Also, with the popularity of the Internet, I have heard that some companies have actually tried to fool the public by ranking themselves as #1 in fake Top 10 Resume Writing Service lists! And let’s not forget those resume-writing services that actually send your personal information overseas and outsource the writing to someone who has no idea about the person you are.

Can you believe it?!?

When people are considering the purchase of professional resume-writing services, I advise them to “shop around.” So here are the five factors you should consider when choosing who to trust writing your professional resume and cover letter…

1. Are You Purchasing Services From A Resume-Writer Or A “Resume Factory?”

The easiest way to tell if the resume-writing service is a “resume factory” is their very low prices. No one can make any money in this industry charging less than $100 for a resume – unless, they have a production line setup. Or they create low-quality resumes or have poor service.

If you choose one of these “resume factories” that claim to have written thousands and thousands of resumes, you should know that although they say they never use “cookie-cutter” templates, they probably do.

And as a result, your resume will be just like everyone else’s and will sabotage your chances of getting calls for an interview.

2. What Kind Of “Process” Does The Resume-Writer Use?

A great resume can’t be written from a questionnaire alone, no matter how good the resume-writer is! Unfortunately, many of the resume-writing services make this very claim that they can create a winning resume with just a 20 question questionnaire filled out online.

Now seriously, how much could a complete stranger know about you in 20 measly questions without talking to you or meeting you?

You will find that the best professional resume-writers will be willing to meet with you in person (if possible), or do phone and/or email consultations with you as they write your resume and cover letter in addition to providing you with a questionnaire and compiling information from your previous resumes.

Additionally, when it comes to “turnaround time,” those resume-writers who promise to have your resume complete in 48 hours or less are either part of a “resume factory,” are using “cookie-cutter” templates and merely plugging in your work information, or they get a very low volume of business (something that should concern you).

So be sure to do your research about a resume-writer’s or company’s writing process before purchasing any of their services!

3. Does The Resume-Writer Have Any Proven Sales Or Marketing Experience?

Now this may sound like an odd factor to consider, but if you never learned this, you should know that your resume is a direct marketing sales-letter! Let’s face it – you have no doubt heard of best-selling authors. Have you ever heard of best-writing authors? Of course not! Those best-selling authors are able to sell and market the message of their books.

My point is this, just about anyone with spell check and grammar check on their computer can write a resume. But, it takes a very special person with a background in sales and/or marketing to bring that resume to life and “sell the reader” on why they should call you for an interview!

4. Does The Resume-Writer Offer A Guarantee For Their Services?

Any great resume-writer will stand by their work and offer to re-write your resume at no additional cost if it is not getting you any interviews within a certain number of days (usually 60-90). This is their professional pledge to you.

However, you as a job-seeker must also do your part in sending out more than just a few resumes, and most importantly – follow up with the employers you sent your resume and cover letter to. It’s amazing how few people actually do this!

Remember, your resume is a direct marketing sales-letter. Your “customers” are prospective employers. Any good salesman or saleswoman knows the rewards are in the follow-up!!!

5. How Much Does The Resume-Writer Charge For Their Professional Services?

I am sure that you have figured out (hopefully not the hard way) that in life, you definitely get what you pay for! Of course the price is important, but it is not nearly as important as having a winning resume that gets employers to call you for an interview today!

It all goes back to “cost versus value.” What do you get in terms of benefits for the price you pay? What do you get in the package deals? What kind of guarantee do they offer? Have they had other satisfied customers share their stories in believable testimonials?

You might want to look at it this way…

If I offered you a piece of paper with some scribbles and drawings on it for $1,000 – would you buy it? Probably not. However, if that paper with scribbles and drawings was a map that led to a buried treasure worth $100,000 or more – would you buy it?

Let’s hope so! That would definitely be the investment of the century! A hundred-fold return on your investment. (If only Wall St. could create those kinds of returns…legally!) I like to look at investing in a resume-writer the same way. If a resume-writer charges $200 for a professional resume, and that resume leads to a job that pays a yearly salary of $40,000 – you just made a two hundred-fold return on your investment!!! Now that’s really smart investing…

Additionally, if a professional resume writer is guaranteeing his or her work and is willing to re-write your documents for 60-90 days at no extra cost to you, then you don’t have anything to lose. The risk is all on the resume-writer! So when you are considering investing in a professional resume-writer, take all of these five factors into consideration and make a wise career decision!

