Online Job Applications - How to Beat the Bots.

Submitting an online application can feel like throwing a stone into a bottomless pit. You don’t know quite where to aim or whether it will ever be found. With more and more companies adopting ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) which can reject more than 75% of CVs before even reaching a human, learning how to speak to the screening robot that makes the decision whether your application is successful or not is vital.

What is an ATS (Applicant Tracking System)?

Companies use ATS systems to improve efficiencies in the hiring process and to track data. Instead of a human reading every CV individually, an ATS system is designed to quickly scan CV’s for keywords, ranking candidates on how well they meet the search criteria. This process frees up hiring managers and recruiters time to focus on the highest-ranking candidates, speeding up the recruitment process.

Clearly, this technology has massive benefits, but it doesn’t come without its flaws. The most highly suitable candidate may slip through the net if their CV does not contain the ‘right’ keywords. Sadly, this isn’t uncommon and whilst viewed as ‘unfair’, it’s can be overcome with an increased understanding of how to adjust your CV for online applications, beating the bots.

Using Keywords

For your CV to rank highly, you need to tailor the content of your CV to the exact way the job description is written; including plural words, abbreviations and numbers (e.g. take note if the company spells nonprofit or non-profit; 2 year’s experience or two years’ experience).

As ATS systems are not as intuitive as humans, you need to pay special attention to the following four points;

1. Mirror the phrasing from the job description on your CV. If the advertised job requires ‘CRM software’, your CV must use those exact words. If you use a version of a CRM such as ‘Salesforce’, an ATS system will not recognise this as a match.
2. Don’t be tempted to use generic keywords that you find online. Instead take the time to review the specific job description keywords you are applying for.
3. An ATS does not recognise abbreviations. For example, it won’t necessarily recognise that ‘MBA’ is the same as ‘Masters of Business Administration’. Instead use both the spelled-out version and the shortened one – Master of Business Administration (MBA).
4. Always write out an entire year – 2019, not 19.

Bots aren’t silly, they can spot when you are trying to cheat the system. One common technique is ‘keyword stuffing’ or in other words repeating the same keyword. For example, if you are looking for a finance role repeating ‘AAT AAT AAT’ or changing one word to white, so that it’s not visible on the CV. Most times, ATS catches tricks such as these and highlights them to the recruiter which can create a poor impression.

Create a Skills Section in your CV

To bring to the forefront your most notable competencies and areas of expertise, consider adding a skill section into your CV to list your hard and soft skills. Stick to simple bullet points, and when I say simple, I mean the solid circle. Avoid using any elaborate symbols as your important selling points may not be picked up by the ATS due to incompatibility.

Always use Standard Job Titles

There are more and more variations of job titles entering the job market. ‘Brand Evangelist’ may sound cool but an ATS is unlikely to pick it up and even a human might struggle to translate it as a ‘Marketing Manager’. Use a more generic job title as the headline on your CV and adapt it to different applications.

Focus on Hard Skills

Hard skills are taught skills as opposed to soft skills or people skills, which are non-measurable and subjective and not specific to one job or career. Hard skills are easier for the Bots to screen, whilst soft skills are assessed later in the interview process, so prioritising them on your CV won’t gain you too many extra points.

Whilst soft skills have less bearing on ranking higher, you certainly do not want to exclude them. When your CV lands in the hands of a human, these attributes define your character, thus vitally important for the Hirer or Recruiter to be able to read.

Ensure you include all your skills that are necessary for the job. For example, did you manage a team? Have you presented at an industry conference? Do you have P&L responsibility?

Knock-Out Questions

This is probably the biggest frustration for most job seekers when making on-line applications. These are used to quickly eliminate candidates who do not meet the minimum qualifications or selection criteria. Companies may use these when they anticipate being over-whelmed with applications. However, despite perhaps being ruled-out of the hiring process, your details are likely to be retained on the ATS for future evaluation against other job openings.

Stick to Simple Formatting

Although each ATS differs, they can misread resumes that are not optimised for ATS. Graphics, tables, italicised or special characters such as ampersands and accent marks are best avoided. Word or PDF formats are easily read by most ATS.

Always Proofread

One of the biggest frustrations for any Hiring Manager or Recruiter is spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Simple mistakes make it seem like you don’t pay much attention to detail or didn’t spend much time on your application.

Not only do these errors create a bad impression, ATS won’t pick up on words that are misspelled. So, be sure to proofread your CV before submitting your application.

Or you could avoid the ATS altogether?

ATS are designed to help Hiring Managers and Recruiters. If you honestly believe that you are a perfect fit for a role, you could always fall back on your LinkedIn network and try to find a connection with a hiring manager. A credible recommendation from a human will trump a bunch of keywords any day!

The job market will always be competitive and with new hiring technology constantly emerging, it’s more important than ever to ensure you remain educated. By doing so, you can adapt your job search strategy to maximise opportunities and experience less disappointments.

For additional support when creating your CV, take a look at my other guides.

#ATS #applicanttrackingsystems #jobsearch #onlineapplications