Whether you want to make a bold move and work in a new industry or would love to find job roles that are more meaningful to you, you’ll need to stand out and shine your brightest!
Finding a job though is a tough task when there’s too much competition. It’s either there aren’t always openings in your field of work, or when a dream job pops up, a lot of other folks have already set their sights on it too.
So what now?
Here’s how you can impress your potential employer, stand out from the competition, and get invited for an interview with an amazing resume in just five steps.
You’ll also find free infographic resume templates below that you can customize right away!
Before you get started why not check out what NOT to do below:
Starting with the basics
No matter what your resume looks like in the end, there are a few basic things (and a trick or two!) to keep in mind when you’re just drawing it up.
All the best and worst resumes out there share some common content. These include the basic stuff like contact information, your particular skills, a layout of your education, and the most decent photo you’ve got. Regardless of how unique your infographic should look like, set them up in a clear, logical arrangement.
Step 1: Read the job advert several times and find the bits that stick out.
These are the ad’s keywords and one of your best bullets in the battle for that interview. They’ll be fairly easy to spot: “dedicated”, “communication”, “hours”, “energetic”, and“adaptable” are some that are pretty commonly used. These keywords are actually the most precise image of what the employers are looking for in a candidate.
Once you sieve them out, it’ll be an easy bit of work to fit them into the text of your resume. Since you’re using the same words as the one who put the ad out, you have a better chance of getting their attention right off the bat.
Step 2: Once you’ve got your basic information sorted out, it’s time to present it in a creative and easy-to-understand timeline.
Ditch the plain old bulleted list and choose a design of your own – a line with different colored segments, or a pyramid, or whatever else comes to your mind. This is when you start making your resume into something unique.
Step 3: Keep your resume clutter-free, concise, and relevant to the job role.
For a start, find out which area of work these people are hiring in, and then see what kind of experience and achievements you have in it. It’s a good idea to consider skills and knowledge that might not directly fit in there, but are still related.
Think about your highlights – what’s the best you’ve done, the most you sold or made or promoted? Point them out.
Finally, keep your resume clutter-free, especially in the Hobbies and Skills section! Throw out anything that won’t make a clear statement about why it’s a good contribution to your case. Also, make sure you don’t repeat yourself!
Step 4: Let your creative juices run wild.
Black and white paper-print resumes that look like they popped up from a newspaper’s page are totally out. Nowadays, you’ll probably have to send yours as a .pdf to an email address, and that gives you huge freedom in whipping up an impressive resume.
Here’s a video tutorial on how to make an impressive infographic resume quickly:
Free infographic resume templates by Easelly
Choose from our infographic resume templates and background images we’ve got and see what feels good. There’s no way to mess anything up. You can test out tens or hundreds of templates until you find just the right one.
Here are some infographic resume templates that you can tweak and customize!
Try out all the various layouts and color schemes you can think of. Play around with it!
Take your time. Place your elements (photo, contact, timelines, and any sorts of graphs or charts) in various spots on your resume template page.
Ultimately, see what works best, grabs attention, and gets your worth across clearly. Make sure your chosen font is easily readable and that there aren’t any mistakes in your writing.
Step five: Edit, proofread, and review.
This last step gets your friends to join the party. Ask for some help with proofreading from fresh eyes. Also, get a little role play going on and have someone play pretend – ask them to see your resume from an employer’s point of view. A look from the sidelines is a great way to point out anything that needs to be improved, refined or cleared up.
When you’re happy with your creation, compose a cover letter (if you’ll need one) and throw it out of the nest into the world of job-hunting. Alternatively, you can reach out to our infographic design team and we’ll whip up an infographic resume for you within 24-48 hours.
Here are some additional infographic resume resources to help aid your job search and get that appointment for an interview:
- Why Use Infographic Resumes to Find a Job
- How to Use Easelly to Wow Employers
- Make Yourself Hireable with Easelly’s New Infographic Resume Design Service
*Editor’s Note: This blog post was updated on March 18, 2019 for accuracy and comprehensiveness. It was originally published on October 17, 2015