Submitting Your Resume, Part 2

Submitting Your Resume
Resume Tips and Tricks, Part 2

But plain ol' email resumes aren't pretty!
Even so, they are widely accepted and the quickest way to get your qualifications in front of hiring personnel. They also accommodate all of the ways employers and recruiters file and distribute your resume.

If demonstrating better formatting and style is important in your job, follow up your email resume by faxing or snail-mailing the paper resume you formatted in a word processor. But be sure to mention in your email that you will be doing so or it may appear that you're not keeping track of where you send your resume. Alternately, present your paper resume at your first interview. It's a good idea to bring a few extra formatted copies to interviews anyway.

Always include a cover letter where feasible.
Your cover letter is a significant part of your resume. It's standard practice to include one and it makes you look professional to do so. Most employers expect you to include cover letters with your resumes, and follow up after interviews with thank you letters.

Update your resume often.
This one falls under tricks. Recruiters and employers typically jump on new resumes at job banks and overlook older ones. Online resumes age rapidly. Once responses taper off, perhaps it's time to update your resume if you haven't yet landed a job. Doing so at job banks that offer update (edit) options, usually makes it appear as though you've submitted a new resume or at least flags it as updated. If you don't have significant updates, just add, delete or move a word or two.

If responses don't improve and at job banks that don't offer update options, withdraw your resume for a few days, then resubmit it.

Submit your resume confidentially if you're employed.
These days, most U.S. corporations recruit via the Internet. So, chances are good that your current employer will see your online resume. If a layoff occurs, guess who's head might be first on the chopping block?

Many job banks offer privacy options to help you keep your online resume confidential. For example, they may display a code instead of your name, or allow you to deny access to specific companies and recruiters. Look for and use these options.

For job banks that don't offer such options, it might be better if you don't submit your resume, but rather just monitor their job opportunities. Then, send your resume straight to the advertising employers and recruiters. Job banks that offer job notification by email make monitoring easy, and lots of job banks offer it.

More about resume confidentiality and privacy click Submitting Your Resume, Part 3