Getting discovered online is a critical component of any job search. In fact, the best executive resume writers will sometimes tailor your resume to incorporate more SEO (search engine optimization) terms to help your name show up more frequently in search results. But what about c-level personal branding? This is also an important piece of a job search that can’t be overlooked. Here are some reasons why you need both personal SEO and personal branding when searching for your next job.
Personal SEO And Personal Branding Go Hand-In-Hand
In order to optimize your personal SEO, you need to incorporate keywords and phrases relevant to the particular job you’re searching for. These keywords typically involve the hard skills and technical expertise required to do the job. From a personal branding perspective, employers want to know about your personal qualities to determine whether you will be a cultural fit within their organization. This could include leadership experience, how well you work with a team and individually and other personality traits. When your online presence includes both personal SEO and c-level personal branding, you’ll have a better chance of being discovered by the top recruiters and employers.
Use Both To Differentiate Yourself
While both are needed to be discovered, you can also use them to differentiate yourself from other job candidates. You may choose to work with a LinkedIn profile development expert to incorporate certain keywords to make yourself stand out, while still using proper SEO terms to be discovered. It’s a fine line between being just like everyone else and differentiating yourself online, but it’s possible to find the perfect balance when you incorporate both aspects.
Never Sacrifice Authenticity
When you think about your LinkedIn profile development and how to incorporate personal SEO and personal branding, it can become easy to fall into the trap of writing content to be discovered rather than being authentic. Sacrificing authenticity is never a good idea for your long-term job prospects, since employers will almost always ask you to validate any of your claims. When you have all the soft skills and hard skills required to land the job you desire, sometimes it just takes working with the best executive resume writers to tweak the wording to help you become discovered more naturally. Professional Resume Services understands the challenges executives face in the digital world we live in today. One minor mistake or omission can derail your executive job search, so we are here to help ensure all of your bases are covered. Whether you need a LinkedIn profile development expert or someone to proofread your resume, we are here for you. Never hesitate to contact us at any time if we can be of any assistance with your job search.
Every aspect of a job search has to go perfectly in order to land the position you want sometimes. You may have crafted the perfect resumes and cover letters with the help of an executive resume service, but still can’t get a job for some reason. If you’re able to land an interview but can’t get past that point, you could be making a critical mistake many job seekers make: not writing a thank you note. Believe it or not, many employers indicate not receiving a thank you note can sometimes disqualify a candidate, especially if they are on the fence about hiring them. Here’s what to consider about thank you notes so you don’t run the risk of jeopardizing your job search.
When To Write A Thank You Note
The timing of your thank you note must be within 24 hours of the conclusion of the interview. It’s important for the interviewers to have you in mind throughout their interview process, and writing a quality thank you note is one way to do it. The company is likely interviewing many candidates to fill the position you desire, so setting yourself apart is essential. You may be the top of the top at your company, but it’s still a good idea to send a simple thank you.
Should Each Interviewer Get A Thank You Note?
Every executive resume service will suggest sending a thank you note to each person who interviewed you. Ask for their business card or their email address before you leave to ensure you have the right information. And if for some reason you realize you forgot to ask for it, reach out to your main point of contact and request the information. The hiring manager will likely ask each interviewer their opinion of you, so you want to shape their opinion to be as positive as possible.
What To Include
Just like when writing an effective resume, the content you write in your thank you note must be unique. Personalize the note to each recipient, and bring up a point you may have connected with them on during the interview. Whether it’s a school affiliation, an upcoming vacation or any other point you related with them on, be sure to point out the connection in your thank you note. You can also use your thank you note as an opportunity to clarify any points made in the interview. If there was an objection or if you didn’t seem qualified for a certain aspect of the job, you can reiterate why you think you will be able to overcome it. Professional Resume Services is more than just an executive resume service. We want to help each of our clients throughout the job search process so they can land the job they desire. The importance of a thank you note is critical today, so contact us at any time for more advice on how to write one and what information you may consider including.
Critical Details to Include on a Senior Level Executive Resume
If you’ve been on a job hunt for any amount of time, you likely have heard about the importance of details. But how do you know which details to include on a senior level resume? The formatting, length and other similar aspects can be corrected by the best executive resume writers, but even the experts don’t know the details of your work history. When you’re applying for a senior level position, consider including these critical details when writing an effective resume.
