Plenty is written about what it takes to get your resume noticed, yet the vast majority of job candidates either ignore the advice or simply don’t care. In my experience, I’ve interviewed scores of job applicants, from seasoned sales professionals and administrative help to general labor and plant management candidates. Many of those interviews happened because the candidate took the time to make his or her resume stand out above the rest.
How so? It’s a numbers game, quite frankly.
As an example, I once received 74 resumes in response to an ad my company placed to fill a position in customer service. Since I was responsible for the hiring decision, I dutifully waded through the pile of envelopes, 62 of which were standard letter-sized. Only a dozen of the 74 respondents (16%) bothered to put their resume and cover letter into an 8-1/2 by 11 envelope.
Guess which twelve resumes got opened first?
My point is simple. Your chances of getting an interview go up dramatically if you are willing to put just a little extra effort into what you send out to prospective employers.
Here are a few of the more creative ways I’ve seen candidates do that:
Bigger is Better
Taking the illustration about envelope size a step further, some job candidates go the extra mile and use an express or priority mail envelope to send their correspondence. Yes, it costs a little more (priority mail starts at around $5.00, and express costs about $14.00 to most locations) but if the job is worth applying for, it’s worth whatever it takes to get your resume noticed. And the best part is, very few applicants take this extra step, which further increases your prospects of landing an interview.
The Call’s On Me
One clever candidate actually affixed a quarter to his resume in an effort to convey the idea that calling him wouldn’t cost me anything but a few minutes of my time. Granted, today’s communications would make that idea obsolete, but an Information Age equivalent might be a flash drive with a PowerPoint presentation, or a link to a YouTube video for a live introduction.
The Mini-Brochure
In addition to a cover letter and resume, I’ve had candidates (three of them, if I recall correctly) include a “brochure” about themselves that went beyond the standard drivel that appears a thousand times in ordinary resumes. One of those brochures was complete with pictures and logos of trade associations to which the candidate belonged. It was a very professional piece, and because it demonstrated a much higher commitment to detail and quality than nearly anyone else applying for that job, it won the candidate an interview.
“Out of the Box” Resume Templates
Instead of using common typesets with 12 or 14-point font sizes, savvy applicants might make their resumes jump off the page with styles that look more like newsletters or magazine ads. Using the previous example of a 74-resume response, I would guess that no more than ten (13%) used this strategy. Type “resume templates” into any search engine, and you’ll find plenty of free resources for turning your resume into something that at least looks like it’s worth reading.
ComeVisitMe Dot Com
One of my all-time favorite resumes wasn’t a resume at all, but a small, greeting-card sized envelope with a handwritten address. Inside was a small, heavy bond piece of stationary with a vellum cover. It looked a lot like a wedding invitation, but instead of directions to a local church, the card simply read:
“I cordially invite you to visit my website, where you’ll learn everything you need to know about the right person for this job.”
The card had the person’s website and the position he was applying for included in print, and it was all put together in a professional and engaging way. He remains the only job candidate to ever send me a “resume” quite like that.
Even if you’ve heard variations of these ideas, remember the central point. It’s a numbers game.
Take the time to put your resume into a select class that represents just a fraction of the response level for any given job. I promise you it will pay off, because while everyone else is busy churning out standard-sized envelopes stuffed with mundane resumes, you’ll be lining up interviews.
By: David DiCola
David DiCola is a 20-year management veteran and the author of Customer Golf – The Short Game, a novel about overcoming obstacles in business and in golf.
How so? It’s a numbers game, quite frankly.
As an example, I once received 74 resumes in response to an ad my company placed to fill a position in customer service. Since I was responsible for the hiring decision, I dutifully waded through the pile of envelopes, 62 of which were standard letter-sized. Only a dozen of the 74 respondents (16%) bothered to put their resume and cover letter into an 8-1/2 by 11 envelope.
Guess which twelve resumes got opened first?
My point is simple. Your chances of getting an interview go up dramatically if you are willing to put just a little extra effort into what you send out to prospective employers.
Here are a few of the more creative ways I’ve seen candidates do that:
Bigger is Better
Taking the illustration about envelope size a step further, some job candidates go the extra mile and use an express or priority mail envelope to send their correspondence. Yes, it costs a little more (priority mail starts at around $5.00, and express costs about $14.00 to most locations) but if the job is worth applying for, it’s worth whatever it takes to get your resume noticed. And the best part is, very few applicants take this extra step, which further increases your prospects of landing an interview.
The Call’s On Me
One clever candidate actually affixed a quarter to his resume in an effort to convey the idea that calling him wouldn’t cost me anything but a few minutes of my time. Granted, today’s communications would make that idea obsolete, but an Information Age equivalent might be a flash drive with a PowerPoint presentation, or a link to a YouTube video for a live introduction.
The Mini-Brochure
In addition to a cover letter and resume, I’ve had candidates (three of them, if I recall correctly) include a “brochure” about themselves that went beyond the standard drivel that appears a thousand times in ordinary resumes. One of those brochures was complete with pictures and logos of trade associations to which the candidate belonged. It was a very professional piece, and because it demonstrated a much higher commitment to detail and quality than nearly anyone else applying for that job, it won the candidate an interview.
“Out of the Box” Resume Templates
Instead of using common typesets with 12 or 14-point font sizes, savvy applicants might make their resumes jump off the page with styles that look more like newsletters or magazine ads. Using the previous example of a 74-resume response, I would guess that no more than ten (13%) used this strategy. Type “resume templates” into any search engine, and you’ll find plenty of free resources for turning your resume into something that at least looks like it’s worth reading.
ComeVisitMe Dot Com
One of my all-time favorite resumes wasn’t a resume at all, but a small, greeting-card sized envelope with a handwritten address. Inside was a small, heavy bond piece of stationary with a vellum cover. It looked a lot like a wedding invitation, but instead of directions to a local church, the card simply read:
“I cordially invite you to visit my website, where you’ll learn everything you need to know about the right person for this job.”
The card had the person’s website and the position he was applying for included in print, and it was all put together in a professional and engaging way. He remains the only job candidate to ever send me a “resume” quite like that.
Even if you’ve heard variations of these ideas, remember the central point. It’s a numbers game.
Take the time to put your resume into a select class that represents just a fraction of the response level for any given job. I promise you it will pay off, because while everyone else is busy churning out standard-sized envelopes stuffed with mundane resumes, you’ll be lining up interviews.
By: David DiCola
David DiCola is a 20-year management veteran and the author of Customer Golf – The Short Game, a novel about overcoming obstacles in business and in golf.
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