When it comes to getting hired, first impressions matter.

‌Fortunately, there are several ways to make a positive first impression on your future employer both online and in person. Whether you use your resume, LinkedIn profile, or biography, you should consider these application materials as value propositions — because essentially they are.

A value proposition is a business term that encompasses materials used to market a service or product. Companies use value propositions to persuade prospective clients to choose them based on the value they can bring to the client’s life or business. You can use this strategy in your application materials. Aim to persuade potential employers by demonstrating the value you can bring to their brand.

What Values Should You Highlight?

When you begin your job search, it can be challenging to know what qualities to highlight in your application materials. Editing your resume and LinkedIn profile to list your most up-to-date technical skills and qualities is an ongoing process, but there are some essential skills you can use to improve your resume at any stage:

‌‌Candidate Skills

Once you’ve homed in on the jobs you want, one of the first steps toward demonstrating your worth is including the right hard skills. These are technical abilities you’ve gained through education or experience — such as computer skills, data analysis, or editing.‌

How do you know which hard skills to include? Start by considering the company goals of the organization you’re interested in. Gaining an understanding of the work it does and the ways you can concretely contribute to its goals will put you on the right track when crafting your resume and professional profiles.

‌When listing your hard skills, the goal is to demonstrate why you would provide a skill-based fit for the company. Craft your resume to include your most relevant work experience. Make sure to go into detail about the hard skills you have, how you’ve earned them, and the ways you have amassed a proven track record of using them in a professional setting.

Cultural Skills

While hard skills are certainly valuable, cultural skills can be equally as important during the hiring process. How can you demonstrate to your prospective employer that you will be a great cultural fit for their organization? You can highlight an awesome cultural fit by clearly emphasizing the right soft skills — such as time management, organization, initiative, and leadership.

‌One way to tailor the soft skills on your resume to match the needs of your employer is to clearly display that your employee goals align with the company’s goals. A cultural fit is based on the way you will mesh with other employees, contribute to positive workplace culture, and inspire continued productivity. When your goals and values as an employee align with the goals of your employer, a cultural fit is natural.

Value-Added Statements

To paint an undeniable picture of the benefit you will bring to your prospective employer, it’s important to use value-add statements — also known as value-added statements — to your resume, profile, and bios.

‌In business, value-added statements are documents that outline the positive outcome a product or service can bring to its customers, often monetarily. When crafting your resume and profiles, using a value-added strategy can quickly elevate your application materials. ‌

On your resume, you can incorporate value-added statements in the description of your work experience. For example, rather than simply mention that you’ve improved sales at your previous companies, include specific examples with strong action words. “Boosted sales by 3% over six months” provides a concrete example of the value you bring to a company.

Whenever possible, use specific details to describe your soft skills, too. For example, “managed a team of 20 professionals with collaboration and leadership skills” is more persuasive than simply listing “collaborative” or “strong leadership skills.”

Once you’ve crafted value-added skills for your resume, you can easily weave them into your professional profiles and bio to paint a vivid picture of the worth you will bring to an employer.

How Capstone Resumes Can Help

The way you craft your resume, LinkedIn profile, and professional biography will depend on the industry and type of job you’re vying for. No matter what your professional goals are, it is important to illustrate the concrete ways you can help employers reach their goals.

It can be challenging to identify which of your skills and qualities align most with potential employers. Making these connections can help you land among the top applicants at your ideal company. Fortunately, Capstone Resume Services can help you zero in on your most important strengths and showcase them to prospective employers.

If you’re looking for a job during the COVID-19 era, you’re probably eager for things to get back to “normal,” whatever that may look like. The global crisis has had a massive impact on the job market. Unemployment rates have spiked, some companies have shut down altogether, and many offices have transitioned to a completely virtual setup.

In June 2020, a poll found that approximately 42% of Americans were working remotely, 26% were working in-person, and 33% were not working. Regardless of what comes next, it’s clear there has been a significant shift in the workforce — and workplaces may never look the same.

Even if you feel anxious about employment, you shouldn’t give up hope. While the job market may be uncertain at the moment, new opportunities are emerging every day. Remote jobs, new career paths, and unexpected employment opportunities are out there — you just need to know how to find them.

Here are a few strategies you can use to make the most of your pandemic-era job search and prepare for the future of employment.

Navigating Your Job Search

Finding the right job is a challenge even in the best of times, and a pandemic can make it feel impossible. Searching for employment during these times may require changing your mindset and opening up to new possibilities. We have a few strategies that may help make your job search easier.

Look For New Opportunities

After COVID-19 hit, some industries started drying up. But even if a few opportunities fell through, new ones may have emerged due to the pandemic. Take a moment to consider what kinds of new roles are out there.

