I Got Distracted

I sometimes say that I have "mild ADD" -- I think most business owners do. We enjoy wearing lots of hats, and don't like doing the same thing every day. I think it's what makes us great resume writers -- I know a little bit about a lot of subjects, and I'm naturally very curious ... which makes it easy for me to get interested in the wide variety of professions that I've written resumes for. It also makes me very distractable.

Which brings me to this blog post. I started Resume Writers' Digest about 12 years ago, I think. (I could go look up the first issue, that that would just distract me from writing this blog post.) It started as a print newsletter, six issues a year for $36. It was initially 8 pages. At some point along there (again, I'm not going to look it up, but I think it was about 2002), I started putting out 16 and 20 page issues ... I think one was even 28 pages. I raised the subscription fee to $60/year ($10 an issue, six issues). It was wildly successful. We "covered" all the major conferences. I solicited paid articles from the top names in the business. (I particularly loved Louise Kursmark's column in each issue). We had advertisers... lots of them.

But then I got distracted. I can't even remember why now, but I had another project (or another client) that took up so much of my time that I couldn't keep on top of the newsletter. So I let it die out. I was sad to see it go, but I had a lot of other stuff going on. (If I recall correctly, it was also around the time that I got married and moved my business into my home.)

A few years ago, in September 2007, I brought it back again -- this time as a free online issue, supported by advertising and the sale of my special reports. But several of the earlier advertisers weren't around anymore, and I got a lot of pushback from one resume writing association in particular, who were upset about the conference coverage write-ups. (They felt that session write-ups would keep people from attending the conferences themselves. My response, that the write-ups were coming after the conferences were over, and that there are many other reasons to attend a conference other than just the content, fell on deaf ears.)

Lots of family issues from 2008-2010 kept me from staying focused on Resume Writers' Digest. The laptop I blogged on died. My former sister-in-law had a midlife crisis and cheated on my brother. My aunt (of whom I'm a primary caretaker) had a stroke. All of these, combined with the need to keep my "main" business going, led to a lack of attention to Resume Writers' Digest. I got distracted.

But I want to get back to making Resume Writers' Digest a priority again. I have a database of about 4000 professional resume writers and career professionals ... more than 800 of them subscribe to the Resume Writers' Digest newsletter. I receive a couple of emails a week from folks wondering where the next issue is. I've got dozens of articles that are ready to go ... ideas and even some full-fledged special reports ... but not enough hours in the day.

I don't really have any grand announcements in this blog post. I mostly just wanted to let you know that I'm working on it. I need to put a plan and a timeline in place ... and say "no" to some other things so that I can get back to what I really am passionate about ... supporting resume writers. That's been an interest of mine since I started my business in 1996 ... and 15 years later, I'm still passionate about it. It's time I put my focus back on Resume Writers' Digest.

Let me know what you want ... Does the newsletter format still interest you? Should I be putting more focus on my blog? Any particular topics for special reports you're interested in? I've got lots of ideas, but I need to know what you want too... please feel free to comment.

Survey: Affiliate Marketing

What if you could add revenue each year to your business with very little work? That's the promise of affiliate marketing. I'm doing a free teleseminar for Maria Hebda's "Career Experts Online" series on the topic on Sept. 22. Will you take 2 minutes and help me by answering a few questions in my survey?


I'll be compiling the survey results this weekend, so *do it now!!!*

Take the survey here. (Nine short questions; average response time is just under 4 minutes, according to QuestionPro, the fabulous online survey software program I use to manage my surveys. And no, QuestionPro does not currently offer an affiliate commission.)


Thanks to those who have already responded to my plea (via e-mail, Facebook, and/or Twitter)  to take the survey.

Is Your Client an Idiot?

Are your clients idiots? Do you charge more than $500 for a resume? If your answer is yes, then the VirtualJobCoach thinks they're idiots for paying that much.


The sad thing is that the VirtualJobCoach blog (note: edited to remove link to site, since I don't think I should be rewarding them with traffic for their bad behavior) has some pretty good articles on it (Simon and Barry seem to be nice guys), and the product they offer for career coaches looks interesting (kind of like JibberJobber). But I don't understand why they need to cut other people down in order to promote themselves.


Here's a screen shot of the post (and again, I'm not giving the link to the actual site because I don't think they deserve the traffic, and it will only encourage them to do this more).

This is the comment I posted on their blog (as of this moment, still awaiting "moderation" before it will become a public comment):

Saw this come across Twitter today (although it appears to be a post from last year). I’m very disappointed in this post.

Why do you feel the need to disparage your resume writing colleagues who charge more than you do? Most of the resume writing profession is collegial … different writers have different specialties, and many resume writers I know provide value well in excess of the $500+ they charge. (Note that I personally don’t charge that much for a resume, but I don’t disparage those who do! I’ve seen their work, and it’s fabulous.)

