How can you make your resume visually appealing and easy to read?

Concise writing. Black and white, no photos or graphics (unless you’re a creative). Clear, consistent format with one font. It needs some white space. I recommend bullets, thematically organized. No more than two pages. Also, it’s important to note that a cover letter is not meant to be a regurgitation of your resume. A great cover letter is your opportunity to show you can write compellingly, demonstrate who you are and why the job/mission is of interest, and what intangibles you bring.

It is important to create a visually appealing, simple and easy-to-read resume to make positive impression on potential employers. Choosing the right font like Arial, Calibri or Helvetica. Ensuring readability by choosing a font size between 10-12 points for main texts and slightly larger for headings. Following a consistent format throughout. Balancing texts and empty space to create an organized document. Quantifying achievements by using numbers to make accomplishments more tangible, proofreading to eliminate typos, formatting issues and grammatical errors.

Use the black and white, single column format. No pictures or color. I feel like the reason that people might be hesitant to use the “simple/ plain format” is because they are trying so hard to “stand out” amongst hundreds of applicants, which is completely understandable. HOWEVER, the main items that will make you stand out are your experiences and how they compare to the qualifications listed in the job posting. Recruiters and hiring managers get excited when they see experience relevant to the job posting, easy to read formatting, and relatable/transferable skill sets. The fancy formatting also doesn’t parse very well into most systems. Black and white / single column text formats reign supreme in most ATS systems.

I'm going to suggest looking at the resumes on the website of one of my competitors: Blueskyresumes (add the .com) Bluesky was founded by two deeply experienced recruiters, and their resumes (and there are many samples across many functions) are ideal. Clean, simple, chronological..and written so simply that even the most junior recruiter could advocate for these jobseekers.

An easy to read Resume will encourage the reader to go over the whole description. Highlight those key skills relevant to the role you are applying for. Simple, appealing and crisp is the key. Resumes that are too wordy can be confusing, choose your words wisely to communicate who you are, your experience and most relevant skills.

In my experience as a former executive recruiter and career transition consultant, the keywords do help recruiters quickly identify your relevant skills. It also helps with the ATS (Applicant Tracking System) that most employers utilize in their job applications. Instead of just listing out the skills separate from your experience, start your bullets with action and results-driven verbs followed by the key skills. As a bonus, you can bold this part of the bullet so it pops. Recruiters and hiring managers want to easily see where your relevant skills were applicable to your experience not just listed on the profile separate from your recent experiences.

In my experience, the resumes that get the most attention are those that are short (1-2 pages), concise, and that are attention-grabbing. As a rule of thumb, I recommend putting your key skills and highlights at the top of your CV, and focus your bullets for each past role on your accomplishments, NOT your job duties. Showcasing your prior successes and initiatives is a sure way to get a Recruiter or Hiring Manager to notice you and it'll prompt them to think of how you can contribute to their team and goals. Also ensure that your resume is visually organized and not crammed in size 8 font with no line spacing and no margins. Anything that will make the CV hard to read will detract from what you wish to convey. Don't be afraid of colour.

In addition, candidates need to make sure their resume articulates what your career experience and interest is. In my career, I have received too many resumes to count - regardless of the length of the resume - and still have no clue what the person actually does or what they're interested in! I may be able to see that the candidate is highly educated, or highly published, with lots of certifications etc and then review the work experience and nothing is relatable to either the position I have, or to their interests! Be specific because your resume is our first impression of you - don't just copy & paste the company job description for each position in your career. As a reminder, some JDs can be 5+ pages long & highly repetitive!

If you're working in the IT for example, in Software Development let's say, for you to have a good CV you'll have to highlight the technology and tools you have and are presently working with. This is an example. The recruiters know which experience and technology knowledge they need. In Software Development or not, it is good to point out the most important aspects of your experience and skills, as well notable achievements. They don't have to be officially recognized achievements, tell us how you've contributed when perhaps no one noticed or thought about it.

I'm not a fan of color in a resume, unless perhaps you are a graphic designer. Using color to make your resume stand out might have been useful when people submitted paper resumes, but today resumes are read online. Color is distracting. If the resume is printed, it will probably be in black and white. Color will become a shade of gray, and any advantage you think color will give you will be lost. I have read thousands of resumes. A plain simple resume, no color, no text boxes, no graphics, is best. Hiring managers want a resume that is easy to read so they can quickly see what you bring to their job. The easier you make it for a reader to see your relevant skills and accomplishments, the more likely you are to get a call.

