CV Writing Advice: Help CV Writing & Advice CV Writing. Better Resumes 

CV Writing Advice: Help CV Writing and Guide for Writing Better Resumes - Creating a good personal marketing document.

With CVs being identified as the single most important aspect of searching for jobs
and securing job interviews, it is important to create an effective personal marketing document. As experienced CV writers, we see common CV mistakes, missing information and poorly written CVs. Greater care and attention can easily eliminate many CV writing issues, so improving interview selection prospects.

Winning CV has identified key elements for writing a good CV. These relate to ensuring a high attention to detail, a useful checklist and dealing with gaps in employment. Only effective CVs win interviews, so getting the basics right using established CV writing principles is important. It is all about creating the right impression and standing out
from other candidates. Winning CV also offers customised CV writing services... 

Be smart, save time = let the professionals write your CV.  Remove the uncertainty of writing a CV = better quality! Target career goals and job roles = a focused approach.  Boost job search and career = create the right impression. Secure job interviews = a worthwhile return on investment!

Affordable CV writing services. Great CV packages - FREE EXTRAS!!  More Info FREE Covering Letters - targeted and speculative letters (other companies charge!). FREE CV-2-Interview Report - help with job interview preparation (focus & save time!) FREE Career Mentoring Tips - help with future career planning (some useful advice).

CV Checklist: Attention To Detail and Customising CVs to Job Roles. Making a more effective CV and a CV more marketable. 

CV Writing  |  Tailor CVs To Job Descriptions

Job advertisements and job descriptions give clear clues on what to include in a CV.
Look at the wording, skills and requirements to help customise a CV to the job role.

CV Achievements  |  CV - Evidence Of Career Progression

Show a record of achievement (progression ) wherever possible and evidence of suitability throughout the CV. A proven (growing) track record will show obvious benefits of employing
you over others. This is an important way of differentiating candidates from one another.

Advice CV Writing: Other Good CV Tips. Candidates must be selective about what to include or omit basic information.  

Check applications:

Candidates often fail to eliminate spelling and grammatical errors. A lack of attention to detail creates a poor impression and often leads to rejection. Take time to read through the CV,
covering letter and job application to eliminate mistakes. Sometimes it is best to get a recruiter or a friend to read through an application, as mistakes and omissions are not always easy to spot. 

A well-presented and articulated CV:

A well-presented and articulated CV is more likely to create a good impression. Ensure sentences are concise, structured correctly and make a sensible point. The personal profile is important as it provides an effective candidate summary and will persuade the recruiter to read on further.

Know your limitations: 

Candidates must be realistic when applying for jobs. Only apply for jobs you can reasonably get or work towards. Securing a job interview is much more likely if a well-targeted and positioned CV is received. An unsuitable, irrelevant or poorly positioned job application will be disgarded.   

Do your research: 

Ensure a CV and job application is addressed to the relevant person, job title and department. A CV received that has no specific address details not only irritates recruiters but it may never get there! Double-check all these details - just in case!

Research the job and company: 

Finding a job is very much a two-way process. First of all, be sure it is what you really want and the company is an employer you want to work for. Company websites are often a wealth of information - they also give details of application processes, who to apply to and addresses.

Contact number: 

Candidates frequently include two contact telephone numbers. It is best to simplify this to just one number. Mobile phones are best, particularly as people tend to take them everywhere. Landlines are less effective, as people are not so easily contactable or at home during the day.

Be contactable: 

Candidates will miss invites for job interview if they are not easily contactable. Never miss a call by having a mobile phone available and use voicemail for taking messages. Return calls promptly and always have a pen and paper handy to take notes when speaking to people on the phone. Check emails frequently. More and more people are configuring their emails via mobile phones - this maybe an option to consider if away from your computer for a significant amount of time. 

Check employer address details: 

After taking time to complete a job application, the very last thing a candidate would want is for a CV never to reach the intended person or company. An incorrect postal or email address means the application will never reach its destination. No interview will result! 

Target your CV: 

Carefully targeting job applications to specific job roles, careers or advertisements gives added credibility and greater chances of success. Look at the wording, terminology and job requirements in order to 'mirror' what the recruiter wants in your CV. 

Salary details and expectations: 

Wherever possible, try to avoid discussing salary expectations (particularly before reaching the
job interview stage). Sometimes candidates can rule themselves out because of unrealistic
salary expectations. Divulging salary expectations can also reduce a candidates bargaining position because the employer will know what people are looking for and have the upper
hand in any subsequent negotiations. Be realistic and try to include a salary band to
give some room for negotiation at a later point. 

Exclude references from a CV: 

References are only requested once a candidate has been successful at job interview and received a formal job offer. So, why include them in a CV? References are a waste of valuable space in a CV, whilst it is not necessary to divulge third party information with every application.  

Avoid negativity: 

Recruiters frequently receive CVs containing negative information or things that a candidate feels important and dwells upon. Candidates are sometimes too honest and divulge personal circumstances that are not relevant to finding a job. It is always important to convey
information in a positive sense and consider what is relevant. 

Reasons for leaving: 

Unless it is something obvious like redundancy, avoid mentioning reasons for leaving an employer. This should be done sensitively and face to face at interview. Remember, employers will check references so it is important to be honest. 

Avoid unexplained gaps in unemployment: 

Employers scrutinise CVs and will look for gaps in employment. Too many unexplained gaps or frequent changes in job roles, often indicates an 'employability' issue. Employers look for an established career record, long stable service with organisations (loyalty) and consistency.
Tweak the CV to include years of employment (rather than specific dates), whilst gaps in employment can be used positively. For instance, gaps could be due to training, study
or even travel, a career break or to bring up a family, etc. 

Eliminate irrelevant information: 

Every aspect mentioned in a CV must make a point or add value. Check the rationale for including information and its relevance. Getting someone else to read a CV can help with refinements and remove (alter) certain points. Also, employers cannot discriminate on age, nationality, marital status, diability, height, weight or political persuasion. Avoid mentioning these aspects unless absolutely necessary. Sometimes it may help by including things like nationality - for instance, if an employer is looking for a French speaker then it would be wise to include French as nationality (providing the CV is well-written in English!). 

Lacking relevant work experience or qualifications: 

For a lack of relevant work experience, it is necessary to substitute this for skills, training and qualifications to balance everything out. Equally, relevant work experience and skills can offset a lack of formal qualifications. A career change CV can be used, if seeking a new career path and possessing little or no work experience. A strong transferable skills set, excellent personal qualities and good strengths as well as strong motivations and clear career objectives are required to make a career change sound credible. A targeted or functional CV will be more applicable here.