This might mean broadening your search and stepping out of your comfort zone. Job seekers are now more likely to transition to another industry than they were before the pandemic. We suggest reflecting on how your skills, experience, and interests could open up new possibilities in different roles — within your industry or even outside of it.

Expand Your Location Preferences

When expanding your job search, don’t forget about location. While the opportunities in your area might be scarce, the rise of remote work and work-from-home positions means that you don’t need to limit yourself to the local market.

Some companies may transition back to in-person work, but many organizations will likely embrace remote work permanently.

Stay Informed

Keep an eye on the news in your industry as the pandemic unfolds. Stay informed by reading news articles and online conversations, along with following leaders in your industry on social platforms like LinkedIn.

How are companies adapting to the pandemic and recession? While some businesses may suffer during COVID, others may be innovating and thriving. Knowing this information can help you find the right opportunity and market yourself as a valuable addition.

How To Prepare For a Virtual Interview

Just as many workplaces have gone completely online, interviews have also transitioned to the digital realm. This creates new challenges that force candidates to acclimate to the less-personal Zoom interview.

On top of technical issues, the lack of face-to-face connection can make it difficult to sell your skills and make a solid first impression. We’ve shared a few tips to help you land the job by phone or video chat.

Make the Right Digital Impression

In a digital interview, you won’t get the chance to make that in-person first impression. This means that your supporting documents need to be perfect. Refresh your resume and cover letter to make them sharp, engaging, and full of the right skills and keywords your potential employer is looking for.

Now that so much has shifted online, your internet presence is also more important than ever. Before the interview even starts, take another look at your LinkedIn and other social media profiles, to ensure your digital self is well-represented.

Improve Your Skills

In a job interview during or post-pandemic, an employer might ask what you’ve been doing during the lockdown. This is your chance to show them how you’ve been building up your skillset, whether this means taking classes, keeping up with industry news, or teaching yourself new skills.

Practice Your Interview Presence

One of the challenges of the virtual interview is that you might appear distanced from the employer. You can’t make eye contact, give them a handshake, or demonstrate the engaged and attentive presence you might normally.

Do your best to present yourself as you would in a normal interview. Practice your questions ahead of time, focus on sitting up straight and pulling your shoulders back, and make eye contact with the camera.

Check Your Connection & Devices

The last thing you want in an interview is a lagging internet connection or a sudden technical malfunction. Make sure your laptop is fully charged and that your Wi-Fi is working properly.

Pick an area free of distractions with a clean and simple background. We suggest dressing professionally from head to toe, even if you’re only visible from waist up.

A few minutes before the interview, pull up your Zoom camera to double-check your posture and make sure you’re centered on the screen.

Moving Forward With Your Search

While things may seem difficult right now, it won’t feel that way for long. With the distribution of the vaccine, more businesses will likely start hiring again, creating more job openings and reviving industries.

Even as things start to improve, some recent shifts might be here to stay, like remote work opportunities. As you move forward in your job search, look toward the future and embrace the new opportunities that are headed your way.

Looking to step up your resume for the next stage of your job search? In an increasingly competitive market, a professional resume service can help you stand out from the crowd. Take a look at Capstone’s services and schedule a consultation to learn more about how we can take your resume to the next level.

Switching careers can be a terrifying task, and thinking about how to make your resume work for your new career path can be even scarier. But, writing a resume for a new career doesn’t have to be terrifying. As long as you put the time in and do the research, crafting your new resume is very doable.

Don’t Use the Same Resume

If you’re pursuing a new career, it’s important to rework your resume to match your new career goals. If you’ve been a customer service representative your entire life and now decide you want to go into web design, obviously your resume will need a makeover. Things that were important to your customer service career can be reworked to align with desired skills sets in the world of designing websites.

When rewriting your resume, be sure to think about the position you are applying for and what you hope your resume will convey to a hiring manager. Come up with new objectives that match with the new career you are pursuing.

Make It Relevant

Make sure all information included in your resume is relevant to the new career and industry for which you’re applying. Eliminate information that is no longer relevant, as it won’t add any value to your resume and can be distracting. Make sure your achievements are relevant to your new job goals and new objectives.

Research, Research, Research

Research is key when reworking your resume. To fully understand what will be expected of you and what future employers want to see, you’ll need to understand what skill sets and functions are important for the specific position for which you’re applying. Speak with people in the field, study job descriptions and roles, and learn all you can about your new industry.

Learning about the skills and qualifications that are important for your new career will help you tailor your own skills to the new position. It’s important that you customize your transferable skills to the specific job you’re pursuing, and exclude ones that are no longer relevant.

The same goes for qualifications. What qualified you to be a baker is not going to be the same thing that qualifies you to be a web designer. Researching the industry will help you have a clear focus for your resume so that you know what to include and what to center your experience and skills around.

