According to the job board website Indeed, "Employers select applicants if their resume is tailored to the job application, which shows that you can perform the duties required by the employer." To tailor your applications, develop a final template corresponding to your industry, audience, personality, and goals, and then make changes as needed to fit the prospective role.
More than just listing your skills and work history, an effective resume promotes your past successes and highlights potential accomplishments – or your value proposition to the employer.
Resumes come in many forms, but it's most important to communicate your value concisely. Like advertising, a resume that is too slick, filled with buzzwords, or doesn’t draw interest won’t get you an interview.
As you create your perfect professional ad, don’t be dismayed by factors outside your control in the recruiting process, like course corrections and ghosting. Creating an effective resume isn't the only key to securing a job, but it should get you past the initial screeners and into an interview.
Throughout this article, we’ll look at real-life examples of professionals who refined their resumes to better communicate their value. Each section includes a story of a job seeker who overcame a resume challenge and found success, followed by actionable steps you can take to optimize your resume. By learning from their experiences, you can apply these strategies to stand out in a competitive job market.
Consider Who (or What) is Reading Your Resume
Despite having an impressive background, one of my clients found that his applications went unnoticed. His resume contained jargon that ATS systems weren’t picking up. After restructuring it to include keyword-rich skills and bullet points tailored to the job descriptions, he immediately received more interview requests.
A variety of readers may view your document. As you construct your resume, your language and approach should reflect how the different audiences will interpret your information.
Computer Screener – database upload to an applicant tracking system.
HR Reviewer – people unfamiliar with the job requirements, so clarity is essential.
Hiring Manager – familiar with job lingo, necessary skills, and role fit.
Network Contacts and Job Boards – people you know, those in your network, or job boards on which your resume appears.
Make the Resume's Structure Fit the Industry and Role
A marketing director I worked with had a cluttered, three-page resume filled with every campaign he had worked on. Together, we focused on identifying his most impactful campaigns and streamlined his content into concise bullet points. By refining the structure and emphasizing brevity, he presented his value more effectively and landed an executive role at a leading agency.
According to research, reviewers spend six seconds on the top one-third of a resume. In your resume, prioritize your brand statement, skills, and most recent job. Contrary to common myths, such as the need for one page or the acceptance of typos, companies value how you show you can solve the position's and company's issues with your skillsets. Adapt your resume format to your industry, be concise, and emphasize your unique value.
Resume Strategy 1: Create Impact with Your Brand Statement
An HR leader I worked with initially had a generic summary on her resume that failed to showcase her expertise in leadership development and talent strategy. Together, we crafted a brand statement that clearly communicated her value and positioned her as an executive candidate.
Start your resume with a brief personal brand statement highlighting your career goals and what solutions you provide.
Pair important role keywords with your unique strengths, skills, and abilities.
Express your core values and beliefs to resonate with your target audience.
Emphasize your passion and commitment to your chosen industry or field.
Highlight your track record of achievements and contributions for credibility.
Resume Strategy 2: Customize Your Way to an Interview
A recent client, a project manager, struggled to get employers' responses after applying to multiple industries with the same resume. We analyzed his target roles and identified how he could tailor his achievements to align with each industry's priorities. The adjustments helped to increase his interview requests.
Tailor your resume for each position you apply for by highlighting relevant skills, experiences, and keywords from the job description.
Highlight relevant skills and experiences tailored to the job description.
Customize your resume's objective or summary to match the role.
Use keywords from the job posting to increase visibility to recruiters.
Emphasize achievements that directly align with the job requirements.
Resume Strategy 3: Maximize Your Impact Using Metrics
A sales professional I worked with described her achievements vaguely: "Increased sales and built relationships with clients." We reworked her resume to highlight specific, measurable results, refining it to "Boosted sales by 35% year-on-year by implementing a new client outreach strategy." This more precise, impact-driven approach helped her secure a role as a sales director.
Instead of listing job duties, emphasize your accomplishments and quantify them with specific numbers, metrics, or quantifiable change.
Highlight measurable achievements to display your contributions and impact.
Use action verbs to convey proactivity and ownership of responsibilities.
Tailor qualifications to match the job description for relevance and clarity.
Quantify results, when possible, to demonstrate your effectiveness and efficiency.
Resume Strategy 4: Resume Form Should Follow Function
Some people want to stand out with graphics and other decorations. One client's highly creative resume, with images and multiple fonts,was unreadable by ATS. After switching to a simple, single-column format, he saw a noticeable increase in interview requests.
A clean, well-organized, and visually appealing resume is essential.
Utilize clean, legible fonts and consistent formatting for easy scanning.
Incorporate relevant keywords from the job description to enhance ATS compatibility.
Organize content with clear headings and bullet points for readability.
Save as a PDF to maintain formatting integrity across different devices.
The Finishing Touches to Optimize Your Resume
Developing a resume can be daunting. Sketch out your resume using prospective job descriptions and the ideas above. Take the time to craft multiple drafts matching the various positions you'll apply to.
Show Your Value – Use action words to describe quantitative accomplishments.
Include Soft Skills – Employers want a well-rounded employee.
Highlight Special Skills – Use position descriptions to link your unique skills to the role.
Remove Unnecessary Words – With only six seconds for review, keep only relevant words.
Proofread and Proofread Again – Have other people review for clarity and accuracy.
The most important part of a resume is you and how your skills make you the best fit for the position. When writing your resume, keep a copy of the job descriptions, key phrases, and a list of action words nearby. Here are sample action words from The Muse.
Hillary Hufford-Tucker helps growth-minded professionals build confidence, navigate career transitions, and turn challenges like layoffs, career gaps, promotions, pivots, and pre-retirement into opportunities. With expertise in personal branding, career strategy, resume writing, and LinkedIn optimization, she provides individualized guidance to help clients find strategic focus and take meaningful action. ➡️ Visit www.berelevated.com to start your brand journey.
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