Top 15 Resume Tips That Will Increase Your Chance Of Getting Hired

So you have the right skills for the job and are really good at what you do.

When applying for a job, your resume is the first thing HR sees, so you must prepare a good resume that uses some cv hacks to help you stand out. 

Introduction

The purpose of a resume is to get you an interview…NOT to get you a job! We cannot stress this enough. To get shortlisted in your interview 5x faster, check this link.

But how do you make an attractive resume that gets you noticed by potential employers?

On average, each HR receive almost 250 resumes per day. So how do you ensure that your CV stands out? This is why you need some best resume tips & resume hacks.

Best Resume Tips to get hired 5x faster; Know Here

To make your achievement-oriented resume perfect, here are the top 15 resume tips to get you hired immediately!

Resume Hack #1 JD is the key

• One of the most crucial resume tips is to customize the resume and fit the job description and requirements related to your field.
• The best resume is one that is simple to read and understand. Recruiters don’t have a lot of time on their hands. 

Also read: Nail your next technical interview with these resume tips

• The easier you make their work for them, the better. Make sure your resume is eye appealing and has proper margins and indents before you hit SEND.
• We recommend using the ATS-compliant format (applicant tracking systems) as a part of recruiter-friendly resume writing tips, giving you a better chance of being shortlisted! If you think you are falling short of the requirements, consider upskilling yourself.

Resume Hack #2 Optimise your Professional Summary 

• Use your professional summary to present yourself as an expert. It’s your first chance to impress a hiring manager or recruiter. 
• Concentrate on what sets you apart from other candidates and what you can offer the organization.
• Instead of discussing aims or generalizations, concentrate on what sets you apart from other candidates. 
• Follow this resume advice to succeed much faster than before.

Resume Hack #3 Use keywords to your advantage

• Whether the ATS (Applicant Tracking System) or manual screening, keywords are an important part of top resume tips to get shortlisted 5x faster
• Ensure that you use the keywords from the JD uniformly in your resume.
• The professional summary, experience, and technical skills sections are some of the best places to add keywords. 
• However, ensure that you do not stuff keywords everywhere; it negatively impacts the recruiters.

Resume Hack #4 Add relevant proof

• Adding proof of your past achievements works EVERY TIME! You can include facts, statistics, and links throughout the experience part of your CV.
• For example – “I successfully trained and motivated a team of five.” OR ‘I achieved a sales growth of 4X during my tenure”.  
• You can also add digital evidence, such as a link to a report you published or online reviews of an event you organized, to support your assertions.
• Follow this resume advice to focus more on what recruiter wants from you.

Resume Hack #5 Put the FOCUS on YOU

• Self-focus is one of the most important resume tips to follow.
• Make your own actions the focal point of your CV. Phrases like ‘I assisted in’ or ‘I was involved in” are not as effective. 

Also read: Why soft skills at the workplace matter? Know more!

• Experts advise employing powerful action verbs and taking responsibility for your own results and accomplishments.
• Ensure that you do not exaggerate here. Add only those tasks you were responsible for, and you or your company can attest. Otherwise, it can backfire on you.

Resume Hack #6 Highlight your SKILLS 

• Skills, whether hard or soft, are yardsticks by which a candidate’s worth is measured. As a result, you must adequately present them in your resume. 
• Hence, the ‘Skills’ section in your CV is important as part of our resume tips.
• Cherry-pick the best Personal and Technical skills you have in your field and present them in a list format. You can also categorize them as ‘Hard skills’, and ‘Soft skills’.

Resume Hack #7 Be Choosy

• No, recruiters do not want to hear about what kind of music you like or what genre is your favourite. Save this for later in the interview. 
• Pick and choose WHAT matters to the job. Select the achievements you think may go well with the employer and help you stand out.
• Being choosy ensures that you keep your resume crisp and short. You can elaborate on the rest in the interviews that follow!

