Keywords are common discussion points for those familiar with developing web content, marketing toward a specific audience online, or blogging to reach a particular type of reader. But do keywords really play a part in your job search, and more importantly, in your resume? Truthfully, yes. Technology hasn’t just influenced the world of websites and online media, it’s impacted the world of recruiting and hiring as well. In the past, resumes had to be read over individually by a hiring manager, employer, or HR staff member. When a position would bring in several hundred resumes, this turned into a monumental task taking up hours of time. When you factor in the understanding that many resumes won’t even meet the qualifications or criteria needed for the position, those hours are, in reality, “wasted” and you’ve spent all of that paid time with very little result.To make this less of an issue, many companies are employing scanning programs known as Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS for short) to “read” applications and resumes turned in by hopeful applicants. These programs scan the documents for keywords pertaining to the job opening in question, and the more hits a resume has with said keywords, the more likely that particular applicant is to meet with an interviewer face to face. Knowing this, it’s important that you tailor your own resume and job application to these types of keyword searches, so you increase your chances of landing the hire.
Perhaps the most effective way to go about choosing the keywords for your resume is to carefully read the job description and/or job listing provided by the employer. If you see a word repeated multiple times (think specific skills, certifications, degrees, etc.) and you are able to include it in your own list of qualifications, DO IT! In other words, tailor your resume to match the job listing as closely as possible so as to hit as many keywords as possible during the ATS scan. Think of it as speaking the same “language” as the employer. Doing so will make them much more likely to meet with you in person!
PHR Staffing Solutions is another effective way to land the job you’ve been looking for. We go through resumes beforehand, and then work closely with the companies who use us to fill vacancies in their staff to match the applicants in our system with the perfect position. In other words, we match up the keywords ourselves, and make sure you’re being seen by the best employers for YOU. Give us a call or apply for one of our current openings online!