How to make a perfect resume in 6 steps

1. Tailor your resume to the position

A resume isn’t a one-size-fits-all document. Submitting the same resume to multiple employers hurts your chances of getting asked for interviews because a general resume may not highlight the exact skills hiring managers are looking for.

Instead, show employers how motivated you are by tailoring your resume to their job description. Each time you apply for a new position, you should:

• include skills-based resume keywords from the job description throughout your resume
• research the company and customize your resume to match its needs and company culture
• place your most job-relevant qualifications in a resume objective/intro that states how you can add value to the company

Taking these steps to write the perfect resume for each position will show that you possess the exact skills and qualifications hiring managers are looking for in a candidate.

2. Choose the perfect resume template

A perfect resume has clean fonts and aesthetically-pleasing design features that draw attention to your most important qualifications. To save yourself the hassle of formatting and designing your resume from scratch, simply download templates available online.

We regularly recommend VisualCV – it offers flexible options to personalize & target resumes and they have ATS (applicant tracking system) friendly templates. Always make sure your template is either PDF or Doc.  

Choose a template that’s appropriate for your position and industry. Stick to a simpler design and more neutral colour palette for management & leadership positions, but feel free to show your creative side with a more modern template if you work in graphic design, tech, or creative roles.

3. Keep the wording throughout your resume concise

The ideal resume length is one page, so make sure to cut any unnecessary words and make your resume easy for the hiring manager to skim. If possible, keep your work experience bullet points to one or two lines of text.

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Opting for more concise and direct writing in your resume makes you sound more confident to potential employers.

4. Use action verbs to perfect your experience bullet points

In the experience section, emphasize your accomplishments using language that illustrates what impact you had.

Instead of passive phrasing like “responsible for”, which takes the focus away from you, opt for strong action verbs such as “managed”, “built”, “grew” or “established” when describing your job activities. This way, the person reviewing your resume knows that you added value, even if your work was part of a team effort.

5. Highlight your career achievements with hard numbers

To write the perfect resume, quantify your achievements with examples that include numbers. Tying your successes to actual data gives hiring managers a better idea of your ability to do the work.

Including numbers is much more impressive than simply listing job responsibilities for each work experience bullet point – back up your contributions with a success metric.

Here are just a few examples of quantifiable data:

• Amount of resources saved
• Value/Percentage of sales targets achieved
• Percentage of profits increased
• Number of direct reports supervised
• Customer satisfaction rates
• Times recognized for achievements

6. Triple-check your resume to ensure it’s error-free

If your resume has the smallest typo — an extra space after a period, for example — it gives the impression that you didn’t put much thought or effort into your application.

Here’s how to make sure your resume is perfectly clean and free of errors:

• Read your resume slowly out loud to make sure you’re not overlooking any typos or unnecessary words
• Step away from your computer for a while, then come back and read it again with fresh eyes
• Ask a friend to check it

Make sure to check the entire resume, not just the body copy – sometimes the tiny typo can be in your personal details – en error in your email for example.