To use your logic, why would anyone buy a $30,000 car, when they could buy one for $13,000? Both of them are going to get you where you’re going. But … aha!! The ride is going to be different.

That’s the case with working with career professionals. The end result is the same — to help the job seeker get a job. But our clients aren’t IDIOTS for paying someone $500 or $700 to write their resume. Just as someone isn’t an IDIOT for driving a BMW instead of a KIA.

As the editor of a trade newsletter for professional resume writers, it saddens me that some in the profession feel a need to put down their colleagues (and, consequently, their colleagues’ CLIENTS), by calling them an IDIOT for investing in their career.

For a team that is selling a product targeted to coaches (CoachesAid) — which many resume writers are also career coaches — I find it interesting that you would insult your potential customers in this way. I look forward to your response.

Bridget (Weide) Brooks, CPRW
Editor, Resume Writers’ Digest

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I also learned that Dawn Bugni had addressed this same crew in her "One Bad Apple" post. Apparently, they liked the negative attention (and traffic) that they got from recycling another one of their resume writer-bashing posts (one from April 2009) and decided to do it again.

Interestingly enough, the headline of the Spring 2009 issue of Resume Writers' Digest is "Are You Charging Enough: 2008 Industry Survey Reveals Average Rates." The 2008 Resume Writers' Digest Industry Survey results revealed that the average resume sale is $300, but the most frequently reported responses ranged from $125 to $600. So while most resume writers don't charge $500, there are a lot that do ... and are all of their clients idiots? I don't think so.

In fact, Wendy Enelow wrote an article for the Summer 2009 issue of Resume Writers' Digest that, in part, addressed the "what do you charge?" issue. She wrote:

"I was stunned by the resume pricing numbers that Bridget shared from the survey ... absolutely stunned!!" She believes the prices are much too low.  She went on to write, "In my opinion, resume pricing should never be a fixed fee, but rather a range. For example, to say that all mid-professional resumes cost $400 is ridiculous. One client may have had two sales jobs and your writing job is quick and easy. The next mid-professional client has had six jobs (four of which he was fired from and worked for less than one year) and lots of other "issues." That writing job will take you twice as long to write, if not longer."

Your thoughts?

2008 Resume Writers' Digest Industry Survey Results

The 2008 Resume Writers' Digest Industry Survey revealed a shift in the resume writing industry, with veterans retiring and the length of time writers having been in the industry skewing shorter. In the 2008 survey, 13 percent of writers have been in the industry for more than 20 years; another 14 percent have been a resume writer for 16-20 years. Twenty-one percent have been writing for 11-15 years.

On the other end of the spectrum, a quarter of writers surveyed have been in the business fewer than five years. Another 25 percent have been writing resumes for 6-10 years.

Nearly half of the 176 resume writers who completed the survey are self-employed full-time. Another 25 percent are self-employed part-time.

Certification has lost a bit of its luster among resume writers. Forty-four percent of respondents reported they are certified as a resume writer; 7 percent are certified as career coaches. Another 23 percent are certified as both. Interestingly, however, more than a quarter of respondents are not certified at all.

Most resume sales -- nearly 70 percent -- include not just the resume but also a cover letter. References and other supporting documents are often part of the sale (12 percent).

Show Me the Money!
For those that reported an hourly rate, charges range from $10 to $400/hour. The most frequently reported hourly rate was $50; the average rate was $93.42.

The average resume sale is $300, but the most frequently reported responses ranged from $125 to $600.

The average hourly rate in the 2007 survey was nearly identical ($94/hour); however, the average resume sale in 2007 was reported to be $629. The difference may be attributed to economic factors or possibly the absence of some higher-charging resume writers from this year's survey.

January continues to be the busiest month of the year (26%), with September (18%) a close second.

For the complete survey results write-up, purchase the back issue of the Spring 2009 issue for $3.

Summer Issue of Resume Writers' Digest

The Summer 2009 issue of Resume Writers' Digest is now out!

The 12-page issue offers a cover story on coming up with better questions to ask your clients to yield better resumes. (Based on the results of the "10 Questions" survey, it will be added to the "Write Great Resumes Faster" special report as well.)

Inside: Wendy Enelow reacts to the results of the 2008 Resume Writers' Digest Industry Survey and shares her comments and thoughts.

Also in this issue: Producing Error-Free Resumes for Clients (results of an Accountemps survey), and Jane Roqueplot wrote a nice piece on "Enhance Your Writing With Style Analysis."

Also, check out columnist Robert Middleton's Action Plan Marketing column in this issue on "Getting the Most Out of a Professional Conference." There are still two major conferences left this year (NRWA and CDI), so if you're planning on attending either (or both!), this is a must-read.