How to Tailor Your Resume to a Job Description: The 2024 Guide

What is Resume Tailoring

Job seekers should understand that writing a resume is more than just listing experiences – it’s about matching their professional story to the job they want. Tailoring your resume turns it into a personalized marketing tool that shows why you’re the best fit for that job.

What does it mean to Tailor Your Resume?

Tailoring your resume means customizing it to the job description you’re applying for. Instead of using a generic resume, you adjust it to highlight the experiences and skills that are most relevant by crafting a tailored resume job description. This means:

• Analyze the Job Description: Identify the key responsibilities and qualifications.
• Highlight Relevant Experience: Emphasize the roles and accomplishments that match the job.
• Use Keywords: Add the job posting language to get past the ATS and grab the hiring manager’s attention.
• Show Cultural Fit: Reflect the company values and culture to show you’re a good fit.

Tailoring your resume makes it an accurate representation of your qualifications for the specific job.

Why Tailoring Your Resume Matters

The job market is competitive and employers receive hundreds of applications for each role. Knowing how to tailor your resume gives you an edge. Here’s why it’s important:

• More ATS Visibility: Many companies use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to filter resumes. Tailoring your resume with keywords gets you past ATS filters.
• Increased Interview Chances: A focused resume makes it easy for hiring managers to see how your background fits the job.
• Shows You Understand the Role: Customizing your resume shows you get the job and the company’s needs. Understanding and incorporating the day-to-day responsibilities associated with specific roles can enhance the overall presentation of your resume.
• Highlights Your Skills: By focusing on relevant experiences and skills, your resume makes a stronger case for you.
• Meets Employer Needs: Tailoring lets you address the specific requirements of the role, you’re the solution to the company’s problems.
• Personal Branding: A customized resume aligns your personal brand with the employer’s goals, a cohesive and compelling story, increasing your chances of landing your dream job.

Tailor Your Resume to the Job in 6 Steps

Tailoring your resume to each job doesn’t have to be hard. By following a simple and structured approach you can match your skills and experience to what employers are looking for. Here are 6 easy steps to help you create a customized resume that gets past the ATS and grabs the hiring manager’s attention and gets you that interview.

Step 1: Analyze the Job

A tailored resume starts with analyzing the job description. Here’s how to do it:

• Job Responsibilities: Identify the daily tasks and responsibilities expected in the role and how they match your experience. Clearly articulate your job responsibilities alongside measurable accomplishments to demonstrate your qualifications and impact in previous positions.
• Skills and Qualifications: What are the must-have skills and make sure they’re highlighted in your resume.
• Preferred Attributes: If there are nice to have but not required skills, include them if applicable.
• Company Tone: Mirror the company’s culture and values in your resume language.
• Keywords: Use keywords from the job description to get past the ATS filters.
• Experience Level: Tailor your resume to the required experience level.

Step 2: Match Your Skills and Experience

Next match your skills and experience to the job requirements:

• Self-Assessment: List your skills and compare to the job description.
• Align Your Experiences: Highlight past roles that match the responsibilities of the new role.
• Achievements: Focus on measurable achievements that show your impact.
• Transferable Skills: If you’re changing industries, highlight skills that apply across industries.
• Relevance: Focus on the experiences that matter most for the role.
• Industry Terms: Use the job posting’s jargon to show your expertise.

Step 3: Customize Your Professional Summary

Your professional summary is the opening statement. Make it targeted:

• Targeted Introduction: Start with your job title, years of experience and key skills.
• Keywords: Use the job description’s keywords to get past the ATS.
• Achievements: Include one or two relevant accomplishments.
• Unique Value: What makes you different?
• Keep it Short: 3-5 sentences to make a big impact.
• Company Culture: Subtly mirror the company’s values.

Example: “Dynamic Marketing Manager with 8 years of experience in digital marketing and content strategy. Proven track record of increasing website traffic by 40% and driving lead generation. Adept at data analytics and aligning marketing efforts with business goals.”

Step 4: Optimize Your Work Experience

The work experience section is where you prove your credentials to the hiring manager:

• Action Verbs: Start each bullet point with strong action verbs like “developed,” “led” or “implemented.”
• Achievements: Focus on measurable results, not just responsibilities.
• Job Requirements: Rephrase past job duties to match the job description and meet the specific needs outlined by the hiring manager.
• Promotions: Highlight career progression.
• Industry Terms: Use the job posting’s jargon.
• Balance: Provide enough detail without overwhelming the reader.
• Projects: Mention relevant projects that match the new role.
• Gaps: If you’re changing industries, highlight transferable skills.

Example:
Marketing Manager | XYZ Corp | 2018-Present

• Led 5 person team, increased website traffic by 40% and lead gen by 25%.
• Implemented SEO, moved search rankings from page 5 to page 1.
• Managed $200K budget, optimized marketing spend for ROI.

Step 5: Add Keywords Strategically

Adding the right keywords is key to getting past applicant tracking systems:

• Keywords: Review the job description and highlight the key terms.
• Key Terms: Prioritize the most relevant and frequently used keywords.
• Natural Fit: Don’t keyword stuff, make sure they fit in your content.
• Variations: Use synonyms and variations of key terms to increase chances.
• Technical Skills: Make technical skills easy to see.
• Job Titles: If your job title doesn’t match, add in parentheses.
• Don’t Overdo It: Keep it readable while adding keywords.

