Recruiters spend just a few seconds reviewing a resume. This means you have to garner their interest as fast as possible. Here are five recruiter tips you can implement right away to get your resume seen and get more interviews.

1. Avoid “cliché”

The language you use on your resume can have a huge impact on whether or not you make it to the interview round. It is commonly known that using action verbs help your resume stand out, but it’s also important to avoid “cliché” that everyone else is using. Consider carefully the phrases you want to portray your skills and experience. 

 “Works well independently” doesn’t set you apart as much as you think as any strong candidate will be expected to be able to do this. Similarly, “a great team player” doesn’t really add any value to your application if you fail to provide evidence that you can work well with colleagues. Some other resume “cliché” such as “result-driven”, “a hard worker”, “good communication skills”, “a fast learner”, “strong attention to detail” could also be vague and meaningless without facts. 

2. Research and personalise 

Tailoring your resume every time you apply for a job is critical. The question remains: How to do it right? Start with reviewing the job description to pick up the required skills and experience. Get to know the company by researching their workplace culture, values, etc. In this stage, try to grasp available and useful information about the job and the employer so that you can understand the implied requirements for the role. Next, spend effort on personalising the summary as this is where you can capture the attention of the hiring manager. Convince them of your suitability for the role. 

Then, update your experience based on your research. For example, if you are applying for a digital marketing role, the details about the hospitality job aren’t relevant and should be crossed out. Also, you might want to align your interest and hobbies with the industry of the company (if possible). However, try not to make the personalisation a copy-and-paste. Be relevant, but stay truthful!

3. Narrate your story

A summary is the best place to tell a story about why you are the best fit for the role. It not only sets you apart from the rest, but also shows what you’ve accomplished so far, and whether or not your story is relevant to the role or the company. It should begin with a hook (like all great narratives) and highlight what you have to offer. 

The work history section is also where you can tell your story, especially if all your roles are within the same industry or linked together. When narrating your story, hyperlinks are great tools to reference your work, media mentions, or external content that helps validate your claims.

4. Select a professional and readable font

You might want to differentiate your resumes by avoiding popular fonts like serif, sans serif, and arial. When deciding what font to use for your resume, keep in mind that it should be clear and easy to read. Avoid “light” or “thin” fonts which can sometimes be difficult to read for people (and ATS – Applicant Tracking System as well). Here we suggest good fonts for resumes that are widely accepted among employers as professional: Avenir, Calibri, Cambria, Constantia, Corbel, Franklin Gothic, Garamond, Georgia, Gill Sans, Helvetica.

5. Be concise

Data shows that resumes over 600 words are 43% less hirable. A lot of people exceed the ideal word length for their resume, which is shown to be between 475-600 words. Don’t be wordy, or else the hiring managers will have to take more time than necessary to follow your thoughts, causing confusion. When it comes to word length, less is more.