Six Questions Every Resume Needs to Answer

After listening to Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark on last week's "6-Step Process for Writing Extraordinary Resumes" E-Summit, I've identified six questions that every resume you write needs to answer.

These are six questions you must be able to answer before you write the resume, or ask yourself the questions after you've written the resume to make sure it will be effective.

The resume must answer these six questions:

1. Who are you?
2. Where have you been?
3. What have you done?
4. What can you do for me?
5. What sets you apart from everyone else?
6. What kind of job are you seeking?

The resume needs to answer these questions clearly and directly. The answers must be apparent in a six-second scan of the document, and also provide greater depth and detail upon closer review.

Certification or No Certification?

  

This is one of the most common questions I get asked by resume writers: Should I get certified? And, if so, which certification should I go for?

In the resume writing industry, there is no requirement that you get certified, but there advantages to investing in certification. However, I know some outstanding resume writers who have never pursued certification. And, unfortunately, there are some certified writers who aren't that great. And because some certifications don't require ongoing continuing education, someone who was certified in 2004 might not have the skills of someone who was certified in 2012. 

Certification itself does not necessarily indicate quality or proficiency (although you would think that would be exactly what certification would promise!). Ultimately the decision whether to get certified or not depends entirely on your own goals and needs.

There are a lot of experienced resume writers who do not believe that it's important to get certification. After all, they have demonstrated their competency through years and years of satisfied clients. A few of the existing resume writing certifications, however, are not "teaching" oriented programs — they only measure competency; they don't teach it. Instead of pursuing certification, you might instead take resume writing courses. Don't discount what you can learn by taking a really good course when it comes to resume writing. You might learn something that turns your entire business around.

As an unregulated profession, getting certification will make you look legitimate and may help you continue resume writing if ever certification becomes a requirement. You'll be ahead of the game. (I don't see the industry ever being that regulated, however, that a certification will be required.)

While it's true that some clients will be impressed by a resume writer who took the time and invested the money to become certified, it's also true that many won't even ask. And, because of the large number of certifying bodies and credentials offered, probably 99% of clients don't know the difference between a CPRW and an ACRW. But showcasing your certification (and educating prospective clients about the process involved in certification — especially the benefit to them from working with a certified writer who is committed to continuing education and knowledge development) can be something that sets you apart from other resume writers.

Ultimately, to be successful in resume writing, you don't need a certification. What you do need is:

• An understanding of different types of career document writing (resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, bio, etc.)
• Strong listening skills and the ability to gather information from clients effectively (whether through questionnaires, review of previous client documents, client interviews, or a combination of these).
• Solid insight into the hiring process and how employers review resumes and assess candidates.
• Knowledge of best pricing and billing practices (you won't stay in business long if you can't figure out how much to charge, and how to collect from clients!)
• Understanding of tax and legal obligations, including structuring an effective contract
• Proficiency in technology — with a focus on Microsoft Word
• The ability to plan and implement marketing techniques to attract clients
• A commitment to continuing education (this industry is always changing!)

What do you think about certification?

Starting a Side Business as a Resume Writer

Many resume writers get started in self-employment by launching a part-time resume writing business in addition to their full-time "regular job."

If you've been thinking about starting a resume writing business on the side, here are some ideas to get you started.

• Capitalize on your skill set. 

When you start a resume writing business as a part-time venture, you may not want to be a "full-service" shop. So look at the small components of the business, and figure out how you want to work. How can you get a resume writing business started using your natural abilities and as little financial capital as possible?

For example, the component pieces might include:

• Actually writing resumes (the full experience, including client interviewing/questionnaires)
• Reviewing resumes and editing/revamping them (not rewriting).
• Serving as an editor/proofreader for other resume writers
• Writing resumes as a subcontractor for other resume writers
• Get clients and subcontract out the actual resume writing
• Focusing on LinkedIn profile writing for folks with existing resumes
• Providing LinkedIn profile overhauls (new headline & summary only)
• Conducting interview training and/or salary negotiation training for jobseekers
• Connecting jobseekers with resume writers

• Assess your specific situation.

These factors might influence what services you decide to provide:

• How much time do you have to devote to your part-time business? If you only have 1-2 hours a day, providing a simple service might be best.
• What is your specialty? Do you like to write? Coordinate? Edit? Proofread? Manage clients?
• How much money do you want to make from your part-time business?

