Platinum Professional CV Writing Services

Should you try to build and communicate a personal brand in your CV and Cover Letter

As if job searching was not hard enough for graduates; now we have advice emerging from Serif – according to the news article “the UK’s leading independent design, publishing and creative software company”.  Not the usual place you’d expect advice. With no recognised professional expertise in the recruitment industry, giving advice on writing a CV seems a little odd and may have some commercial motivations.  They suggest the following tips to stand out with your own “personal brand”: (see: http://www.onrec.com/newsstories/25888.asp)

QUOTE

1. Catch the recruiter’s eye with a personal logo
A well-written cover letter can make your application instantly stand out from the rest when emblazoned with a personal logo. …[deleted part]

2. Add ‘omphf’ to your résumé with colour and graphics
Once the cover letter grabs the recruiter’s attention, elevate a traditional text-laden résumé to a new level by incorporating finely-tuned colour pallets or accent graphics, but do not be tempted to go overboard.  Add that extra bit of professionalism to a résumé by turning the document into HTML format or a PDF.

3. Continue the conversation with a personal website
Once a recruiter’s interest is sparked, their first move will be to search for the candidate on the web.  Make an impact by extending your personal brand online with an interactive website. …With a little thought and creative input, you can create professional-quality, attractive and informative sites that integrate web 2.0 elements, like a blog, links to your Twitter feed or Facebook page and embedded video.

4. Leave a lasting impression with a portfolio and business card
Great qualifications, a perfect résumé and a great online presence can help get the interview, but then the focus shifts to maintaining a personal brand during and afterwards. Candidates can offer samples of their relevant past experience (eg. sample projects or writing) in a full-colour, seamless presentation and leave behind a personal business card with all relevant contact information, including website address.

5. Brand your replies and ‘thank-yous’
Following a job interview, a candidate should send a ‘thank you’ note to the interviewer.  Stay fresh in their memory by mentioning a point of conversation from the interview and include your personal brand logo on follow-up correspondence.

UNQUOTE

This advice, in many ways, ignores the reality of hiring, the recruitment industry’s methods and even of people themselves.

What does a logo really bring
I have never known a logo making the difference in a cover letter.  In fact, in many instances, the cover letter is separated from the CV when it goes to the interviewer, so they may never get to see it.  In fact, such graphical embellishment can do as much to harm you as help you, being easily interpreted as “unusual” or, worse, “weird”.  Not the brand you want to have.  The same happened with CV DVDs, which contained the applicants interactive portfolio of work and CV.  It often looked fantastic, until people thought – this is a bit odd really…and it was downhill from there.

Is graphics and file type the be all and end all
Graphics do not help you unless, perhaps, you are applying for a creative job with the likes of Serif! For most other jobs, adding graphics and slight font changes makes you stand out, but for the wrong reasons.  Make the CV look clear, easy to read and aesthetically pleasing and you will be fine. As for making a PDF version of your CV, yes you can. But note that most recruiters will ask for Word versions so they can put it into their own template with their own cover pages.

People don’t buy a book by its cover
Following up with samples of work in nice presentation packs can be a nice touch, but this would typically only apply to creative-type jobs where such things might be requested.  And again, as long as the work is nicely presented, the focus will soon turn to the actual content and your branding efforts will vanish.  When it comes down to it, people may initially judge a book by its cover when deciding to take it off the shelf, but they only buy it once they are happy with what it and reviewers say about the story on the back and inside.

An online strategy is valuable, but not like this
A website is fine to do.  It is part of managing your online information, as recruiters will look on Google or LinkedIn to find more information about you.  But blogging and twittering is not necessary unless you are going for certain roles, like online marketing or journalism, professions who may be impressed with a high quality site.   But let’s be honest, while Serif do undoubtedly care about helping people get back to work – well why wouldn’t they – they could be interested in you building a site with their software, too.

Focus on your achievements and job search strategy, not a personal brand

When all is said and done, this is generally unhelpful advice.  Companies invest millions in advertising and sponsorships to build a brand with positive associations they want you to link to their products and services.  Equally, at school and university, you spent much time and effort building your brand and reputation with colleagues and tutors, and restoring it in the case of a personal scandal. You did not have or need a logo, and if you had presented a business card with a logo to people who did not know you at university, they would have thought you were a bit egotistical or a bit odd.  Don’t think an employer will be different – they’re the same people you went to school and university with, only with a few more years of experience and cynicism!

Get your content write and focus on finding the right jobs through your network of contacts, job sites, direct approaches to firms, or recruiters.  Alternatively, set up your own business if you can.  Don’t waste your time on a logo and website unless you know it will be appreciated by the prospective employer.  If in doubt, ask one or two if it would help you.

The importance of a great CV (Resume) is again spelled out today with a story from CNNmoney on 28th September 2009.

It goes to show that even if you have the best experience, if it does not come across effectively on paper then you are simply not going to get the call for interview. It is worth investing time, effort and, yes, money if you need to, in your CV (Resume).

Platinum

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The résumé is the gateway to most job openings. But even the most qualified candidates have trouble standing out on an 8-1/2 by 11 inch sheet of paper.

That’s because it takes more than just experience to catch an employer’s attention.

Darrin Bailey learned that the hard way. With 17 years of experience in surgical instruments sales and an extensive network of contacts in the industry, Bailey assumed he’d have no trouble finding work after he was laid off in April. But when his job search stalled, he was shocked.

“I didn’t even apply for unemployment,” he said, “I figured I would find something relatively quickly. A month and a half later I was still looking. I was shocked.”

Bailey, 44, who lives in Damascus, Md., with his wife and four-year old daughter, says he expanded his search to include the entire the mid Atlantic area and used job search sites specific to his industry and level, like Medreps.com.

“I heard nothing,” he said. “I didn’t even get responses that I sent résumés.”

That’s when Bailey decided that he needed the help of a professional. He found a local résumé writer, Cheryl Palmer, and paid her about $150 to spruce up his résumé.

Together they hashed out what Bailey wanted to convey and Palmer took it from there.

Like many others on the job hunt, Bailey’s résumé initially lacked a professional look, Palmer said. “It wasn’t that he wasn’t a good candidate, it was the presentation of his information.”

To go from average to outstanding, Palmer made some small changes to the the font and format and more major improvements such as summarizing his duties in paragraph form and highlighting his accomplishments with bullets, to make them “very easy to skim.”

“I knew right away it was good,” Bailey said of the finished product.

“The very next week after I sent it out I got five calls and immediately had interviews. Two weeks later I had an offer.”