Make Your Resume Stand Out

By Mari Bahovitz

The key to landing any internship or job is having a presentable resume. Having one that is well put together makes you stand out as a potential prospect.

As young advertising hopefuls, we have a unique opportunity when it comes to resume design. Many jobs only want that plain Jane resume, but for an advertising professional, creativity can go a long way. In our industry, landing a perfect job has a lot to do with a person’s personality. Our personality needs to be shown directly on our resumes.

When designing your resume here are some tips you should remember:

1. Be CREATIVE. Make sure your resume is a reflection of your personality so that the company gets a better understanding of who you are.
2. Stand out. Having bold colors, cute designs, or a personal logo is a sure way to grab an employer’s attention. When your resume is in a large stack of resumes it is important that something about it grabs the employers eye over the others.
3. Add a picture to your resume. This way when employers are looking at your qualifications and skills, they have a face to put with the name. Make sure this photo is a professional one. One that you could also place on your LinkedIn.
4. Be short and to the point. While you may have a lot of valuable experience, find a way to condense it in a simple matter that can be easily read by potential employers. Do your best to keep your resume to one page. Employers do not have the time, or care enough to flip through a bunch of pages.
5. Partner up. If you are not the most graphically gifted then find a friend, or classmate that may be willing to help you create a visually appealing resume.

Two great examples of creative resumes:

An excellent advertising resume was created by Matthew Hirsch. He found a way to used his last name, and personality to his advantage. Rather than having an old boring resume, he graphically created a resume that looked like a chocolate bar. On the front it, he displayed his last name, and on the back, he placed his normal resume content were the “ingredients” typically would go.

Another instance, a man was told “no” multiple times because the company did not have the time to look over his resume, or were looking to hire. His career at that moment was a pizza delivery guy where he often brought pizza to that office regularly. One evening after he had been rejected multiple times, the man stapled his resume to the inside of the pizza box. This bold mechanism really grasped the company’s attention and stood out from their other resumes.

The point is, the more creative you are with your resume the better. Employers see a number of resumes every day. Make sure yours is one that jumps out and grabs their attention! If you ever need help developing a resume, you should reach out to some of the professors that teach in the advertising program.