We Talked to 38 Recruiters and Here Is How They Shortlist Applicants.

1. Make your resume ATS-friendly

According to our survey, 82% of recruiters said they rely heavily on ATS to shortlist candidates. This number alone shows the importance of having an ATS-compatible resume. Certain things like an incompatible format, a lack of basic information, multi-row tables, and a multi-column layout can confuse ATS and block the resume from getting shortlisted.

“The most important thing is to recognize that resumes are being parsed by ATS. Almost no one is going and inputting the data on their own.” – Theresa Torseth, Executive Search at Human Securities, Inc.

If you use one resume for all job postings, some ATSs can drop your resume for a lack of keywords. Customizing your resume to include keywords based on job postings can increase your chances significantly.

Having fancy fonts and complex templates can not only confuse ATSs but can also look jarring, which isn’t suitable for a first impression. Recruiters prefer simple resumes because they are easier to skim through.

Use standard fonts like Calibri and Arial. If you use a unique font, it can be illegible depending on which platform the reader is using.

Want to learn more about resume do’s and don’ts? Grab my free resume cheat sheet here.

“Make the resumes as simple as possible. No pictures and fancy fonts or graphics. All these resumes when get scanned, a simple resume is easier to get scanned into the system.” – Mike Sweeny, MAS Recruiting.

There are three things that you can do to make your resume ATS-compatible:

1. Use Relevant Keywords
2. Use a Related Job Title
3. Use ATS-compatible Resume Templates
4. Label Sections Correctly

This article has more details on each of these points.

2. Highlight and quantify your accomplishments

Instead of talking about your responsibilities, it’s much better to show accomplishments on your resume. Accomplishments prove that you are a result-driven candidate who goes beyond day-to-day job duties to improve processes and provide solutions to business challenges.

Showcasing your skills and backing them by quantifiable accomplishments, such as “Increased sales by revamping sales pitch script” is much more powerful than saying, “excellent communication skills.” Proving that you have soft skills instead of just listing them helps engage employers with pressing business needs and puts you ahead of your competition.

Focus on your accomplishments that address the same challenges that the desired job requires you to resolve.

“My personal view – customize your resume to the opportunity – make assumptions about accomplishments to fit the opening.” – Al Giesen, Stone Murphy, Inc.

Not sure how your work translates into accomplishments? This article has brainstorming questions that you can ask yourself to create powerful accomplishments for your resume.

3. Position your selling points strategically

Putting your top-selling points in the visual center of your resume will convince the recruiter to dig deep into your professional experience.

The visual center is the point of the resume where recruiters focus most of their attention. It’s the top third of the first page of your resume. Given that recruiters only spend six seconds skimming resumes, it’s critical that the first impression of your resume should be engaging and attractive.

Recruiters should also be able to tell the kind of role you are looking for and how your experience aligns with that role.

“I like to see a professional summary, three or four lines, at the top.” – Richard McKnight, The McKnight Group

This article breaks down how to ensure your visual center is as powerful as possible.

4. Network

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 80% of all jobs are filled before the job board phase. Moreover, only 7% of job seekers in the United States are referred; 93% are not, which is why it is important to focus on networking as well.

Networking allows you to leverage your connections to land a job. It is also beneficial for recruiters to shortlist candidates out of their network because it mitigates the risk of making bad hiring decisions and increases the retention rate.

“Clients are very specific in what they want and we are very tuned into providing those ‘walk on water’ candidates using our network and database.” – Michael Cooper, Kincannon & Reed

If you want to learn how to network for the sake of getting more interviews, we recently made our premium course free. Access it here.

5. Optimize your LinkedIn profile

LinkedIn hosts more than 575 million professional profiles. Our survey shows that recruiters rely heavily on the professional social networking website to acquire talent, even when candidates reach out using their resume.

Recruiters corroborate the information on resume with the LinkedIn profile. They also make their shortlisting decisions based on the information available on the profile.

“LinkedIn is to someone searching for a new position, just like an automobile is for someone who wants to get somewhere. The biggest mistake candidates make is by thinking that LinkedIn is not secure enough for you to profile yourself.” – Peter Lamb, Ascent Partners, LLC

Having a LinkedIn profile that speaks to recruiters and compels them to contact you is more important than ever. You won’t be able to take advantage of LinkedIn’s algorithms if you don’t optimize your profile. Your LinkedIn profile must highlight your strengths and accomplishments. If you are not sure how to optimize your LinkedIn profile, check out this article.

6. Use cover letters

A study on employer preferences suggested that 56% of employers want applicants to send cover letters. Another study found that 49% of HR managers consider a cover letter to be the second-best thing to give a resume a boost (number one being customizing the resume). And here’s the most important number of them all: 53% of employers think that a resume alone is not enough to shortlist candidates.

As the number of applications goes down throughout the screening process, there’s increasing focus on each candidate. By not writing a cover letter, you will rob yourself of the opportunity to express your personality, why you’re applying for the job, what attracts you to the specific company, etc. This is why a cover letter is a must-have — it’s important to show your passion for these fields.

“A lot of people skip out the cover letters now, one it makes you stand out since not everyone will be using it and it shows that you have taken out the time to consider how you might be a great fit to the company, two it lets you show your personality and fit with the company’s culture.” – Theresa Torseth

You can use our cover letter cheat sheet to increase your interview rate significantly.

7. Avoid common mistakes

Our survey shows that these are the three most common mistakes that candidates make:

1. Mistakes related to grammar and spelling are major red flags according to recruiters. Get someone else to review your resume to catch any unwanted typos or grammatical mistakes.
2. Another common mistake is putting your photo on your resume. According to several anti-discrimination laws in the United States, employers cannot discriminate based on factors like race, gender, religion, national origin, and age. If you put a photo on your resume, it can reveal some of these details. In some firms, recruiters aren’t even allowed to look at such a resume because it opens the possibility of a discrimination lawsuit upon later rejection.
3. It may also be tempting to lie on your resume. But it’s never a good idea to go down this path. Companies do comprehensive background checks to verify the information provided on the resume.

• 5 Ways To Figure Out A Company’s Culture
• Why Are You Not Hearing Back from HR — A Seasoned Recruiter Spills the Beans

Writing your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn can be an overwhelming process. If you are unsure if your accomplishments are being highlighted accordingly, upload your materials for a free review by an ATS expert.

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