Job seekers often wonder “should I hire a professional resume writer?” Isn’t hiring a resume writer mostly for executives? Both are legitimate questions, and many people get stuck on whether or not they should take the leap. Here are some facts + figures to help you decide.
- JobVite’s RecruiterNation Report, revealed COVID-19 triggered an uptick in applications (56% of recruiters reporting an increase in applications-per-requisition).
- JobVite’s JobSeekerNation Report, revealed 56% of workers view a good resume as ‘more important’ than previously.
- At every level, job seekers need to gain every advantage they can to stand out among other applicants and make a memorable impression. This begins by having a clear understanding of their target employer’s needs and effectively articulating their unique value to win coveted interviews.
- The job market continues to evolve —hiring practices impacted by a global pandemic and the market itself becoming more global and competitive. More than likely, you have far more expertise than a DIY resume will give you credit for (you are a skilled and accomplished manager, but you take your skills + experience + value for granted) and a template puts a ceiling on your potential by making you sound like hundreds of other managers with similar qualifications (everyone copying and pasting the same type of information into predetermined boxes).
A cookie-cutter template-style resume isn’t going to help you take the next step in your management career or help you land a coveted interview. Even if you are networking to find leads, you will need an accomplishment-rich resume that will back up your candidacy.
Here’s what I believe you should look for when sourcing + hiring a professional resume writer.
Writing Experience
Professional resume writers come from diverse backgrounds —some have previous experience in the corporate world via work in human resources, admin support, or marketing; some have worked in recruiting; and others have a degree in English, Communications, or Journalism or have earned certification from recognized global career membership organizations, including Career Directors International (CDI), Career Thought Leaders (CTL), National Resume Writers’ Association (NRWA), and the Professional Association of Resume Writers (PARW).
The best resume writers have a passion for writing compelling copy, have stayed abreast of evolving job market trends + hiring practices, and understand the importance of design + formatting, keyword integration, and accomplishment- and value-rich narratives.
The best-of-the-best resume writers know that today’s resumes go beyond presenting historical employment data. A modern resume is a marketing piece, and the professional resume writer will help you unearth and clearly communicate your unique personal brand / value proposition / strengths + attributes vs. simply copying and pasting your existing data into a new document/template.
Benefits of Hiring a Professional Resume Writer
There are multiple benefits associated with hiring a professional resume writer beginning with getting the help you need to develop your career marketing documents and extending to:
- Gaining a more objective view of who you are. The right writer will help you identify where your employment experience + the employer’s needs converge and then help you translate the information into a message that resonates with your target employer.
- Helping you take a deeper dive into your value offer + experience. This will help you get a clearer picture of your professional strengths + success stories and make a stronger case for your candidacy throughout your career marketing documents + in an interview.
- Saving you time. Writing your own resume can be a time-consuming process filled with research (what information / keywords to include; what format is best; how to fine-tune your information with an employer’s needs). Working with a resume writer substantially reduces the amount of prep / writing time needed + can shorten your overall job search time.
Tips to Choosing the Right Resume Writer
Finding the right professional resume writer comes down to due diligence, taking into consideration the writer’s experience + credentials, process, cost, and turnaround time.
Experience + Credentials: A great way to verify the writer’s experience + credentials is to look to LinkedIn for endorsements and to the membership sites through which certifications have been earned.
You can go directly to: CDI, NRWA, or The Career Experts to find and verify resume writers / career coaches.
Process: Each resume writer/resume writing firm has their own process —it is essential you are comfortable with the writer’s process. Some work from an original resume only, others work from an information gathering document, and others gather information from a phone interview.
Make sure the process is a good match for you and the service is in alignment with your goals.
Beware: Many times a firm that only works from an original career document won’t be able to produce a compelling case for your candidacy or help you take the next step or reach the next level in your career.
- Low-quality writing services abound on the internet. What may seem like a bargain usually turns into a waste of time and money, cause frustration, and prolong your job search.
Cost: Financial anxiety often triggers the search for price point as the leading qualifier for a resume writing service. We all want to find a good bargain but, if the prices are too good to be true, the product or service probably isn’t legitimate, or the quality will be low.
More often than not, low-end pricing in resume writing is an indicator that the firm / writer is cranking out numerous documents per week using a cookie-cutter template and most (if not all) of the verbiage is a direct copy + paste from your existing resume. So, in essence, you are paying to get your resume returned to you in a new template that will look and sound like everyone else.
Beware of Writing Mills
Quality work takes time, attention to detail, and a sound understanding of writing principles + best practices in order to craft an employment narrative + success stories in a way that captures the attention of potential employers and will help you take your next step.
Usually, resume writing mills have lower rates and farm out work to writers who, to make a decent living, need to process as many resumes as they can. That means very little time is spent on your resume and zero research is performed on how to align your skills and experience with your target employer’s needs.
Cost of Unemployment vs. ROI of Securing Help
- If you make an annual salary of $70,000 + benefits of $22,000, your total compensation is $92,000, you lose $1840 per week and $7666 per month to unemployment.
- If you make an annual salary of $100,000 + benefits of $22,000 your total compensation is $122,000, you lose $2440 per week and $10,166 per month to unemployment.
Investing $1000 in a professional resume writing service that will work with you to create a strategically branded resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile —and you shorten your job search time by as little as 3 days you will earn your investment back. ($70K salary @ $1840 per week breaks down to $368 per day ($368 x 3 = $1104).
Professional resume writers are not for executives only. At every level, hiring the right professional resume writer can lead to higher resume response rates, more interviews, increased starting salary (more income), a distinct advantage in your job search and more confidence in articulating who you are professionally and the value you offer!
As an award-winning + multi-certified professional resume writer, I’ve helped mid-management + executive-level job seekers take the next step in their career. I welcome the opportunity to get to know more about your career goals.
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