Everyone knows how important a first impression is. But some people don’t realize that their resume and cover letter is usually the first impression given to a perspective employer. If you have a good resume and cover letter, it can lead to an interview and then, a job. However, if you don’t have a good resume and cover letter, chances are you won’t even get a phone call. To help you with making a great first impression, here are some tips. Good Luck!
Things Not To Do:
- No Cover Letter: Cover letters are so important to the application process that many hiring managers automatically reject résumés that arrive without them. Make the most of your cover letter by expanding on a few of your qualifications, explaining any gaps in employment or providing other information that will entice the employer to read your résumé.
- Assuming spell-check is good enough: In a 2007 survey, 63 percent of hiring managers told CareerBuilder.com that spelling errors are the most frequent mistakes they see in résumés. Spell-checkers can pick up many typos -- but they won't catch everything (manger vs. manager, for example). Always proofread your résumé several times, and ask a friend to give it a final once-over.
- Find a Job. Without a job description to work from, it’s impossible to tailor your skills and accomplishments to fit the employer’s job requirements. Your resume and cover letter should be tailored to the job description! If you do this, there is no need for an objective statement.
- Research the Prospective Employer. Know as much as you can about the company and try to incorporate that into your resume and cover letter. Whether they have won awards, recently introduced a new product or concept or whatever…make sure you find way to incorporate it!
- Do use action verbs. Do use active voice. Action verbs give your resume strength, power, and direction. Strong sentences are those in which a subject performs an action (active voice) as opposed to an action being performed on the subject (passive voice). For example, “I wrote the SOP for a 5000 employee organization” creates a stronger impression than “the company SOP was written by me”. In the same fashion, remove any statement beginning with ‘Responsibilities included’. Go straight to the verb!
- Incorrect: Know how to accurately file records.
- Correct: Accurately filed over 10,000 records on a weekly basis
