As passionate marketers, we’re consistently astounded by how little oomph people’s personal marketing carries. Professionals, workers, entrepreneurs everywhere are guilty of underleveraging their resumes, bios, LinkedIn profiles, underselling their achievements, and getting less than what they deserve.
Let’s take resumes. Everyone knows how to write one…just list what you do/did. Right? Uh…not exactly.
As resume copywriters, we know. The work involves framing each task with crisp context, so that even a ten-year-old can understand your impact. There’s a fair bit of translation involved: you need to think about the value delivered—to your boss, to fellow employees, and to customers. Then you need to tell that story in an objective way: using metrics (percentages, dollar amounts), well-chosen adjectives, and relentless consideration for the reader, the reader, the reader.
For example, one MarketSmiths client created an access platform for a global investment bank. Impressive stuff! Yet the corresponding resume bullet failed to showcase the platform’s true value. We played this out, calculating the increase to trading revenues (30%) and to client retention (a near-perfect 98%). Does this wield heft? You bet.
Another client had an early start as an intern for a respected music label. We contrasted his achievements with his meager job title, and helped him land the job he wanted.
There’s a lot of blog-lit out there about resume rules: what length to shoot for, what formatting to use, what’s a dealbreaker. However, standing out isn’t about following convention. It’s about doing the hard work of contextualizing.
Take a moment to dwell in the pleasure of your past achievements, then start typing. Or simply call us.
Stay tuned next week for Part II: how to turn your bio and LinkedIn profile into marketing gold.
