Resume Writing Company Tips: 5 Worst Job Hunting Mistakes

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

The job-hunting process is never without some stress and anxiety, but job seekers can make it easier if they avoid some common mistakes. We’ve talked with representatives from our top-rated resume writing company, and they’ve shared a few of the worst gaffes job hunters can make.

1. Lying On A Resume/Interviews
While we highly recommend using a professional resume writing company to create your resume, it’s crucial that the information you provide to these writers is correct and true. It’s just too easy for a hiring manager to discover the truth, and it’s easy to understand why someone would be hesitant to hire you after you’ve been caught in a lie.

According to hiring managers, some of the most common lies people tell include lying about their level of education or the college from which they graduated or lying about work history.

For instance, if you were fired from a job, you might consider lying about it during an interview. A better idea would be to own the truth and describe why you were fired and spin the situation so that you focus on what you gained from the experience. If you were fired due to incompetence, you might express what steps you’ve taken to improve.

If you were fired because you didn’t get along with your boss, you might talk about how you’ve worked hard to improve your communication skills and conflict resolution skills so that you can be a more effective and valuable employee from this point forward. Resist the urge to talk trash about your boss and co-workers. If it truly was a terrible situation, simply state that it was a difficult situation, and that you are looking forward to working in a positive, energetic environment where you can truly contribute to the company.

People also often lie about their abilities and skills. You might state that you are fluent in a foreign language, when you really only have conversational skills. You might also lie about proficiency with various computer programs. If these programs or the language are essential for the job position, it’s quickly going to become apparent that you don’t possess the needed skills for the job and you could end up fired for these falsehoods.

If you don’t possess all the necessary skills, but still believe you are a great fit for the job, stress that in your cover letter and at job interviews. Discuss the steps you mean to take to ensure that you are up to speed and why you still would be a great choice for the job. This approach is always preferable to lying.

2. Sending Out Impersonal Resumes & Cover Letters
When you send out a resume and cover letter, these should be customized to include the skills listed in the job posting or for the job position. Additionally, the cover letter should be addressed to the hiring managers, so you really need to take the time to find the name of this person.

Sending out a cover letter “to whom it may concern,” definitely doesn’t impress a hiring manager. When you research the position and research the hiring manager or hiring team, this shows that you truly care about your job search and that you aren’t just sending out hundreds of cookie-cutter resumes to tons of different firms.

3. Limiting Your Search To Online Postings
While you certainly will find some great job opportunities posted online, these are just the tip of the iceberg as to what truly is available. Many jobs are never posted, which is why it is so important that you keep building your personal network.

Get that LinkedIn page built and start connecting with friends, co-workers and other business associates. Attend business meetups or join a group relevant to your industry. Keep in mind; networking is not just about what people can do for you; it’s also about what you can bring to the table and making valuable connections.

For instance, imagine that you are at a business function and an executive from a company where you might want to work approaches you and engages in conversation. Perhaps they mention that they will be visiting your hometown, and want some restaurant recommendations. This seems like a fairly unimportant conversation, but if you provide some valuable tips and advice and are friendly and personable, this person will remember you and if a job opportunity comes up; your name might spring to mind.

In addition, if you have several years of professional work experience, it can be smart to talk with a professional recruiter about your job search. Recruiters often have the line on some great job opportunities that aren’t posted online. Companies often will hire a recruiter to find a short list of great job candidates.

4. Failing To Prepare For Interviews
A resume writing company can provide you with a great resume and cover letter, and this certainly can help you score job interviews. However, if you fail to prepare for each interview, this can cost you many opportunities.

Our resume writing company experts have provided us with tons of interview advice, some is fairly easy and some requires a bit of work. The easy components include ensuring that you wear neat, clean and appropriate business attire. Get a haircut and look your best as this sends a positive message to hiring managers but also helps you feel more professional and serious.

Additionally, bring a business tote or briefcase and fill it up with a few pens, a tablet for taking notes and a few copies of your resume. Turn off your phone or leave it in your car, and ensure that you arrive five minutes early for the interview. Showing up late makes a terrible impression, and it’s better to show up 30 minutes early and waste some time in a coffee shop around the corner than to show up frazzled and even one or two minutes late for an interview.

Those are the easy components of the job interview; the harder elements require a bit more work. Before you head to any interview, research the company thoroughly, so that you understand the company goals and mission. It’s also wise to try and research the hiring manager if possible to learn a little bit about the person who will be conducting the interview.

Furthermore, you also need to practice answering interview questions. Practice making eye contact and practice how you sit, as well as working on thoughtful answers to typical interview questions. The more you practice, the more comfortable you will feel during the interview process.

If you have some tricky issues that you might need to explain, such as being fired or a gap in employment or a difficult work experience, spend extra time preparing some good answers for these tough questions. A good resume writing company might provide career coaching services, and it can be smart to invest in these services, especially if you are new to the workforce or you simply feel like your skills need a bit of polishing.

5. Sending Out A Low-Quality Resume
Previously, we mentioned that it’s a huge mistake to lie on a resume or fail to customize a resume, but those aren’t the only issues that turn off hiring managers. Depending on which survey you read, at least 60% of all hiring managers will throw away your resume if it contains careless errors or typos. You might be a fantastic job candidate, but that one spelling error can kill your chances of getting an interview.