Contrasts and colors can be used for the CV to be better readable. For designers and people whos' jobs are to create beautiful design, it can important to indirectly showcase your skills. But, the simpler and more precise the CV is, the better.

Keeping the resume format simple by avoiding images, charts, icons and complex designs will make the process of adapting to new formats much easier. If you ensure the resume is ATS (Applicant Tracking System) accessible, you will likely not have an issue with converting the file. I know there are some pretty resume templates on Canva and Etsy but if you are submitting the resume, DO NOT USE those formats. They are NOT ATS accessible. Those styles are great for marketing purposes or for someone in a creative field to email or show someone at best. At worst, they lead to auto-rejections in the applicant tracking system.

Having your resume in a PDF format is enough, but why not also have it in WORD. When it comes to online platforms, they can be used for separate portfolios that additionally explain your work and experience, and this can be linked inside the resume. What is important is to not overstuff it with images and texts that are not selectable. They make it harder for the ATS to process it.

If applicable, Consider an Online Portfolio! provide a link to your online portfolio, LinkedIn profile, or personal website to showcase your work in more detail.

Saving your resume as both a PDF and Word are great but remember that the file name is likely going to be shared with the organization you are applying to. Make sure you have titled your resume like "Abbey Phillips Resume" instead of "Resume" or "CV 2023".

Absolutely mandatory to proofread your resume for spelling and grammatical errors. You can use tools or even do it manually. Making errors like grammatical errors, spelling, formatting, punctuation etc are very basic ones and it is important for you to review your resume before you upload it in job portals or send it to recruiters or hiring managers. You can always consult it with your friends, family who can give a quick glance. Keep it clean!

In my experience, it helps to print out a hard copy of your resume because you may catch more issues with spelling, grammar, punctuation, and formatting than just looking at your resume on screen. Spell check does not catch everything. In addition, I agree with having someone review your resume and offer feedback. It may help to have a career professional who has experience in HR, recruiting, or talent management as opposed to someone who does not have a related background. Oftentimes, we have our friends or family look at our resume without context. Get a trusted work mentor or career professional to look it over instead.

Yes, it is highly important for you to proofread your resume for potentially damaging errors. I'm not talking about slight grammatical mistakes, it happens to everyone, but sometimes you can overlook something that shouldn't be overlooked. Think about it for a moment. What I do when I write resume, is write the foundation of it, proofread it, complete it by adding the essentials and see if it is accustomed properly to its goal, then proofread again and use a spellchecker as for to make sure before finalizing it that everything is in order, including grammar

I strongly believe that the summary should be the first half of your resume's first page which effectively highlights your strong skills, major accomplishments and quick snapshot of your experience. Use 5-7 points to summarize your experience. It will generate interest and curiosity to look further in your resume.

1. Clearly label each section of your resume, such as "Contact Information," "Education," and "Skills." Use bold or larger fonts to make these headings stand out. 2. Use easy-to-read fonts such as Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman. Avoid overly decorative fonts. Use bullet points to organize information under each section. 3. Use bold or italics to emphasize important details, such as job titles, company names, etc.. 4. Ensure there's enough white space between sections and bullet points to make the resume look less cluttered. 5. Keep your page margins consistent on all sides of the document to maintain a clean and balanced appearance. 6. Save your resume as a PDF to ensure the formatting remains consistent across different devices.

One thing I've found helpful is putting the title of the job you are applying to under your name. When a hiring manager views your resume, they will instantly align you as someone who is a fit. In addition, avoiding overused phrases and making sure a link to your LinkedIn is visible at the top is helpful. If you are seeking remote or hybrid work, state that in your professional summary.

Make sure your resume is practical and can get you selected for a screening. Your resume should be a reflection of your personality. Make it your own. Your resume should outline keywords of skills and experiences required in the job you are applying for. Your resume should be brief. No more than two pages. Your resume should include real results vs fluff Your resume should tell a story whether it’s all words or you are leveraging visuals storytelling. Your resume should bring in the prospective employer with interest.

Make it really easy to read. Recruitment teams are really under-resourced and have to get through hundreds of CVs every day, they are almost always skim reading your CV to find what they're looking for. Make it easy for them - avoid complicated layouts, avoid massive blocks of text, use white space and simple language.