How to create infographic resume CV – Your dream job can get closer to you if you can use your creativity to redesign your CV to an info-graphic resume which is visually appealing as well as engaging too.
Whether you want to apply for your ‘dream job’ or have not been able to bag any important job interview or are just looking for a change in your career path, your resume is the gospel your recruiters would refer to if they want to know if you can fulfil their job requirements and have just the skill sets they are looking forward to.
If you do not want your resume to be hidden somewhere in a pile of resumes sent by other applicants for the same job profile, you will need to be at your creative best and think beyond the traditional listing down of your work experiences and educational background on the white paper.
Especially when you are applying to a digital marketing agency or for an artistic or design job, an info-graphic or video resume is what you need, not to create an image, but a personal brand for yourself, exhibiting your creative skills, alongside the samples of real work done by you.
While you must be aware of such artistically bound CVs, and probably even overwhelmed by some of the inventive resume samples online, you are also wondering if this should be your lookout while modifying and updating your resume and for applying for different positions, job profiles and companies in such a competitive job market scenario.
We tell you why and when the graphic resumes can come to your aid:
Imposes a powerful statement on your skills and out-of-the-box ideas
If you follow the trend blindly and base your resume on the other info-graphic resume ideas you have viewed till date or clutter your CV with too much graphics, your hiring managers may cringe at it and you may never land that important job position. However, if you come up with your own ideas showcasing your own creative bent of mind and are better able to speak about your accomplishments, skills and abilities through pie charts or bar graphs, and if it is done in a more organized way, you will be able to showcase your experiences, artistic talent as well as your personality, simultaneously.
Leaving a Lasting Impression
An info-graphic resume that gives out the apt amount of information in a visually appealing way, can actually stay in the minds of your recruiter forever and is bound to get you hired. This will simply be the one that will never be lost in the pile of resumes and one that will come to be known as your hallmark. So are you ready to make the first impression even in your absence?
When do you need it the Most:
When your target audience is a start-up company or not a conservative industry
Targeting your audience is very necessary before you sit down to redesign your CV. Your recruiter will look for keywords and information that will be necessary for his/her requirements and would want to have a look at an error-free CV. If through your graphic CV, you can emphasize on your skill sets and experiences that will benefit the employer, it will be beneficial for you. You can also opt to share your info-graphic resume on Linkedin or other social media profiles, in addition to having a traditional CV that you carry to your job interviews. While this kind of CV will work for some recruiters, it might give the impression to some that you are not serious about the job. So be careful about the kind of company and recruiter you are targeting before sending this resume application. Info-graphic resume will not work well if you are applying for the position of an accountant or any other traditional set-up. It is also advised to customize your CVs according to the job profiles and companies you are aiming for, each time.
When you intend to highlight your results
You can portray sharp and clever info-graphics that are directly related to the role you are targeting and exhibit a visual that is both impressive and effective be it through charts or graphs or maps, showing your past accomplishments and your inner drive to work with the company and the role.
You can also mention how well you have achieved targets or your growth in a certain past company through graphs and bars, either giving the percentage, number of leads you generated and the revenue therefrom, et al. While traditional resumes deal more with your accountabilities and the chronology of it all, the info-graphic resume will focus on the results and will certainly engage the reader, especially profiting those in sales and marketing, whose job profile is outcome-driven.
Now the question is how you can build up this intensive resume. Just follow these tips:
The Visual Data
Choose the right kind of visualization for the data you intend to offer. If you want to talk about your skills, you can use bar or column charts, but not an area chart as it will make the whole deal more confusing. Line charts can be useful for chronological data or a time series. Give the visual appeal to your recruiter by trying to create an interesting interaction with the viewer. You can take help from sites such as gliffy.com or draw.io to make your resume more fun-tastic. However, do not just randomly impose shapes and your favourite colours all over your resume.
The Colour Schemes
Use colours in your resume which are soothing and can be appealing both to you and the recruiter. Instead of a mix and match, you can choose a light background with single colour and multiple shades or tones. Using bright colours like yellow and orange can be too stark and distracting. So, it is always better to stick to black, white and gray along with one or two other colours just used for highlighting or giving the special effect. Purple, green, blue and brown all work great in single or different shades on a resume.
KISS: Keep it simple and short
Make your resume easy to read and understand by not going overboard with colours and headings. Highlight numbers and headings with some information that would provoke the reader to ask for more. Tell only the most relevant data and do not try to fit everything into charts and bar graphs. Also, do not indulge yourself in writing long pages about yourself as the recruiter will not have so much time to go through your entire set of responsibilities and work/education details. Your resume, in other words is your bio-data (selected information) and not your biography.
Make your resume do storytelling
Your resume should not give your life history but must definitely give an insight into your personality and abilities. While being precise, it should also be interesting, creative and engaging. Use imagery that make the most sense with your stint with brands, telling a story about who you are, what kind of a job you are looking for and why you are the best-suited candidate for the job.
End your resume with a directive for the reader
You can always be more interactive in your resume by asking them to follow your links on twitter or your blog on word press. If you fail to engage your reader, your hiring manager may not regard your resume as anything important or striking and you may end up losing your dream job, despite your potential for the role.
You can break the monotony in CVs by using different yet decent and readable fonts, using section breaks, maintaining continuity and consistency in the colours and fonts and maintaining brevity.
Use these tips to take your career to a whole new level and see how being creative can take you places and land you better jobs.
