Congratulations to the 2013 TORI Award Winners!

Career Directors International has just announced the winners of the 2013 TORI (Toast of the Resume Industry) Awards!

Winners include:

Best International Resume 1st Place - Kimberly Mohiuddin, Movin' On Up Resumes 2nd Place - Brenda Bernstein, The Essay Expert LLC 3rd Place - Cheryl L. Simpson, Executive Resume Rescue Best New Graduate Resume 1st Place - Victoria McLean, City CV Ltd. 2nd Place - Michelle Riklan, Riklan Resources 3rd Place - Laura Smith-Proulx, An Expert Resume Best Creative Resume 1st Place - Michelle Lopez, One2One Resumes 2nd Place - Rosa Vargas, Career Steering 3rd Place - Miriam Cha, Metro Resumes Best Re-entry Resume 1st Place - Sandra Ingemansen, Résumé Strategies 2nd Place - Gayle Howard, Top Margin Career Marketing 3rd Place - Christine Robinson, Professional Designs Writing Service Best Information Technology Resume 1st Place - Laura Smith-Proulx, An Expert Resume 2nd Place - Maureen McCann, ProMotion Career Solutions 3rd Place - Diane Murphy Goldstein, MG Resume & Coaching Services Best Executive Resume 1st Place - Cheryl L. Simpson, Executive Resume Rescue   2nd Place - Sandra Ingemansen, Résumé Strategies 3rd Place - Amy L. Adler, Five Strengths Career Transition Experts Best Sales Resume 1st Place - Laura Smith-Proulx, An Expert Resume 2nd Place - Kimberly Mohiuddin, Movin' On Up Resumes 3rd Place - Tom Albano, All Star Career Services Best Healthcare/Medical Resume 1st Place - Kimberly Mohiuddin, Movin' On Up Resumes 2nd Place - Ann Baehr, Best Resumes of New York 3rd Place - Laura Smith-Proulx, An Expert Resume Best Cover Letter 1st Place - Donald Burns, Donald Burns' Career Defense 2nd Place - Sandra Ingemansen, Résumé Strategies 3rd Place - Michelle Lopez, One2One Resumes

2013 TORI JUDGES & AWARD DIRECTOR    Special thanks to CDI's Director of Awards for coordinating the TORIs this year: Robin Schlinger, Robin's Resumes® Special thanks to 2013 judges for their hard work this year:  Barb Poole, Hire Imaging, LLC Darlene Dassy, Dynamic Résumé Solutions   Laura Labovich, Aspire! Empower! Career Strategy Group Susan Guarneri, AssessmentGoddess.com   Audrey Prenzel, Resume Resources Marty Weitzman - Gilbert Resumes Jennifer Hay - IT Resume Service Jeri Hird Dutcher - Workwrite Grant Cooper - CareerPro of New Orleans / Strategic Resumes Kimberley Bethke - Surcorp Resume Solutions Norine Dagliano - ekm Inspirations

Don't Steal Your Graphics

You wouldn't dream of walking into a store, picking up an item, and walking out without paying. Yet people do this every day with online content -- especially graphics. But using images you "find" online is not only stealing, but you could potentially be sued by the owner of the content.

In yesterday's blog post, I recommended Fotolia.com, a website where you can purchase photos, illustrations, cartoons, graphics, and even videos. Depending on what you want to use the graphic or photo for, the cost can be as little as $1 per illustration.

In contrast, if you "borrow" a graphic online without paying for its use (or making sure you have the rights to use the photo), you can be sued for thousands -- even tens of thousands -- of dollars.

Don't think it can happen to you? It happened to my brother-in-law, who is a web designer. He received a demand letter from Getty Images for $1000 because Getty Images had discovered a graphic on the previous version of a website he was working on that they did not show as being licensed to the website's owner. (The illustration in question was on the client's old website; he was revamping the website for the client, but he was the one who received the letter.)

Graphics and Plagiarism
How many times have you heard someone say that, "since it was on the Internet, it's public domain, so I can use it?" I suspect a lot. Well, in case you didn't know, this is not true. Even if some images are available for free online, they are free with limits. It's important to read the fine print to ensure that you don't inadvertently plagiarize someone else's work. In some cases, even when you pay for an image you can still commit a violation if you use it for an other-than-intended purpose.

Graphics and images help make your website, blogs, and other online content stand out. In fact, if you choose images that match the content, it can even make the content more understandable. This is especially true when creating infographics. But, you cannot just take the graphics from any website and use them for any purpose without permission. 

Read the Fine PrintWhen you download a graphic from any place online, whether free or paid, read the fine print. It is likely that much of what you buy or get free on the net cannot be used for producing a "logo" without buying a higher level of rights to the image. When using free images, some sites say that you cannot use it on any product for profit.

