I’ve said before that every resume is written for three audiences.  Most people think about the recruiter and potential hiring manager but there’s less emphasis placed on the phantom third audience — the database.

And rightfully so.  The applicant tracking system — the electronic database that a great number of companies use to collect, sort, organize and search their job candidates — won’t make a decision on your candidacy for a job.  So writing for the people that can hire you is absolutely the priority.  But the ATS can keep your resume from ever being seen, and for that reason it’s useful to spend some time making your resume database-friendly.

The most common way is to incorporate resume keywords.  Resume keywords are specific nouns and phrases that refer to your background and experience.  Much like a search on Google, often, it’s these nouns that employers search for when trying to find their next superstar employee.

How do I find resume keywords?

Developing resume keywords is basically making a list of those items that are sought after that you can offer.  Some categories include:

• Technology, software packages, etc.
• Certifications
• Education
• Industries
• Trends and methods
• Job responsibilities
• Departments
• Techniques and training

To find out which keywords are most common for your industry, position and more, comb through job postings for the position you’re interested in.  Watch for language that repeats itself, and any nouns of significance (think “Six Sigma,” “P&L,” “management,” “strategic planning,” “consumer packaged goods,” etc.).  Make yourself a list to work from.

How do I put resume keywords into my resume?

The next step is to effectively add these keywords to your resume.  Remember a few things:

• Your resume is always for human eyes. Don’t pack your resume so full of keywords that it doesn’t sound like natural, human writing.
• Not all searches are created equal. Some may search for “Consumer Packaged Goods” while others search for “CPG.”  Some may look for Microsoft Office, while others will specifically search for Word.  Think of the various ways that a search could be conducted and try to address variations on the theme.
• Keywords higher on the page are seen to have more prominence. Those keywords that you think are most important and most relevant to your experience should be included as early as possible.  Preferably in your summary statement.

How do you find resume keywords?

photo credit: lepiaf.geo

Related posts:

1. Embrace resume keywords, eschew buzzwords
2. Not everything is a job search nail: Effective use of your resume
3. Your resume summary statement: Quantify, quantify, quantify
4. How long is your resume? Who cares?
5. Job search tip: Finding the hiring manager, Part 4

Tagged as: Career, career adventure, career advice, career coach, effectiveness, inspiring work, job description, job hunt, job search, job seekers, kristi daeda, resume, resume writing, resumes, technology