05 Mar Submitting Your Resume Online Isn’t Enough to Get You an Interview
3 Additional Things You Should Do to Ensure Your Resume Gets Noticed
A friend of mine emailed me this week for some career advice.
Julia had been told by recruiters her resume and LinkedIn profile looked great. However, she was only getting rejections from her applications.
I had a simple question for her, “Are you submitting your resume online? Or are you sending them to a human?”
In my experience, candidates who submit their resume online rarely hear from companies.
I am a big believer that submitting your resume online should only be your back up plan. You should ALWAYS send it to a human first and foremost.
Before we get too far, what do I mean by submitting your resume online? I’m referring to when you upload your resume to a job board, type in your information into an online form, submit your resume to a company career portal, or even click “Apply” on LinkedIn. I use the term submitting your resume online to represent when you are following instructions for an impersonal procedural submission of your resume rather than sending it directly to a known individual.
What is Wrong with Submitting Your Resume Online?
The problem with submitting your resume online is it is highly unlikely it will be reviewed by an actual human. And highly likely it will be reviewed by a computer programmed to simply identify certain keywords. And what happens if you don’t have the right keywords on your resume? You’ll be passed right on by even if you are THE perfect candidate.
Which is likely what is happening with my friend Julia.
What to Do in Addition to Submitting Your Resume Online
Rather than submit your resume online, I recommend you do the following 3 things:
1. Send Your Resume to a Person Within the Company
Find someone in the company, anyone in the company, you can forward your email to. Best, of course, is the hiring manager. Next best is someone in Recruiting, HR, or the department for which you are applying. If you strike out with these options, then send it to anyone in the company you have a remote connection with and ask them to forward your resume to the hiring manager. LinkedIn is great to help with identifying people within the company. Don’t be shy to reach out to friends letting them know you are a perfect fit for a role at ACME Company and ask if anyone has a contact there you can send your resume to.
2. Send Your Resume to a Contact of the Hiring Manager
Using LinkedIn and/or your personal network, find someone who knows the Hiring Manager or an employee within the department for which you are applying. Ask that person to forward your resume to the hiring manager of the company you are interested in. You do not need to ask the person to put in a good word for you. The simple act of submitting your resume is already a bit of a recommendation, as most people won’t risk their reputation with a friend/contact for someone they believe cannot perform the job. And if they believe you are possibly a good candidate, they may add some words of praise in their message when they forward your information without you asking.
3. Always Include a Cover Letter
Never ask a person to forward your information with just your resume attached. Always position your request within a well-crafted cover letter. Take the time to write a good cover letter that includes your qualifications for the role (based upon the job description), your accomplishments at other companies that align with the position, and why you believe you are the perfect candidate. Then add an opening paragraph to the cover letter asking the recipient how you would appreciate them forwarding your information to [Name of Person They Know]. Include your cover letter in the body of the email, not a stand-alone document or extra page in your resume. This way, the person can easily hit “Forward” and send your cover letter with the resume attached to their contact, AND, add a little personal note if they’d like. The less you ask of a person, and the easier you make for them to fulfill your request, the more likely they will do it.
If you follow steps 1-3, then there is no harm in also submitting your resume online. Sometimes, it does work. I highly recommend, however, not solely relying on the online resume submission process to successfully book you a boatload of interviews. Instead, work on getting your resume to a human who will take a little more time to review your qualifications to determine you are someone they simply must interview!
If you try this and you have success (or even if you don’t), let me know about it! And for more information on writing a good cover letter, check out my blog post “Why You Need a Cover Letter, Even if You Are Told You Don’t.”