Hitting the submit button on an online job board or email can seem like throwing yourself into a proverbial blackhole, with no real idea of the outcome of your application.
Recruitment consultants are often swamped with applications for certain roles, therefore candidates can help get themselves ahead of the pack by maximising their application and CV.
Below are 5 of the best ways to elevate yourself above the average and increase your chances in the job market.
- Make sure you meet at least 70% of the requirements within the job spec– this might seem like an obvious point, but far too many people try the scattergun approach with job hunting, often applying for hundreds of jobs based on location and salary. Be honest with yourself and identify what you have actually done in your career and how applicable that would be to roles you are applying for, before moving forward.
- Tell the consultant why you’re right for the role- this is an excellent precursor to putting yourself forward as it’s one of the most common interview questions. Convincing the recruiter why you’re right for the role is a wise first move on the road to a placement; it also gives you the chance to receive some feedback
- Ensure your cover letter (if required) is tailored to the role- a generic cover letter is perhaps worse than none. Keep it short and sweet, don’t waffle, the most important thing to remember is that a cover letter gives you an opportunity to be a bit of a wordsmith outside the confines of a standard CV, make it bespoke!
- Call the recruitment consultant to find out if your CV has been received-not only does this show aptitude, but builds rapport too.
- Don’t over format your CV- no fancy layouts, a lot of candidate tracking systems have issues with parsing, for example PDF’s and heavily formatted CV’s. It’s also important to remember, some companies might simply not have the same Microsoft office as you
Using the above steps you can give yourself an advantage in the market and competition. Avoid silly mistakes as more often and not these will cost you and your application will most likely be canned if you miss simple things like correct file formats and changing your cover letter. Make the effort now and it will pay off later.
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