Step 6: Customize Your Education and Certifications

Make sure your education section matches the job requirements:

• Relevant Degrees: Make sure the degree and major match the job description.
• Relevant Coursework: If applicable, include coursework or projects that match the job.
• Certifications: List relevant certifications prominently.
• Professional Development: Mention any ongoing courses, education or training.
• Job Requirements: Focus on what’s most relevant.
• Keep it Brief: Stick to what’s needed for the job.

Example:
Master of Science in Data Analytics | University of ABC Graduated: 2022 Relevant Coursework: Predictive Modeling, Advanced Statistical Methods

Common Resume Tailoring Mistakes to Avoid

Even when you tailor your resume, you can still make mistakes. Here’s what to watch out for:

1. Too Much Irrelevant Info: Focus on what’s relevant to the job.
2. Too Generic: Use specific examples and numbers.
3. Ignoring Keywords: Always include job-specific keywords.
4. Not Customizing Your Summary: Tailor your professional summary for each job.
5. Poor Formatting: Keep it readable with headings and bullet points.
6. Not Highlighting Transferable Skills: Emphasize how your skills apply across industries.
7. Outdated Skills: Keep your skills section current.
8. Ignoring Soft Skills: Mention communication and teamwork.
9. One-Size-Fits-All Resume: Tailor your resume for each role.
10. Not Proofreading: Errors in your resume can cost you.

By avoiding these mistakes, you’ll be proud of your tailored resume.

Tips for Finding Relevant Keywords in a Job Posting

Finding relevant keywords in a job posting is crucial to tailoring your resume to the specific job description. By focusing on keyword matching, you can ensure your resume aligns with the job description, increasing your chances of passing applicant tracking systems and catching the hiring manager’s attention. Follow these steps to identify key phrases and skills, :

Read the Job Posting Carefully

Start by thoroughly reading the job posting. Highlight the key phrases and skills mentioned throughout the description. Pay special attention to the job title, responsibilities, and required qualifications sections.

Identify Key Phrases and Skills

Look for keywords related to the job title, industry, and specific skills required. These might include technical skills, software proficiency, or industry-specific terminology.

• Job-Specific Keywords: These are terms directly related to the job title and industry. For example, if you’re applying for a marketing role, keywords might include “SEO,” “content strategy,” and “digital marketing.”
• Soft Skills: Employers often look for soft skills like communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. These skills are crucial for almost any role and should be highlighted in your resume.
• Technical Skills: Identify technical skills required for the job, such as programming languages, software proficiency, and specific tools. Make sure these are prominently featured in your resume.
• Action Verbs: Use strong action verbs like “managed,” “created,” “developed,” and “improved” to describe your achievements and responsibilities. These verbs make your resume more dynamic and impactful.

Make a List of Keywords

Compile a list of the keywords and phrases you’ve identified. Incorporate these strategically into your resume, especially in your professional summary, skills section, and work experience

Tools and Resources to Tailor Your Resume

Using resume tailoring tools like careerpilot.ai’s keyword matching tool can help you identify the most relevant skills and keywords. This tool analyzes the job description, recommends the key terms you should include in your resume and automatically incorporates them strategically across your resume.

Advanced Resume Tailoring Tips

Now that you’ve got the basics of resume customization down, it’s time to take it to the next level. These advanced tips will help you go beyond just matching qualifications and have your resume speak to the job requirements, the company culture and the broader expectations.

Align with Company Culture and Values

Tailoring your resume isn’t just about skills and experiences – it’s also about showing you’re a great cultural fit for the company. Many companies highlight their core values in job postings or on their website and aligning with these can make your resume stand out.

• Research the Company: Take time to understand the company’s mission, values and culture. Look at their website, read recent press releases or follow their social media channels to get a sense of their priorities and working environment.
• Highlight Shared Values: If a company values innovation, highlight times when you came up with creative solutions. If teamwork is emphasized, mention your work in cross-functional teams and the success you achieved.
• Mirror Their Language: If the company uses specific words to describe their values (e.g. “collaboration”, “agility”) use those words in your resume. This not only helps with Applicant Tracking Systems but also shows you’re aware of their culture.

Example: If you’re applying to a company that values sustainability you might include a line like, “Led a green initiative that reduced office energy usage by 15%” in your work experience.

Use LinkedIn for Consistency

Your LinkedIn profile is an extension of your resume and is often the first place recruiters and hiring managers look after reviewing your application. Consistency between your resume and LinkedIn profile is key to building credibility.

• Be Consistent: Your job titles, dates of employment and key achievements should match across both platforms. Inconsistencies will raise red flags.
• Expand Where Needed: LinkedIn gives you more space to elaborate on your experiences. While your resume may need to be concise, LinkedIn allows you to include more detail such as project highlights, certifications and skills endorsements.
• Use LinkedIn Keywords: LinkedIn’s algorithm favors profiles with relevant keywords. Make sure your LinkedIn profile includes the same keywords you’ve used in your resume to increase your chances of being found in recruiter searches.
  
