Feel like you are applying for job after job but aren’t making traction? You’re not alone! This is a common theme we are hearing in the people2people Perth office.
In February 2019, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the unemployment figures for Western Australia (WA), which were the highest they have been since January 2002. So although we are now bouncing back, unfortunately that means there is still a lot of competition for job seekers.
So what can you do to stand out and start making progress?
Match your skills
Look at the roles you have been applying for. The most glaringly obvious question is - do you meet the criteria that the employer is looking for?
In a tough market it can be tempting to just give it a go anyway, but if you don’t meet all of the requirements a better approach would be to call the hiring manager to see whether it is still worth you applying. It saves you time putting together an application, saves the hiring manager time reviewing a resume that might not be suitable and also gives you an opportunity to market yourself on the phone and make a good first impression. Something you can’t always do effectively in a word document.
Your resume
Studies show that on average, a recruiter or hiring manager will spend just 6 seconds on reviewing your resume. That’s just 6 seconds to win them over!
- Do you have all the key words that are relevant that the reviewer will be looking for?
- Is it concise and easy to follow? It doesn’t need to be a War and Peace; bullet points are best!
- Have you included your achievements?
- Don’t include details that are too personal and not relevant i.e. your marital status, health, age or anything of that nature
- Spend extra time making your resume specific to the role for which you are applying; sure it takes extra time, but it’s worth it!
Follow up with a call
- Call, call, call!!! Express your interest, give a BRIEF (please don’t start your story from childhood) introduction of yourself over the phone, advising you will be sending your details through.
- You will cut the queue if you sound great on the phone and if the resume reviewer has hundreds of resumes to look through
- Call for feedback - if you met all the criteria listed on a job advertisement it would be a good idea to ask for feedback of why you weren’t successful, to help you for future applications
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