5 Steps to Optimize Your CV (Free CV template)

The question candidates frequently ask our Luxe Talent recruiters is: How can I improve my CV? That’s why we have collected 5 Steps to optimize your CV. Due to the global situation we are currently living in, the limited amount of job vacancies and the increase of candidate has impacted the recruitment sector, and it is necessary for you to stand out.

Here we go! You only have to follow those 5 Steps to optimize your CV ?

1. WOW the recruiter at first glance

One of the most important things to do with your resume is to enable the reader, in this case, the recruiter, to identify what makes you stand out, and why you are special.

Our recruiters recommend placing below your name a headline with what makes you unique. For example, if you are a Social Media Specialist and speak three languages, you could write “Trilingual Social Media Specialist.”

Also, when writing about your job experience, you can include your achievements. For example, if you are the “Trilingual Social Media Specialist” and your responsibility is to increase traffic, you could write something like “increased Instagram traffics by 270% and doubled ad revenue”, instead of just mentioning “increase traffic and manage ads.” We say “can” instead of “should” because this fact can be a double-edged sword. Your achievements can be relative depending on the HR recruiter that looks at them. It can be a great achievement for the company you have worked for and something that it is simply not enough for the company you are trying to apply. Handle this information carefully.

2. Keywords are essential

Many recruiters search for keywords or use software to scan the candidate’s resume to determine where it fits for the position. Just think that you could be the ideal employee and if you are missing or using the wrong keywords, your opportunity could pass. Berta Montero, HR Director at ECOALF said in our last Retail Academy Masterclass: How to build a career in the Luxury Industry?: “if you are a buyer, you have to check if the company you are interested in, uses this keyword or another one. A “buyer” in a company can be a “product manager” in another one.”

It is also important to stay up to date and know the lingo or vocabulary in the industry you are working for. For example, maybe you use the term “floorwalker” when you would rather use “Store Manager.”

Or another method that usually works, would be to have a look on LinkedIn, profiles with the same role as yours or the role you want, and check their keywords. 

3. Easy to read

You want to make your resume easy to read and for the recruiter to skim through without missing anything important, for instance using keywords as we mentioned previously. This is really important since recruiters tend to go through varied resumes in a brief amount of time. If you are The ideal CV would have 2-3 pages as maximum.

The key in this case would be to synthesize and give more importance to your latest experiences. A good tactic, as we said before, would be to keep your information short, no more than four lines, and if you need to write more try bullet points.

4. Your contact information should be visible and brief

Recruiters need the information to be visible and accessible. If they want to call you, would be great to have that information right in front of their eyes.

Remember that we don’t need your full home address or your home phone number, we would rather have your cellphone number, email, city and zip code, and for some cases your portfolio, relevant social media or your own website.

5. Adapt your CV! 

If you are a polyvalent profile or you aim for different roles… Do not use the same CV for all of them! Follow our second step: choose very well which are your keywords. If you are interested in Sales, Retail and Marketing at the same time (because you studied Marketing and worked in Retail, for example), play with your experience. This does not mean that you are lying or inventing. You have to be smart and provide the information in a coherent way. Do not think that by putting all the information in a “shaker” will benefit you. Not always “more is better.”

Think about your CV as the storytelling of your professional career. You are projecting a very concrete and solid image of yourself that must be coherent.

If you follow these quick 5 steps, you can optimize your CV, but remember, everything is trial and error, if something doesn’t work out try changing it. Is time to stand out, keep trying, and don’t give up ? Your next big opportunity is out there! Want to watch a live video with one of our recruiters explaining more about this topic? Check out our Instagram Live!

? If you want to create a professional CV in just a few minutes, here is our ✨ FREE TEMPLATE ✨