Don’t Hide Your Credentials
You don’t want your credentials to be buried in your resume or be hard to read, especially if they are a requirement for the job. Display your credentials with the rest of your Education section. If you have letters to display after your name, proudly do so! Don’t be shy. Show the reader what degree(s) or certifications you have! Recruiters and hiring managers will look at the top of the page first, so the top resume writing services always suggest putting them there.
Clearly Show Your Areas of Expertise
The next thing the best executive resume writers will suggest is demonstrating your areas of expertise clearly. All of your skills from your previous job may not correlate exactly to the position you’re applying for. If this is the case, then only list the areas of expertise most relevant to the position you desire. You can do this by looking at the job description and matching certain keywords from it on your resume.
Focus on Recent Experience
When writing an effective resume, your experience should be listed in chronological order. However, most of the time it’s not as important to put detailed information about places you worked at 15 years ago. Instead, focus on the most recent and relevant experience you have. And be sure to quantify your accomplishments, since numbers generally tend to make more of a significant impact on hiring managers.
Provide Your Online Profile Information
Most employers will search for your online profile before contacting you for an interview. You could make their job a little easier by providing them with a link to your LinkedIn profile or any other profile you would like them to view. Just be sure to clean up your profile beforehand, so only the information you want to be visible will actually be seen. Nowadays how an online profile is displayed can make or break your status as a candidate, and you can guarantee the employer will look for it. Professional Resume Services has the best executive resume writers to help you craft the perfect resume. We will ask you all the right questions in order to understand your job history, so the information can be presented clearly. The details make a huge difference in the effectiveness of any resume, and we won’t overlook anything. Feel free to contact us at any time if you are unsure about whether certain details are needed or if you are struggling with any aspect of your job search.
The Ultimate LinkedIn Tips to Bring Your Profile Up to Date
Simply having an executive LinkedIn profile won’t do you much good. In fact, having an outdated profile is sometimes worse than not having one at all. If you aren’t sure how to optimize your LinkedIn profile, you aren’t alone. The good news is you can work with a professional LinkedIn profile writer (look no further!) to evaluate your current profile and help you strengthen it so you’re always prepared for the next opportunity that comes your way. Here are some basic tips to bring your profile up-to-date that people sometimes overlook.
Create And Share Unique Content
Creating unique and engaging content is invaluable today. People always look for an expert they can trust, and if you are that person then your personal branding will skyrocket. Brand yourself as an expert in your field and watch your reader engagement climb. Plus, consistently sharing your content on your executive LinkedIn profile shows you’re involved with your career and are a valuable resource for current information. You will also benefit from your profile ranking higher in the search results due to the amount of unique views your content receives.
Build Your Number of Connections
The more content you share, the more connections you will earn. An executive LinkedIn profile that’s up-to-date will always have a significant number of connections with new ones coming in every day. Your network can see when you make a new connection, depending on your privacy settings, so you’ll gain some credibility from that aspect as well. Never hesitate to target other professionals in your industry and reach out to them to connect.
Be Active And Share Updates
Once you’ve worked with a professional LinkedIn profile writer to complete your profile, be sure to stay active as much as you can. This could mean posting a new article every couple of days and sharing updates about your career, or making a new connection. These updates will help you remain on the radar to your connections, so your profile won’t turn stale. You could also consider being active in LinkedIn groups to promote your personal brand. Just be sure not to be overly active to the point where people get tired of seeing you post all the time. As with everything, balance is key. Professional Resume Services is here to help you when you aren’t sure how to optimize your LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn is such a valuable tool to have, whether you’re actively searching for a new job or not. Just having a profile that’s up-to-date will help you get recognized, and you can continue working on it to build your personal brand. If you need any help with your LinkedIn profile, don’t hesitate to contact us at any time for assistance.
Made a Mistake at Work? Repair it in Five Easy Steps
Everyone is going to make mistakes at work. Some mistakes are bigger than others, but most of them are repairable if you handle them in the appropriate manner. Many times if a good result comes out of the mistake, then you could actually enhance your reputation and make the most of it. Here are five steps to take if you’ve made a mistake at work.
