Chapter 3. Using Keywords in Your Résumé for Newbies. The Words to Live By

Transcription

1 Chapter 3 Using Keywords in Your Résumé for Newbies The Words to Live By

2 When constructing a resume, you have to include all the vital details like your contact info, your work history, education and skill set. However, that isn t always enough. To truly stand out from all the other people who applied to the job along with you, you have to make your resume targeted. But what does it mean to target your resume? Simply put, it means you need to customize your resume for each and every job you apply for. Ideally, this means rewriting sections and custom-tailoring the phrasing to fit the job description. In reality, this likely means that you ll at least make it appear as such. How do you do this? Keywords. Keywords can be thought of as buzzwords or eye-catching words and phrases that indicate you: 1. Understand the job for which you are applying. 2. Have the experience and skills to fulfill the position 3. Care enough to pay attention to the details. Why Keywords? If you are posting your resume on the web which you should be - employers will find yours based on keyword searches. Just like you find available jobs through a keyword search, employers do the same thing. So you want to make sure you have all the relevant keywords necessary for potential employers to find you. Finding Keywords From the Job Description The first and most obvious place to look for keywords to include in your resume is the job ad itself. You can pick apart the ad or job description to which you are applying and extract keywords from it. This is the best way to tailor your resume to a specific job. Whether they know it or not, employers include keywords in their job ads. These keywords are industry specific and indicate an intimate knowledge of the trade. By including these keywords in your resume, you show a familiarity of the industry that cannot be faked. So, if you want to apply for a job as a web designer, you might find keywords that relate to knowledge of the industry like e-commerce focused, database systems, consumer-based audience, or web 2.0. Or you might find keywords that relate to job functions like navigationally-friendly or search engine optimized. Or other keywords can relate to systems,

3 software or job processes like, Oracle, Dreamweaver, or Wordpress installation. From Other Job Ads There s no need to stick just to the job ad you re interested in to find relevant keywords. Instead, search for other job ads in your industry. Compare several side by side to find common threads. Words that are repeated from ad to ad are likely industry-specific keywords that you had better pay attention to. You can find similar job ads online or even in books on the subject from which to derive your comparisons. From Trade Magazines If you re not reading magazines for your chosen industry or trade yet, now is a good time to start. Plus, trade magazines can give you an even better idea of keywords that you should find a way to include in your resume. Pay attention to the news articles in particular. What words come up often? What buzzwords pepper the headlines? From Search Engines Another resource to find keywords that you have literally at your fingertips is the web. Pull up Google and search for your industry. You ll find a whole host of job ads and descriptions to reference. Or, if you want to see what online marketers associated with your chosen industry, use the related searches function to find keywords that are directly associated with it. You might have to weed through a few nonsensical options but there should certainly be a handful of related searches that are applicable and can be used in your resume. From Other Resumes Look online at sample resumes in your industry. What keywords are included in them? This not only gives you an idea about what phrases to use, but also about how to use them and where to place them for the most effective results. Incorporating Keywords Now that you have a hefty list of keywords at your disposal, now it s time to incorporate them into your resume. It used to be that including them in a section called Keyword Summary was acceptable. However, that just seems much too blatant now. A good way to get your keywords in is through a general Summary section or Profile. This way, you can include your keywords without it looking like a marketing list. Include the keywords in sentences or phrases, not just on their own, to give them context. This way, you can explain fully how you accomplished these items or possess these skills or attributes, putting you even further up the hierarchy in terms of qualifications and shows you care enough to explain how and why you re perfect for the job.

4 You can incorporate keywords throughout the rest of your resume as well. This is especially important when your resume is posted on the web as employers will find yours based on keyword searches. Though you shouldn t overload your resume with keywords, sprinkling them throughout is an effective way to attract prospective employers. Be as specific as you can with your keyword choices. What makes sense to human eyes won t necessarily make sense to a search engine. And vice versa. Synonyms can be tricky, so only choose words that make absolute sense for their context as keywords. Include 20 to 30 keywords in your resume to attract the attention of numerous employers and to ensure you ve covered all of your essential skills and qualifications that relate to the industry. Need more information on finding and incorporating keywords into your resume? Here are two excellent resources for getting the job done right the first time: Boston College Using Resume Keywords resumes/keywords.html 2500 Keywords to Get You Hired, by Jay Block Active Verbs Using active verbs is similar to using keywords in your resume. However, they have more to do with how your entire resume is written, rather than how individual phrases are composed. It comes down to good writing and the old adage, It s not what you say, but how you say it. When you need to describe your skills, experience, education and accomplishments, only do so with action verbs. That is, don t be passive in your descriptions. You want to sound impressive, not dull! Examples: Passive Good communication skills. Active Communicated complex ideas effectively Passive Sales experience. Active Developed comprehensive sales skills.

5 If you need more ideas to get your resume in an active state, check out this list of active verbs organized by skill category at: Quintessential Careers - So with keywords and active verbs in your arsenal, you re ready to attack your resume with triumphant fury, right? Well, sort of. There s still much to learn. For instance, should you include an objective section in your resume? Or is that information a dinosaur in the job application world? Find out in the next installment!