Author: Kristopher Marek
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Programmable pressure cooker

Maybe you are entering the work force after graduating from college. Or maybe you just need to find a new job. Regardless of why you are looking for work, a skilled resume writer has the power to help you get your foot in the door.

Why Should I Use a Resume Writer?

Resume writing services are more than just a word processing or proofreading service. A resume writer takes your work experience, education, your strengths and weakness, and ties it all up into one little package. Although people usually think of their resume as a simplistic listing of their education and experience, it is actually more like a sales document. In order for your resume to effectively sell you, it not only has to be well written and visually appealing, but also has to present the goods – you – in the best possible light.

Sound easy? Of course not. Why is it, then, that so many people attempt to write their resumes on their own? You wouldn’t try to write a legal contract when the outcome could impact the rest of your life – you would hire a lawyer. By the same token, you should entrust your resume to a professional resume writer.

What Does a Resume Writer Do?

A resume writer’s goal is to convince potential employers that you are perfect for the job. In order to sell your strengths, a resume writer will:

• Discuss your career focus and gear your resume to your unique goals
• Choose the best format to highlight your strengths
• Write an attention-getting summary or list of objectives
• Use convincing language to maximize your strengths and minimize your weaknesses
• Personalize your resume in a way that shows you off to your best advantage
• Make your resume available in different file formats if needed
• Make changes as necessary

Of course, a resume doesn’t really stand by itself. Your career decisions, where and how you search for jobs, and the quality of your cover letter all impact how your resume is received. In other words, if you are looking for work in the wrong places, or don’t introduce your resume properly in the cover letter, it won’t matter how dazzling your resume is.

Resume writing services often offer a whole package approach to resume writing. To ensure that you land your dream job, your resume writer may offer additional services, such as:

• Career consultation
• Job search consultation
• Cover letter writing
• Resume distribution
• Interview preparation

What Should I Look for in a Resume Writing Service?

A good resume writing service is one that offers you everything necessary to get the attention of potential employers. When shopping for a resume writer, you should look for:

• Convincing literature on their services - Whether you are browsing a website or looking at an informational pamphlet, pay close attention to how convincing the literature is. If they can’t sell themselves, they likely won’t be able to do a good job of selling you.
• A good reputation - Don’t forget to Google! If a resume writing service is worth its salt, you should be able to find good reports from happy customers. Even more importantly, if they aren’t any good you are almost certain to find complaints.
• Experience - Your career is in your resume writer’s hands, so make sure you choose someone with experience. If your career is in a specialized field, you might even want to look for a resume writer who specializes in the field – a writing service that knows the industry will also know what its employers look for in a resume.
• Education - Submitting a resume with errors is embarrassing enough, but when you’ve paid to have it done right it’s downright tragic. Make sure your resume writer is educated and/or certified, so that you can be sure you’re getting your money’s worth.
• Personal attention - You don’t want someone who is going to simply plug your information into a resume writing program – you could do that yourself. In order for your resume to stand out, it needs a unique touch that can only be achieved if your resume writer has taken the time to discuss it with you.

Of course, when you are shopping for a resume writing service, don’t forget to listen to your gut. You will have to work closely with the writer during the creation of your resume, so it is important to feel comfortable with him or her.

Putting Your Career First

Hiring a resume writer ensures that your resume looks professional and gets attention. Although the expense may seem unnecessary, consider that you have already invested thousands of dollars into your education so that you could simply get to this point. When your entire career is at stake, don’t throw it away over a typo or a passive verb! A resume writing service can help you make your dream job a reality.

Author: Jason Kay
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Guest blogger

An overwhelming majority of job seekers make basic mistakes with their resumes mistakes that ensure that they will not get the interviews they deserve. If you feel as though youre sending your resume into a black hole, try this 10 Step Program to diagnose problems and get your resume working for you.

1. Is your rsum the right length?

You may have heard that your resume should fit on one page. This is nonsense. Recruiter or hiring managers dont care if your resume is one or two pages long. But they do care whether it is easy to read and gives key information upfront. Your resume can be one, two, or (occasionally) even three pages. The only rule is that the length should be appropriate for you. If in doubt follow the (very general) rule of thumb that less than 5 years experience probably only requires one page and more than that may need two.