  

Example: If your resume says “Increased sales by 25% through targeted marketing” your LinkedIn profile should reflect that same achievement but can expand on it by adding details such as, “Led a digital campaign that targeted new demographics, resulting in 25% sales growth in Q3”.

Incorporate Soft Skills

While technical skills are often the main focus, soft skills like communication, leadership and problem solving are highly valued in most industries. Incorporate soft skills effectively into your resume, especially when you can demonstrate them through examples rather than just listing them.

• Show, Don’t Tell: Instead of listing “communication skills” or “teamwork” in a skills section, weave these soft skills into your achievements and responsibilities.
• Use Action-Oriented Language: Highlight how your soft skills contributed to a specific outcome. For example instead of “Good team player” say “Worked with cross-functional teams to streamline processes, reducing project timelines by 10%”
• Focus on Problem Solving: Employers value candidates who can solve problems. If you used critical thinking to overcome challenges or improve processes make sure to include those examples in your resume.
  
  

Example: “Fixed customer service issues by creating a streamlined feedback process, resulting in 20% increase in customer satisfaction”.

Final Tips to Get Your Resume Tailored

Here are some final tips to keep in mind on how to tailor your resume to a job description:

• Use a Clear and Concise Format: Ensure your resume is easy to read with a clean format, clear headings, and bullet points. This makes it easier for hiring managers to quickly find the information they need.
• Use Keywords Strategically: Incorporate relevant keywords throughout your resume, especially in your professional summary, skills section, and work experience. This helps your resume pass applicant tracking system filters and shows you’re a good match for this job application.
• Quantify Your Achievements: Use numbers and statistics to quantify your achievements and responsibilities. For example, “Increased sales by 30%” is more impactful than “Increased sales.”
• Tailor Your Resume to the Company Culture: Research the company’s culture and values. Tailor your resume to show how you align with them. This can make you a more attractive candidate to hiring managers.

Stay Up-to-Date with Job Descriptions and Job Market Trends

To stay up-to-date with job descriptions and job market trends, follow these tips:

• Follow Industry Leaders and Job Market Experts: Use social media and LinkedIn to follow industry leaders and job market experts. They often share valuable insights and updates about the job market.
• Read Job Market Reports and Industry Publications: Stay informed about the latest trends and job descriptions by reading job market reports and industry publications. This helps you understand what skills and experiences are currently in demand.
• Attend Job Fairs and Networking Events: These events are great opportunities to learn about new job opportunities and required skills. They also provide a chance to network with professionals in your field.
• Use Online Resources: Job boards and career websites are excellent resources for staying informed about job descriptions and required skills. Regularly check these sites to keep your resume relevant and competitive.
  
  

By following these tips, you can stay up-to-date with job descriptions and job market trends, ensuring your resume remains tailored and effective in your job search.

FAQs

When it comes to tailoring your resume there are common questions that come up. Let’s answer some of the most frequently asked to help you customize your resume for success.

How Often Should I Tailor My Resume?

You should tailor your resume for every job application. Each role has unique requirements and customizing your resume ensures you’re highlighting the skills, experiences and achievements most relevant to the job. Even small tweaks – like adjusting keywords, reorganizing achievements or emphasizing different parts of your experience – can make a big difference to how your resume is seen by both Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and hiring managers.

Can I Use The Same Resume for Multiple Job Applications?

While you might be tempted to use the same resume for multiple applications, a generic resume will get less attention. You need to customize your resume for each job application, even if the changes are small. Focus on the key responsibilities and required skills for each job and tailor your resume to highlight the most relevant qualifications. Using a one-size-fits-all resume might mean you miss out on an opportunity where a more targeted approach could have made the difference.

What If I Don’t Have The Keywords in My Experience?

If you don’t have the specific keywords or qualifications in your experience, don’t stress. Focus on transferable skills and relevant experiences that show you can learn and adapt. For example if you don’t have direct experience with a particular software but have worked with similar tools, highlight your technical adaptability. You can also showcase soft skills like problem solving or leadership that compensate for lacking specific hard skills.

You can also mention you’re willing to upskill or take courses to fill any gaps in expertise, especially for technical or industry specific skills.

How Do I Balance Tailoring with A Consistent Career Narrative?

A tailored resume doesn’t mean changing your whole career story. The key is to highlight different parts of your experience based on the job description without losing the overall consistency of your professional narrative. For example if you have experience in both project management and sales you might highlight more of your project management achievements for an operations role and sales results for a business development role.

You need to have a consistent thread throughout your resume so make sure your core roles, titles and responsibilities are accurate while adjusting the focus based on the job description.

Do I Need to Tailor My Resume for Internal Applications?

Yes, it’s just as important to tailor your resume for internal applications as it is for external ones. Even though you already know the company, customizing your resume shows the hiring manager you’re serious about the role and understand the specific requirements. It’s a way to show your growth within the company and highlight the skills and achievements that make you the best candidate for the new role.

Internal roles require different skills or focus areas so taking the time to match your resume to the job description shows you’re ready for the next step in your career within the company.