Lesson 7: Build an Online Resume — Remote Job Course
A one-page resume that’s personable and succinct will cure hiring managers of their resume blindness. This is the type of resume I’ll teach you how to create today with the online resume builder VisualCV.
Example of an Ineffective Resume
To find an example of an ineffective resume for landing a remote job I searched Google for “example of the perfect resume.” I knew that what most people consider to be a perfect resume is actually not that great. Google showed me a resume posted by Business Insider (below) that proves my point.
Business Insider calls this a perfect resume. But based on my experience hiring manages would never read this. They would contact other applicants who took the time to make their resume succinct. Making your resume succinct shows you respect the hiring manager’s time.
Here are just a few reasons why this resume is ineffective for getting a remote job:
- It has no personality. Most remote companies are startups that prize the person as much as the person’s skillset. This resume makes the job applicant seem bland — black and white — even though she’s probably a unique person. The resume you’ll create will have a picture and some fun facts about yourself to make you appear personable and authentic.
- It is too wordy. There are too many words and sentences. It’s ironic this is considered an “excellent resume” even when it’s stated in the Business Insider article that “recruiters spend an average of six seconds reviewing a resume before they make the initial decision on candidates.” Finding anything valuable in this resume in 6 seconds is hard because nothing sticks out.
Example of an Effective Resume
Now let’s compare that resume to the resume that has landed me dozens of interviews for remote jobs at some really cool companies. Hiring managers have even gone out of their way to compliment me about this resume. I’ll show you how to create a resume like this below with VisualCV, but first let’s see what makes it so effective.
Here are the main reasons why this resume is effective:
- It is easy to scan. The Business Insider resume mentioned above has some good information but it doesn’t matter. The information is buried in excess. The two-column format above creates some breathing room on the resume and allows hiring managers to easily scan it.
- Accomplishments are supported by social proof. Adding testimonials to your resume adds credibility to the accomplishments you list. Anyone can list accomplishments, but few can support those accomplishments with positive feedback from managers and colleagues.
- It encourages hiring managers to spend more time learning about you. In this resume the View Details links send hiring managers to my showcase pages. This encourages hiring managers to learn more about me. I also add links to writing samples.
Tip: Repurpose and shorten recommendations on your LinkedIn profile for social proof on your resume. And if you don’t have live work to link to (like I do under my Writing Samples section), create a section called Projects and link to your project pages.
Design an online resume with VisualCV
After some research, the best solution I found for creating an effective resume is VisualCV. This software made it easy for me to turn my old resume into something more compelling. VisualCV resume templates are more engaging and easier to edit than a Word document. The templates also utilize space better.
Note: There’s a free and paid version of VisualCV. The template I use above requires a paid subscription but there are other good templates included with a free subscription.
Action Step: Create a VisualCV account and follow the video tutorial below to build your online resume.
Action Step (Optional): Upload a PDF version of your VisualCV to Google Drive, create a public and shareable link, then add the link in the Reply section below.