2. Does your resume clearly position you as someone who can meet the needs of the employer?

Think of a resume as an advertisement for a product, only this time the product is you. Just like any other advertisement, positioning is everything. The person who receives your resume will scan it quickly perhaps for no more than 20 seconds to determine whether you can help her company. Your job is to say quickly, clearly and loudly that you can!

Dont just launch into a chronology of your career history. Instead, determine your own positioning by spelling out your message at the start of the resume and giving the reader your version of events upfront. For this reason, you should use the first 1/3 of your resume to create a compelling personal profile which highlights your key strengths in an attractive, easy-to-read format.

3. Does your rsum begin with an objective?

Dont start with an objective. Recruiters and hiring managers dont like them because they focus on the needs of the job seeker rather than the needs of the potential employer. Consider this objective statement:

Seeking a software engineer position with a progressive employer where I can contribute to the development of new technologies and work with bright, committed people.

This may be very honest but it is irrelevant to the reader, who does not care what you want and only cares what you have to offer. Instead of an objective, try using a positioning statement that clearly and concisely explains what you have to offer.

Senior Software Engineer with 10 years experience developing leading-edge technologies.

Now the reader can immediately see your value to the company. (For even greater impact, tailor this statement for each position so that the reader immediately sees a match between his/her needs and your skills.)

4. Does your resume contain specifics?

You must place your achievements in context by providing specifics. For example, dont say something vague like contributed to product design. This tells the employer nothing about your actual contribution. Instead be specific about what you did:

Conducted market analysis for (name of product) to determine design and mechanics. Led changes to original design spec. despite initial developer objections. Received critical acclaim and sold over 4 million units.

See how being specific makes a difference? This level of detail shows the reader the contributions you have made in the past (and therefore the contributions you can be expected to make in the future.)

5. Have you outlined achievements as well as responsibilities?

Dont provide a laundry list of responsibilities without showing what results you achieved. Most employers already know what the main responsibilities of your job were. They want to know what makes you different from all the other applicants. An effective resume summarizes job responsibilities in a few sentences and then provides details of quantifiable achievements.

Focus most of your resume on the results you accomplished, not the regular duties of your job.

6. Are there any typos?

Your resume has to be perfect. Proofread it over and over again. When you are sure its perfect, have other people proof it! If even one word is misspelled the reader will assume that you didnt know how to spell the word (this is bad) or that you didnt care (this is even worse!) Nothing puts the reader off more quickly than misspellings or typos.

7. Is the resume easy to read?

At least 50% of the impact of your resume derives from design. A strong resume design will pull the eye through the document, making it easy to keep reading and will highlight your key strengths clearly. But if your resume is badly laid out, disorganized or hard to read, it will be discarded before the reader knows how qualified you are.

To see examples of how to lay out your resume, go to the library or bookstore and look in the career section. You will find collections of sample resumes. Take time to understand how the page has been laid out and then apply what youve learned to your resume.

8. Have you listed irrelevant information?

Dont list your hobbies unless they directly support your qualifications for the position. Dont detail your marital status or the number of children you have. Dont mention non-professional affiliations such as political or religious volunteer work unless it directly relates to the position you are applying for. Any personal information runs the risk of turning the reader off. However proud you are of personal achievements, you should not run the risk of alienating someone before you even have your foot in the door.

9. Are you too modest?

Dont be uncomfortable about blowing your own trumpet. Too many people play down their achievements. While you should never exaggerate on a resume, you should definitely take credit for the things youve accomplished. Some people feel uncomfortable boasting on paper preferring to explain in an interview. But if your resume doesnt spark interest, you may never get that opportunity, so dont be modest!

10. Have you created an internet-ready version of resume?

If you have to post your resume online, or apply to a job via an online system, you will need to convert your resume to a text-only format. If you dont do this, your resume will be almost impossible to read because most online systems cannot support the type of formatting used in a resume (bold, italics, bullet points, lines etc.)

Summary

When you send your resume out, it must speak articulately for you. You cant explain inconsistencies, clear up confusion or fill in things that are missing. Your resume has to make your sales pitch in a clear and compelling manner within 20 seconds. Invest the time to make it exceptional and you will see an immediate increase in the response rate.

Author: Louise Fletcher
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Pressure cooker