How to Use Your Resume to Refine Your Job Search

by | Jun 20, 2014 | Blog

resume_slide

Starting a resume and starting the job hunt can be very much like the chicken and the egg—many are unsure of what comes first. At Chic Resumes, we believe that every professional should have a resume on hand to pursue the job search with confidence. That said, many may find that their resumes need retooling as they discover open positions and want to fit the job description more accurately.

If you have a resume in hand, but are struggling with the finer points of searching for a job, here are a few ways that a strong CV can improve that process:

  • Confident In Your Resume? Put It Online

While it often takes more effort to snag an interview, it is still important to host your most recent and informative resume online. Formatting it to a LinkedIn page, uploading the document to Monster or even profiling the resume on a personal yet professional webpage (such as an online portfolio) can all be great ways to say: “Hey, these are my skills and you can hire me!”

If your resume gets any matches from recruiters or employers, you may be lucky enough to get a response—or a job offer that is better than your current position. In addition, there are many job sites that can use your resume as a reference point to send you “job suggestions” that match your profile.

  • Use Your Skills To Pinpoint Job Openings

If you are browsing a job board for a big company, you will likely find that many of the open positions seem irrelevant and too difficult to sift through. Fortunately, most of these job search tools have advanced search options that allow job seekers to select the types of departments they are interested in working for.

If you have improved revenue in previous work through customer service, you may find that you would qualify for a “sales” job. If you carry an extensive body of creative work—such as advertising copy or graphic design—you can narrow down your search by looking for marketing, design or creative work.

  • Look At Competitors In Your Space

If you take some time to assess what industries your previous employers have participated in, you can quickly pull up a list of competitors within the same field through a simple search. If you are comfortable working within these industries, it could be beneficial to look through job openings hosted on a competing company’s website.

  • Try Searching By Skills

Indeed.com is a great job search resource that compiles employment opportunities into a user-friendly database. The challenge, however, is knowing what to search for. While some may search for specific job titles such as “Customer Service Associate,” many may find that these kinds of positions will hold different titles in various companies. Simply put, searching for a job title could mean missing out on open positions.

Instead, take a look at your core competencies and identify the strengths that you feel most confident about. For instance, if “communication” is a strong point, use that as a keyword to search for on Indeed or another site. While there are many jobs that will likely come up, you can always narrow it down by looking at how recent the post was made and where the job is located.

Amplify Your Job Search by Improving Your Resume

As noted before, the key to feeling confident in a job search is having a solid resume in hand. If you are searching for a great job—you will want to make the most of any opportunities that come your way; don’t get caught shorthanded with a weak resume.

If you want to improve your job search strategy and reveal your professional strengths, Chic Resumes can help. Our team will work with you to review your current resume, provide feedback, learn your work history and develop a new document to accurately depict your skills and objectives. To get started contact our team today at (803) 831-7444 or resumewriting@grammarchic.net.