Resume Hack #8 Edit and Update

After creating the CV, treat it as a ‘living’ document. Keep on editing and updating it. timely. Add your experience, achievements, skills, and every other thing that can add value to your prospective employer. 

You can also periodically modify your CV based on any good format or structure that you come across.

Do this even when you are not looking for opportunities actively. 

As a part of cv tips, an up-to-date CV at hand ensures that you do not miss any exciting opportunity that may come your way.

Resume Hack #9 Is your FORMATTING in order?

• The best resume is one that is simple to read and understand. Recruiters don’t have a lot of time on their hands. The easier you do their work for them, the better. 
• Make sure your resume is appealing and you have dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s before you hit SEND.
• Here is a quick formatting checklist for you (resume tips) – 

1. Is the font style and size uniform throughout?
2. Are the headings and subheadings in order?
3. What about the bullets and numbering?
4. Is the spacing proper?
5. Have you aligned it up to the mark?
6. Well optimized for printing? 

Resume Hack #10 Proofread. Proofread. Proofread

• CVs with typos, spelling, and grammatical errors are one of the pet peeves of HRs.
• Ensure that you proofread your CV multiple times before you upload it anywhere.
• You can start with online tools like Grammarly and then take the help of a friend or a professional writer. 
• In addition to pointing out the errors in the above resume tips, they may even be able to give you insight on how to make it even better.

Resume Hack #11 Keep an appropriate length 

• There is no ‘correct’ length of a CV. A college graduate’s resume will be shorter than a seasoned executive’s. 
• The HRs that we talked to had different opinions but most agreed that a CV should be a maximum of two-and-a-half to three pages long. 
• Again, be very careful about the things you include in your resume. This should ensure that you keep the length to an optimum. 
• However, you can utilize more pages if you have the relevant experience, or adding more information seems justified.

Resume Hack #12 Order your resume’s sections based on job requirements

• This tops the list of effective resume tips. Recruiters usually skim your CV from top to bottom, so plan strategically. 
• Keep the best parts at the top, and move the not-so-flattering ones to the bottom.
• For example- If the role requires a specific degree, and you do not have it, you can move the Education portion of your resume to the bottom.

Resume Hack #13 Emulate, do not Copy

• Found a good resume? You may be tempted to copy; Don’t! A resume that is completely a copy of something available on the internet does nothing for your reputation. 
• Chances are that HR has already come across a similar one, and this can reduce your chances of being shortlisted.
• Instead, you can take inspiration from our cv writing tips and create your own. Yet another way is to use a resume builder to ensure that your resume is eye-catching.

Resume Hack #14 Use MS Word

• Ensure that you send the resume in an editable MS Word document UNLESS specified otherwise. Companies usually use legacy systems to screen and store resumes. 
• For this, the HRs need to copy and paste your CV into the program having a Word CV makes things easier.
• You can also use document editors that are available on the internet if you do not have MS Word.

Resume Hack # 15 Everything’s in the name

• The most overlooked part of the resume- The file name. 
• Naming your CV can go a long way in helping you get shortlisted. HRs download multiple resumes daily, and yours will likely get lost in the ‘Downloads’ section. So how do you ensure that your resume can be found easily?
• A most agreed upon naming format is- FirstName- LastName(Position), or similar.

Click here: Learn resume-building activities and in-demand skills with Expertrons.

Conclusion

To summarise, keep things short, use the correct formatting, be relevant, highlight your USPs, and make your resume as interesting as possible.

These resume tips, albeit simple, can take you a step closer to getting shortlisted. Don’t pour everything you’ve got onto that resume. Keep it brief and inviting!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the top 3 things to improve in your resume?

The top 3 things that recruiters look for are –

• That you care about the job you’re actually applying for.
• That possess the qualifications to do the job.
• That you have common sense.

2. What is the major resume tip to stand apart from others?

Be strategic and consistent in everything you say and write. Focus on your major skills and experience relevant to the job you’re applying for.

3. What is the golden rule of resume writing?

Think before you write.