Perfecting your Marketing Resume for the Hiring Surge in January

Let’s land your dream marketing job! Every January, hiring teams have a fresh budget to work with and are ready to make additions to their teams. For those who are on the job hunt, this is a great time to throw yourself into the search head first and land a full-time position. 

In this week's blog, the team at Lyv Marketing will give you some tips & tricks on how to make the most of this year’s hiring surge and optimize your resume.

Important Elements of a Marketing Resume

1. Contact Information

The first thing that an employer sees on your resume is your contact information. First and foremost, your name should be at the top of your resume in bold, easy-to-read lettering. Under your name should be the rest of your contact information. This includes your…

• Phone number

• Professional email address

• LinkedIn profile link

• Portfolio or professional website (if applicable)

2. Work Experience

Arguably the most important piece of your resume is next, your previous/current work experience. This tells hiring managers what you have done in the past and what you are doing now. It is important to include a concise description of the work/projects you have completed during your career. It is also SMART to include measurables in this section. For example, providing percentages or growth margins is a great way to provide a clear, measurable example of what you have accomplished at your previous jobs. 

3. Marketing Skills and Program Knowledge

A career in the marketing industry requires knowledge in different skills and digital softwares. Some of these skills include…

• Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

• Social media management

• Google/Meta ads

• Email marketing

Along with proficiency in these skills, it is also important to have used common marketing programs such as…

• Hootsuite

• Hubspot

• Mailchimp

All of this information should be included on your resume, as it gives the hiring team a clear view into what you know.

Best Resume Formats for Marketers

The most effective resume format for most marketers is reverse chronological. This format lists your work experience with your current or most recent position at the top to your oldest position at the bottom. This format clearly shows the growth that you’ve had throughout your career along with any title changes you have had over the years. Since your most recent position is usually the most important, this format places that experience at the top of the page in the direct eyeline of the hiring team. This format also does a great job of showcasing all of your relevant experience in a clear, organized manner.

Keywords and ATS Optimization

ATS (application tracking system) software is used throughout the entire industry. They streamline the recruitment and hiring processes and help recruiters and hiring teams manage job applications. Often, ATS systems sort through applications before a team member even does a first look-through of them. Because of this, it is important to make sure that your resume is optimized to make it through these screening systems and get in front of the hiring team. One of the best ways to do this is by using job-specific keywords. 

Sometimes, this means slightly altering your resume for each job application. In each job description that you find, there will be some keywords in the qualifications section. Use these keywords in the descriptions of your experience on your resume. Additionally, it is important to include these keywords naturally in the descriptions, not just in a long list. Sometimes, the ATS system is advanced enough to know when these words are not used organically, which can lead to a disqualified resume.

Storytelling and Personality

The last, but sometimes most important, piece of a good marketing resume, is the storytelling and personality shown throughout. Marketing is a very person-facing career path. This means that hiring teams are often looking for people who have personality and will be able to sell their product or service effectively. This aspect of resume building often comes naturally to those who are familiar with social media marketing and brand development.

After all, you have experience creating a brand’s voice and conveying its values in a way that feels natural to followers. This is a great skill to put to work when crafting the best marketing resume that you can. Providing a full picture on who you are as well as what you do in an interesting way is a great way to catch the attention of recruiters and hiring managers.

Takeaway: Clean Up your Resume in Anticipation for January

Crafting the perfect resume doesn’t have to be intimidating! At Lyv Marketing, we want to help you create the best resume you can and land your dream job. By following the tips and tricks in this blog, you should have an amazing marketing resume in no time.