthusiastic without sounding spastic. The oldest trick in the book is to answer your phone with a smile on your face. People can hear a smile through the phone, and it makes the person that called want to continue the conversation.
- Missing or Incorrect Information: It is surprising how many resumes out there will have phone numbers that are no longer in service or email addresses that bounce back. Sometimes people will send resumes with no contact information whatsoever. Make sure that your resume gives us a way to contact you.
- Short Job History: If you’ve had seven jobs in the last seven months, that can look bad to employers. In today’s market, we understand that many folks are contracting and that some of those contracts may have shorter tenures. To combat negative perception, you will want to list (next to company name) that this job was a contract role. Clarifying your contract roles identifies you as someone who is trying to work and showcases your work history in a better light.
These are some of the things that I have seen as a recruiter, and I hope that they help you to take another look at your resume and job search strategy as you approach this job market.