Top Tips for Making Your CV Stand Out

In these troubled financial times, and unemployment levels higher than they have been for years, there has never been a better time to ensure that your CV is up-to-date and as solid as it possibly can be. You could be competing for a job with a vast number of people, so it’s important that you stand out from the crowd. This isn’t done by embellishing every fact about yourself, it is about creating a document that states exactly who you are and what you can do.

Simple and Clear Formatting

Simplicity is key to a great CV. There are a number of CV templates available that create simple, clean and clear CV’s when filled out. If an employer picks up a crowded CV with flashy fonts and icons, they will not be interested. This is not what makes a CV stand out. Employers want to pick up a CV and read it over as quickly as possible. So making a short, snappy and informative document is paramount to improving your chance of employment.

Be Yourself

The quickest way to drop yourself in trouble is to start telling lies or making embellishments to your achievements. If you feel that you are the right person for the job, why do you need to lie? You should be confident in your abilities and achievements, and companies will respect this much more. There is nothing worse than being found out by a company that does a background check on you and finds that you are being less than truthful on your CV. It is the worst possible impression to make. Have you achieved your sales targets every month, have the necessary experience and a friendly outgoing manner? Then make sure it’s there on the page.

Tailor the CV to the Role

If you are applying for a job in IT Sales, take a long look at the job and person specifications for the role and tailor your CV to suit these requirements. This does not mean break what we said about being yourself and being honest, it just means that if there are sections of the job and person  specifications that you feel are exactly the kind of that you possess, then tell your potential employer about it. The more you can implement these specifications into your CV the more chance you will have of standing out for the position.

Check for Errors

You have your correct format, you have sold yourself in a clear and honest way, and you tick all of the boxes regarding the job and person specifications. The final – and pivotal – step is to make sure that there are not an abundance of errors in your CV. Double, triple, quadruple your spelling and grammar, make sure the names of your past employers are correct and read through the CV several times. The importance of this can be taken for granted, but it vitally important. If you can’t perform a task as easy as a CV, how can you expect to get the role? Get checking and the best of luck!