Why do we keep talking about keywords?
Why do we keep talking about keywords?
Every day we Google information. You might use “pet food near me” or “pet food cats” and these are your search terms. When employers search for candidates, they also use search terms to find what (or who) they need in Google, social media or their database (applicant tracking systems, aka “ATS”).
What search terms do employers use? The words they use are job titles, education or specific certification, location, technical skills, experience, or software expertise. Using these words in your resume will determine how often you come up as a top candidate when employers search. This is the reason we call them KEY-words. In addition, the frequency, variation and placement of those keywords determine how well ranked you are in search results.
Keywords are specific to each job application, you must take the time to review each job description and identify the language used by each employer. When reviewing a job description, identify the job title then pay special attention to industry and profession related words, then move to the job requirements keywords. Identify at least 12 keywords or key phrases to use in your resume.
What is a key phrase? This is a combination of words that appear adjacent to each other and make the desired skill more specific. Examples are: “crisis communications”, “regulatory reporting”, “customer retention innovations”, “shipping and receiving operation”.
An employer searching for a Budget Assistant might describe the job responsibility as:
· Review monthly expense statements, monitors monthly expenditures, and gathers supporting documentation for supervisor review and approval.
The underlined terms are key phrases that can be used in a resume.
In addition, you want to use the most common versions of important key phrases so check job descriptions and make a list of keywords, key phrases, acronyms, and industry jargon that your target employers are using and are specific to the job you are looking for. For example, use the full word and the acronym to cover searches on either term such as “condition-based maintenance (CBM)”.
Incorporate those keywords and key phrases throughout your resume. A teacher’s resume might use the keyword “classroom management” in the skills section and also in the experience section as a bullet “strengthened classroom management plan to increase students’ focus and motivation”.
A job search is most effective when you address the needs of the employer and respond to them in your resume. Your chances to being found among other candidates relies in the language you use and how you describe your qualifications and expertise in your resume.
Always feel free to reach out to me with any questions here.
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