Find the Right Keywords

Keywords are important because they are how hiring managers search for candidates in resume databases. Job boards and sites like CareerBuilder and Monster use automated search tools to collect keyword data from applicants and match them to open positions. Having the right keywords in your resume is crucial, and the keywords necessary for your new career will be different than ones used for your previous jobs. Take the time to think about what keywords are important for your new industry and be sure to incorporate them into your resume wherever possible. If you’re stuck, browsing through job descriptions on job board sites and highlighting terms that describe the job or necessary skills is a good place to start. It will help you get an idea of what words are important enough to be incorporated in your resume.

Think About Your Experiences

When including your experience on your resume, it’s important to make sure it matches with the position you’re applying for. Of course, you might not have a lot of experience with web design if you’ve been a baker your entire life. But, chances are, you have at least some experience with it or else you won’t be making the career change.

You don’t have to include just professional experience in your resume. For a career change resume, it’s actually a good idea to include non-work related experiences. Include extracurricular activities that relate to your desired position, for example: volunteering, professional association memberships, and internships, to show hiring managers the full scope of relevant experience you have to offer.

It’s About Branding

Branding yourself is important. When writing your new resume, ask yourself: How do you want to be perceived by potential employers and hiring managers? Once you have the answer, you can go about branding yourself and tailoring your resume to your new career. Above all else, your resume should tell the story of you and paint a picture of who you are.

If you’re still unsure of how to go about crafting your resume for your new career, Silicon Valley resume writing service Capstone Resume Services can help! With years of experience in resume writing, our Certified Professional Resume Writers will have a one-on-one consultation with you to better understand your experience and your new career goals.

Contact us today to request a consultation, and take the first step toward your new career!

1. Expect To Rewrite It

   If you’re changing industries or occupations, it’s unlikely that your current resume will get your foot in the door without changes. The greater the leap, the more changes you can expect to make. You are competing with others who already have specific experience in your new field, so the goal of your career change resume is to help the employer understand how your prior experience is relevant to the new position.  Plan for a serious overhaul, if not a complete rewrite, of your resume to accomplish this.

2. Start With Transferable Skills

   Leadership. Communication. Management. Planning. These are just a sampling of skills that are necessary for almost any type of professional position. Surely there are plenty of skills you have developed in your previous positions that can help you succeed in your new career. Identify your strongest skills and bring those that make sense for the new job to the forefront on your new resume.

3. Focus On Accomplishments

   Employers want to know what it is that you can do for them. Demonstrating a successful track record in your previous positions can go a long way in convincing an employer that you can also do well for them. The more specific you are about your accomplishments (i.e. numbers) the better.  Highlight any previous accomplishments that are relevant to the new position first.

4. Keywords Are Key

   Your resume is probably full of keywords relevant to your current or prior career. Carefully examine job descriptions for your new field to determine how you can incorporate relevant keywords into your new resume.  Relevant keywords will stand out to the hiring manager who reviews your resume and can also help you get through the electronic systems that filter resumes.

5. Relevant Experience Isn’t Necessarily Paid Job Experience

   It’s not so much about how you get the experience, it’s more about having it. And it’s not just paid experience that counts. If you’ve done volunteer work or otherwise gained experience in your new field, be sure to highlight it on your new resume. If you have no experience in your new occupation or industry, it would be helpful to gain specific skills in your spare time that are relevant to the new line of work in you are targeting.

6. Consider Changing The Format

   Most job seekers are used to the standard reverse chronological resume, but there are other resume formats that may be more appropriate for career changers.  A functional resume format puts more emphasis on skills than employment history.  A hybrid version of this would have a strong career profile at the top, emphasize skills and relevant experience first, and save the reverse chronological work experience for the end or the second page.  This hybrid model highlights the relevant information up front while also showing an employer that you do not have employment gaps (if you don’t).

7. Know What To Leave Out

   Your current resume is probably full of specific responsibilities that pertain to the field you are trying to exit. If you have an extensive work history, you don’t have to include great detail for all of your previous responsibilities, especially those which are not applicable in the new field you aspire to enter. Do not fear leaving out irrelevant information. It can clutter your resume and increase the odds that an employer will overlook what you have to offer for the new position.

8. Connect The Dots

   As briefly mentioned above (see tip #1), a hiring manager will probably not automatically make the connection between your prior experience and the new position. It’s important to be clear in your cover letter that you are serious about changing careers and demonstrate on your resume how your skills and prior experience will make you successful in the new position. The more you can help the hiring manager or recruiter make the logical connections, the better your chances of getting an interview.

Affordable resumes, cover letters and LinkedIn profiles created by Capstone Resume Services’ certified resume writers with recruiting and hiring backgrounds get results. Learn more here.