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A resume is a marketing tool. Position yourself to get the interview
How much time do you spend reading direct mail advertising that comes to your home every day? Studies have shown that advertisers have about five seconds to get your attention before the paper is tossed in the trash.
What does this have to do with your résumé? Well, you have about ten, twenty or maybe thirty seconds to get the reader's attention, so I hope you are making a good first impression!
Normally, with a direct mail advertising letter, the company has some space on the envelope to get your attention, and you might even read the first few sentences of the letter inside. In that first five seconds you make the decision to toss it into the trash, lay it aside for later reading, or go on reading it right then and there.
Think about this concept as your résumé hits the human resource manager's desk. Your first impression is made with the overall visual appeal and headline. You must capture the reader's attention by positioning your selling points where the reader will know in that first ten seconds, you are the right person for the job. In Susan Britton Whitcomb's book, Résumé Magic she says you should place key information in the visual center of the page, the space just above the horizontal center of the paper. And don't discount the visual appeal. You can out-position the competition from this alone. Like your personal appearance, with your résumé, you never have a second chance at a good first impression.
Just as advertisers must motivate you to buy their product, your résumé must motivate the reader to want to know more about you, want to meet you, and ultimately hire you for that job. Think about how you can position your knowledge, skills, and accomplishments to:
Solve a specific problem
Attract and/or retain customers
Save time
Make or save money
The better you can position yourself in your résumé to meet the hiring employer's needs, the more success you'll have in getting interviews. The primary purpose of the résumé is just that - to get you in the door. Is your résumé getting you the interview?
"Remember, a résumé is a marketing tool, not a complete chronology of a lifetime of work." Marcia Bench, An Insider's Guide to Career Coaching.
About the Author
Christy Donner, owner of Innovative Strategies Coaching, specializes in coaching people in life and career transitions. She is a graduate of Coach U and Career Coach Institute, and holds the designations of Associate Certified Career Coach from CCI and Certified Professional Resume Writer from PARW/CC.