When Creating Your Résumé You Should (Answer)

Question: When creating your résumé, you should

1. Tailor it to the needs of the employer
2. Use industry and job-related terms
3. Match it to the job description
4. All of the above (correct answer!)

Answer

The correct answer is 4 - "All of the above".

Why it's important to tailor your resume to the job

Employers receive a lot of resumes. They need a way to filter out candidates who are not a good fit.

If your resume is generic, it won't capture the recruiter's attention. Human beings have a bias toward specificity. The more specific your resume is, the more likely you will get the interview.

Why you should use industry and job-related terms

Employers are using automated applicant tracking systems that discard resumes that don't include certain terms.

You might have a good resume, but if you don't include these terms and keywords, the software will discard your resume without being seen by anybody.

Match your resume to the job description

If an employer compares 2 resumes, and one is matched to the needs of the job and the other isn't, which one do you think he'll prefer?

As I said above, being specific is important. Generic resumes get discarded.

Other resume writing tips:

• Search for resume templates in your industry
• Talk with other professionals and ask to see their resumes
• Don't make your resume too big
• Sell yourself: use marketing and sales techniques in your resume
• Use bullet points and brief paragraphs
• Proofread your resume
• Clean your LinkedIn profile before submitting your resume
• Use a resume builder
• Order your jobs chronologically
• Save your resume as a PDF