Apologize To The Appropriate People
Most of the time you’ll have to apologize to your boss for a mistake you’ve made. Even if what you did or didn’t do was out of your control to some extent, it’s important to make a sincere apology about it. One thing you can’t do is blame others for it. Apologizing immediately will help your reputation and give you the opportunity to make up for it.
Take Full Responsibility
Even if a mistake wasn’t entirely your fault, it’s never good for your c-level personal branding to throw others under the bus. While it’s usually acceptable to acknowledge external circumstances that may have led to a mistake being made, it still makes you look much better if you take complete responsibility and work toward fixing it.
Seek Opportunities To Do Positive Work
If your reputation has taken a hit because of your mistake and you’ve done the first two steps, the next thing to do is seek out opportunities to prove yourself again. One mistake generally will not drastically damage your reputation, and it can sometimes quickly be restored by producing high quality work again. Of course, negatives generally outweigh positives, so the more positive work you do, the quicker the negatives will fade away.
Let it Go
Dwelling on a mistake isn’t good for anyone. When you’ve apologized, taken full responsibility and continue to do great work, you have to let your big mistake go. It’s easy to continue thinking about the mistake and how bad you feel about it, but chances are others have moved on from it, so you should too. It does no good to continue thinking about the mistake, since it could hinder your ability to move on.
Collaborate With A Mentor
If all else fails, talk with your mentor about the mistake you’ve made and how you can successfully alleviate it. Your mentor should be very tied into your c-level personal branding, so getting advice from them should be very beneficial. If nothing else, your mentor can bring you peace of mind knowing you’ve done everything you can to fix your mistake and help you move on from it. Professional Resume Services is one of the top rated resume writing services, but we believe we are more than that. We enjoy helping executives with every aspect of their job search, as well as deal with issues that come up with their current job. Whether you need help writing an executive bio or just need to talk about personal branding, contact us at any time and we will be here to help.
One of the worst things anyone can do when searching for a new job is sending in resumes randomly. Not only will the chances of landing an interview at one of those companies be very low, but it’s only going to prolong the job search process. Taking the time to prepare for a job search is well worth your time. It could even be valuable to visit an executive resume writer a few times to brush up your resume and get some tips on how to present it to potential employers. Here are some tips for preparing for your job search.
Personal Branding is Important
As much as employers want to know what hard skills you bring to the table, they also want to know your soft skills. A lot of this comes from c-level personal branding and can be a major factor in setting yourself apart from the competition. Your personal brand comes from your interactions with people, how you are perceived online, via social media and more. When you focus on c-level personal branding, your job search will fall into place more easily.
Do You Know What You’re Looking For?
It’s difficult to reach a goal if you don’t have a target to aim for. You don’t necessarily have to have a specific list of companies you wish to work for, but it’s important to know what you’re looking for in a company. Whether it’s the culture, the type of work they do, how you want to contribute to the growth or anything else, finding what makes you a good fit for any given company can help you narrow down and target specific companies.
Evaluate Your LinkedIn Profile
Nowadays, employers and HR managers are going to look at your LinkedIn profile when they see your resume. It may be worth your time to visit a LinkedIn profile writing service to ensure yours demonstrates your c-level personal branding clearly and doesn’t include anything that could potentially damage your chances of landing an interview. LinkedIn is an important tool for people searching for a job, so make sure your profile is cleaned up and ready to be viewed.
Start Networking Early
It’s never too early to start networking. Even if you currently have a job and may be considering a new job search soon, networking now could get your foot in the door for your next opportunity. Meeting with an executive resume writer first could be valuable, just to ensure your resume is as current as possible and optimized for success. Professional Resume Services enjoys helping executives with every aspect of their job search. Whether it’s crafting the perfect resume or cover letter, talking about c-level personal branding, LinkedIn profile development or anything else, we are here to help. Feel free to contact us if you’re in need of any kind of assistance with your job search.
Writing a resume should take a while due to the detailed nature of it. However, if you have more questions than answers as you’re writing it, then it could be taking longer than it needs to. It’s only natural for executives to have questions when crafting their resume, and a professional resume writing service can help answer all of them. No question is unreasonable, and here are some of the most frequently asked questions we hear.
What Length Should My Resume Be?
