| ign="center"> | | | | product and consider your CV to be your glossy |
| | | | sales brochure that you will give to your |
| Here are our top 10 tips: | | | | customers. If you do this, you are more likely to |
| 1) Include a brief Personal Profile at the start of | | | | include all your personal selling points that are |
| the CV. This should explain what you are, e.g. an | | | | going to appeal to your potential employer. |
| experienced IT professional with extensive | | | | 7) Don’t try to be too fancy with fonts or |
| configuration management expertise; a brief | | | | layout. If you do want something a little more |
| description of your key skills; and an indication of | | | | eye-catching, contact a Professional CV Writer for |
| the kind of role you are looking for. | | | | their advice. |
| The profile is your 5 seconds to get the readers | | | | 8) Approach an interview as a sales call, you are |
| attention and will bring the rest of your CV into | | | | trying to sell yourself after all. Rather than |
| context. Note: avoid clichés such as working | | | | discussing your strengths and weaknesses, sell |
| in a team and "excellent communication | | | | your features and benefits. Make sure that you |
| skills. | | | | articulate to the interviewer what skills you have |
| 2) Focus on achievements! Employers want to | | | | that are relevant to the role and how these skills |
| see evidence that you are good at your job, for | | | | will benefit their organisation. |
| example, you could write: Responsible for | | | | 9) When interviewing, make sure you use specific |
| selling products to corporate clients. An | | | | examples. This is probably the most important |
| alternative and more powerful way of writing this | | | | advice I can give. If, for example, you can give a |
| would be: Responsible for business | | | | specific example of when you had to deal with an |
| development resulting in a 20% increase in | | | | unhappy customer and give evidence that you |
| corporate sales, exceeding annual sales targets by | | | | were able to rectify the problem, it proves you |
| over £15,000. | | | | have customer service skills much more than |
| 3) Within reason, don’t get too hung up on | | | | merely pointing out that customer service was |
| sticking to a certain number of pages. Up to three | | | | part of your role. |
| pages is fine for a more senior level person. | | | | 10) Close the sale! This may sound strange but as |
| Often candidates produce an overly short CV | | | | mentioned previously, an interview is a sales call. It |
| that fails to sell them because they were more | | | | is very common for an interviewer to finish an |
| worried about the length of their CV than they | | | | interview and have reservations about some part |
| were about including their personal selling points. | | | | of the candidate’s experience. Tackle this |
| 4) Use powerful words and statements backed | | | | while you have the chance and ask the |
| up with evidence rather than passive terminology. | | | | interviewer if they have any reservations about |
| For example: Through effective Issues | | | | your suitability for the job. It is amazing how |
| Management, reduced a critical issues backlog | | | | many times the interviewer will raise a concern |
| from 289 queries to minimal levels within only two | | | | that can be easily cleared up in the interview itself. |
| months. How much more powerful is that | | | | The CV and Interview Advisors is dedicated to |
| opposed to Responsible for reducing an issues | | | | helping professionals maximise their chances of |
| back-log? | | | | securing their next job and fulfilling their career |
| 5) Avoid using the word I. This will prevent | | | | goals. |
| you from sounding self-appreciating or boastful. If | | | | Our team of experienced Career Consultants |
| a CV is written in the third person, you can be far | | | | provide a range of services including CV Writing, |
| more robust in expressing achievements and skills. | | | | Interview Coaching and Executive Coaching. We |
| Typically, the reader will read the CV as if | | | | also provide a variety of services for corporate |
| someone else has written it about you. | | | | customers including Outplacement, Training and |
| 6) Don’t be too modest! A CV is a sales | | | | Outsourced Human Resources / Recruitment |
| document and should be written in such a way. | | | | Solutions. |
| When writing your CV, view yourself as a | | | | |