The easiest way to determine a direction is to do a little market research. Think about your prospective client and his or her needs. How can you best fulfill them? Have quick one-on-one chats with people — friends, family, co-workers. Ask them what they need and develop your services around that. Watch trends in the news or on social media to see popular topics. Try to figure out how you can get in on earning opportunities by helping to address any of those trending issues.

To find clients, advertise via social media. Use popular social media sites to advertise your services (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, even Craigslist).

Starting a part-time resume writing business is the easiest way to test the concept before you quit your "day job." But it's up to you to create a business that works for you and the clients you attract.

Four Ways to Get the Most Out of the National Career Summit Gold Package

National Career Summit Gold Package

I received an email Friday from a resume writer wondering if she should purchase the recordings for The National Career Summit. I told her that ultimately, that decision was up to her, but I had some ideas for how to use the content to increase her return on investment (ROI). I thought I'd share these thoughts with you too, because there are only two days left to buy the recordings at 80% off their regular price.

Here are some ideas on how you can use the recordings from The National Career Summit:

• For your own training/education. As resume writers, I believe we need to invest in our learning, so we can stay on top of cutting-edge strategies to help our clients. I try to attend at least one resume writing conference each year (you can read my thoughts on that here), plus there are dozens of opportunities to attend virtual sessions (the NRWA telesummits, Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark's E-Summits, The Academies' Virtual Bootcamp, etc.). With 30 sessions featuring the top industry leaders (Martin Yate, Laura Labovich, Miriam Salpeter, Louise Kursmark, Lisa Rangel ... and on and on ... that's about $3 per session. That's an unbelievable price. Heck, I'd pay $97 EACH to learn from almost ANY of these speakers for an hour! But you can also use this information to help your clients. 

Here's how:

• For ideas for content to attract prospective clients. (No, you can't share the recordings.) But you can listen to the recording, then look at the session description (especially the "take-aways"), and write blog posts covering the main points. Or post on social media (be sure to credit the speaker, and mention "from The National Career Summit," when possible -- including your affiliate link for readers to purchase the Summit recordings and/or book). Or write a review of the book on your blog and/or social media and include the book link (it's just a $20 purchase)

• To educate your existing clients. Show how you are committed to continuing education (see bullet #1!) by sending a series of emails to your client list with key takeaways on the subject — including your own thoughts! — again, with an affiliate link to the book or the Gold package, and your contact information. These types of keep-in-touch emails can stimulate repeat business and referrals.

• To increase your profile on social media. Take a quote from a session (again, crediting the speaker and The National Career Summit), and Tweet it, do a Facebook business page post on it, or post it on your LinkedIn status. If you want to get even more mileage out of it, hire a designer for $5 on Fiverr.com to turn it into a graphic (an image and the quote) and it might even go viral on Facebook. Even better, make your post something interactive. Like "Author Wendy Lipton-Dibner says you really have to WANT a job to invest time/effort to get it, and that your motivation to land the job will increase if it's difficult to land. Is this true for your job search? Have you invested the time/energy to secure your dream job?" Many of the session presenters include quotable statements or statistics in their presentations.

However, if you're not planning on investing the TIME to go through and listen to the audios (at least the ones you think are the most relevant to the clients you work with, or the prospective clients you want to attract) — and then do something with the content (even if that's just taking notes for yourself and thinking through how these concepts can be applied to your work), then don't buy it.

Due to schedule conflicts, I was only able to listen to four of the sessions live (the sessions were free if you listened live), but I found the content to be so valuable from just those four sessions that I personally purchased the Gold package myself. There were a few sessions that aren't applicable to the clients I work with, but there were enough that were that I made the investment. (Plus, I wanted the print book you receive with the purchase of the Gold package, "101 Great Ways to Compete In Today's Job Market.")

If you want to check out what you get with the Gold package, click here:
The National Career Summit Gold Package

But remember, the special price of $97 (80% off the regular price of $497) is only valid through today (November 25, 2013). And that includes a copy of the printed book, shipped directly to you. That's a $20 value itself. So if you're going to buy the Gold package, I suggest you buy it now!