A common misconception is a resume should never be more than one or two pages. While this could be true for some professions, it’s acceptable to make it a little longer if you’re applying for a senior level position. The key is formatting the resume so it is easy to read, highlights your important attributes and doesn’t have big chunks of text. A professional resume writing service can help you trim some of your words, so each one is meaningful no matter how long the resume ends up being.
How Can My Resume Represent Me?
Focusing on your personal brand is the best way to make your resume give a true representation of who you are. Your resume gives you the opportunity to tell about your skills and accomplishments, as well as your soft skills like leadership ability, personality and more. Another way for your resume to be a true representation of you is to target your audience and write to them specifically.
What’s The Purpose of A Biography?
An executive resume biography shouldn’t simply summarize your resume, contrary to popular belief. Instead, it should be used as a tool to tell a story about your accomplishments and expand more on your soft skills. The goal with an executive resume biography is to provide employers with a vision of how you can help their company by expanding on your resume.
Is A Cover Letter Really Necessary?
Sometimes employers will read cover letters and sometimes they won’t. You never know which side the company is on, so it’s always best to just write one. When you work with a cover letter writing service, you can easily accomplish this and actually enhance your chances of landing an interview. Sending in a cover letter with your resume won’t hurt your chances, as long as it’s written appropriately. But not sending in a cover letter could get your resume thrown out immediately. Professional Resume Services is here to answer all of your questions pertaining to executive resumes and more. We enjoy helping job seekers with their resume and understand there are many questions throughout the process. If you ever have a question about your resume, cover letter or anything else, don’t hesitate to reach out to us and we will help you in any way we can.
Preparing for a Successful C-Level Executive Interview
Landing a c-level executive interview is difficult enough, but the challenges aren’t over. No matter how many times you’ve been a part of one of these interviews, they are never easy. Luckily, just like you prepared for writing an effective resume, you can also successfully prepare for a c-level interview. Simulating an interview is beneficial, but it’s also important to be flexible since you don’t know what questions will be asked or how much pressure you’ll be under. Here are some of our best tips for preparing for a successful c-level interview.
Think of Your Own Questions to Ask
Sprinkling in your own questions throughout the interview process has many benefits. It demonstrates you’ve done your homework on the company, if you ask those types of questions, and it also relieves some of the pressure from you. Your professional resume writing service can help you come up with effective questions if you are unsure what to ask. Just be sure to only ask a few of them throughout the entire interview so you don’t overdo it.
Practice A Calm Tone of Voice
Your tone of voice can change when nerves and anxiety take over. A cool and calm demeanor when answering questions will demonstrate your ability to handle pressure well and earn their trust. Always talk in a positive tone and present solutions to problems brought up in the interview. Never give off the vibe of being frustrated or negative, as these characteristics are clear and easy to identify.
Know How You’ll Address Salary Negotiations
The best executive resume writers can help you think about strategies when it comes to negotiating your salary. It’s best to be as general as possible, so you don’t end up with a lowball offer. On the same hand, you don’t want to demand so much that they don’t even consider hiring you. You can do this by giving a wide range you’re looking for, or even telling the interviewers roughly how much money you’ve made in the past few years. Just like with writing an effective resume, how you present yourself during the salary negotiations makes a big difference in whether you get the job or not.
Anticipate Questions
To best anticipate questions, take another close look at your resume. Your professional resume writing service likely helped you present yourself as an expert in the industry, so chances are several of the interview questions will come straight from the resume. For example, if you include some statistics or dollar amounts on your resume, you can expect to be asked about how you achieved those numbers. It’s hard to predict exactly how the questions will be asked, but you can get a good idea of the types of questions that could be asked just by looking at your resume. Professional Resume Services not only helps executives with writing an effective resume, but we also help throughout the job search process. C-level interviews can be stressful to prepare for, but we are here to help relieve some of the stress so you can feel confident throughout the process. Feel free to contact us at any time for tips or advice on preparing to have a successful c-level executive interview.
One of the worst things anyone can do when searching for a new job is sending in resumes randomly. Not only will the chances of landing an interview at one of those companies be very low, but it’s only going to prolong the job search process. Taking the time to prepare for a job search is well worth your time. It could even be valuable to visit an executive resume writer a few times to brush up your resume and get some tips on how to present it to potential employers. Here are some tips for preparing for your job search.