Fair Use
There are some exceptions to the basic copyright and plagiarism rules called fair use. Essentially, it's okay to use someone else's work if you transform it enough to make it original. The definition of transformative though, varies with different courts. Or, you simply use the idea of the image to create your own unique image.

For instance, maybe you like a black and white portrait of a baby where the colors pink are highlighted? Then you use that idea to do a family portrait. Or if you are commenting on and reporting on a story and use the image to report on the story, that is fair use.

One thing to remember is that words can be plagiarized but images cannot be. However, you can infringe on someone's copyright when you use images without permission or outside the parameters of legal use described in the fine print of purchased images. Also, there are always exceptions to everything. Be very clear on the differences before you use any image. 

Save yourself the hassle -- and time and money -- by making sure the images you use are properly licensed.

Do Your Blog Posts Suck?

Blogging can be a great way to attract new clients, increase your online presence, attract media attention, and educate/inform your clients. However, if you want to write effective blog posts, you need to know who your audience is and target every post to them. You also need to create a plan of action for your blog posts, both individually and as a whole. For instance, you might start your blog posts with general themes, moving toward more specific advice and information as your audience becomes more informed. 

While all that is important, let's get down to the nitty-gritty about what should be included in each blog post.

• Blog posts need a great title. The days of puns in titles are over. It's important to create a blog post title that tells the reader what's inside the post. This is why they'll click through to read it. People do not like being tricked and will be more focused on the trickery than the post if you're not clear in your titles. If you're looking for a free online resource for coming up with titles, check out Jim Edwards Wizards (click on the tab for "Free Wizards"). I LOVE these.
• Catch their interest with your first paragraph. Your first paragraph is very important in terms of blog posts. You only have seconds, one or two sentences at the most, to capture your audience's attention. This is where understanding your target market comes in. Create a compelling first sentence and first paragraph that catch the reader's attention.
• Give readers a glimpse of your personality. Nobody wants to read dry blog posts stuffed full of keywords that ultimately say nothing. While it's true you want to include keywords, show the reader your personality inside of your blog post. Let them know a little bit about your story, and how you think.
• Create an informative body message. If you've planned out your post well, with an outline, you will be able to create the body message easily. The body message is the meat of the message that you want to deliver.
• Provide a conclusion in the last paragraph. Nothing is worse than reading something and feeling like it's left unfinished. Remember to make some conclusions in your last paragraph that ties everything you said together. Then ask your reader for feedback. Ask them a question about the content and invite them to answer.
• Don't forget the CTA. Always include, within that last paragraph or directly under it, a specific and clear call to action (CTA). Do you want them to respond, to share, to buy? What do you want them to do? Tell them how and why to do what it is you want them to do.

Aside from these factors, it's important to also be concerned with headings, bullets and plenty of white space. Your headings need to be keyword-rich headings that make sense for what is about to be read by the reader. By using bolded headings, and larger text for headings, the headings will stand out better. By using bulleted points the same thing occurs. It just makes it easier for your reader to take in what is being said. People read by "scanning" and a blog post with bullets, headings and plenty of white space makes it easier.

Images that you include should be relevant images. If you're looking for blog images, check out Fotolia.com. For about $1 each, you can get great graphics to illustrate your blog posts.

By taking into account all these factors in your blog posts, you'll create effective blog posts every single time. In other words, your blog posts won't suck!

Tweets from the 2013 NRWA Conference: Miriam Salpeter and Laura Labovich

Want to see what I was up to at the 2013 NRWA Conference in Chicago? My tweets use the hashtag #NRWA13.

Some key points from the final session, with Miriam Salpeter and Laura Labovich:

Learning about social media from @Keppie_Careers and @LauraLabovich at #NRWA13 #TheNRWAConf pic.twitter.com/yoUBeMHvYu
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

When choosing a social media channel, "Always think, 'What is the point' and 'So what'" via @Keppie_Careers #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

@LauraLabovich: Suggests making certain #Facebook status updates Public (professional nature/wins/successes) & Followers. #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

Great tip @LauraLabovich: If creating content online, BE SURE TO BACK UP. Woman who answered Q's on LinkedIn Answers lost it all! #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

@Keppie_Careers and @LauraLabovich -- go to http://t.co/GsyeLfosrC and type in a keyword & it suggests related skills. #TheNRWAConf #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

@Keppie_Careers: Identify the social network that is a natural fit for you/your client's goals, skills, and abilities. #TheNRWAConf #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

@LauraLabovich From 1995-2012, the contingent workforce grew by 4.3 million workers. Social media helps with portfolio careers! #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013

Final session of the conference! With @LauraLabovich and @Keppie_Careers on "Leverage Social Media Litmus Test..." #TheNRWAConf #NRWA13
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@RWDigest) September 20, 2013