Hiring a resume writing company can ensure that your resume doesn’t contain spelling or grammatical mistakes and that the resume features a consistent, easy-to-read format. However, you do need to double-check your contact information. After all, a resume writer won’t know if your email address or phone number is correct.

It’s also wise to create a professional email address just for your job hunt or business dealings. About 30% of hiring managers admit that they passed over job applicants that either had an inappropriate email address (example: funnygirl29@hotmail) or used the email for their current workplace.

The first issue shows that you don’t take yourself seriously enough to have a professional email address while the second issue showcases that you have no qualms about using company emails and company time to search for a job elsewhere. Neither will inspire a hiring manager to contact you for an interview.

Avoiding these five mistakes can truly help increase your chances of finding a great new job. If you want to get started on the process, the first step is creating that resume and cover letter.

At Top 5 Resume Writers, we’ve compiled a short list of options to help you select the best resume writing company. Our top pick, Resume Writing Group, produced a dynamic, error-free resume that we feel will truly attract the attention of a hiring manager. We highly recommend that you select their service when you purchase your professional resume.

How To Find The Best Resume Writers

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If you are getting ready to start looking for a new job, polishing up your current resume or creating a new resume probably are at the top of your to-do list. You might be debating whether or not to write your own resume or hire the best resume writers. With so many choices out there, it can be tough to determine which resume company offers the best service, so we’ve provided you with a few helpful tips.

1. Skip The Cheap Companies
There are plenty of services out there offering $29, $39 or $49 resumes and, on the surface, this seems like a great deal. But, as the saying goes, you tend to get what you pay for and this is definitely true when you opt for a low-cost resume.

Generally, you’ll find that quality entry-level resumes start at around $85 and go up to about $100 and sometimes more. For a person with professional work experience, you can expect to pay at least $100 for a professionally-crafted resume. Resumes for top-level executives or very specialized fields probably will pay even more.

While a high price tag doesn’t always ensure quality, a cheap resume is almost always not worth the price tag. We’ve reviewed resumes from many websites, and the cheaper sites are almost universally a bad idea.

2. Look At The Work Samples
Most reputable resume companies will provide one or two work samples on their website. If they don’t, you can contact the company and ask for a sample. If the company refuses, this is a huge red flag, and you definitely want to move on and select another resume company.

Obviously, if the sample provided is less than stellar, you will want to select another company. It’s important, however, that you look beyond the resume design and really take a look at the content. Flashy designs can look amazing, but if the content is blah or doesn’t read well, this is really all a hiring manager cares about.

The best resume writers are more concerned with provided dynamic content than with a hip design. You always can transform the document’s design, what you are really paying for is quality content so keep that in mind as you look at the work samples.

3. Don’t Be Persuaded By A Great Website
We’ve reviewed resumes from many resume companies, and some of them had some amazing and attractive websites. The important thing to remember is that the website’s appearance has little to do with the quality of the product.

After all, the people who built the website are not the same people writing your resume. The website was designed by someone else, and while it might look lovely, you won’t be sending a picture of the website to the hiring manager. Never judge a resume company by its cover, so to speak, because, as we stated in the last point, the content of your resume is all that is truly important.

4. Read The Fine Print
The best resume writers tend to offer a guarantee with their work, but you need to read this guarantee carefully to ensure that you really understand what the guarantee requires and includes.

For instance, our top resume pick is Resume Writing Group offers a unique guarantee. If you use their advice and resume but are not hired in 45 days or less, they will refund the cost of your resume. To increase your chances of finding a great job, this company provides several pages worth of advice on the best ways to find great companies and how to market yourself.

If, however, you find companies that do not offer any type of guarantee, this is an indication that you have not found the best resume writers. After all, if they don’t stand by their work, do you really want to give them your money?

5. Check Out The Writers
There are literally dozens of resume writing companies out there, and many of them hiring part-time freelancers to create resumes. These are not really the “best resume writers,” because they tend to lack experience in resume writing, which is unique to other types of writing.

It’s important to select a company that has a full-time resume writing staff. A few of the best companies will even provide you with short bios for the people on their staff. If you can’t find this information anywhere on the website, it can indicate that the staff is constantly changing, and this definitely can affect the quality of the product that they provide to their customers.

Additionally, take a second to check and see if the resume company belongs to any industry organizations such as the National Resume Writers’ Association or perhaps the Professional Association of Resume Writers & Career Coaches. These organizations set standards for resume writing and they also provide continuing education for professional resume writers so that they can keep improving their craft and keep up with changes in the world of resumes.

At Top 5 Resume Writers, we’ve researched many of the top resume writing companies and compared their services. To do this, we hired multiple companies to provide us with a professional resume for a “mystery shopper.”

We gave the same information to all of the resume companies and then reviewed the results. We found that most of the companies didn’t really write a great resume, they just listed the information the client gave them without sprucing up the text or strategizing how to present the job candidate to their best advantage.

Even worse, many of the companies presented us with resumes that contained multiple spelling or grammar errors, or both! This was a bit of a shock, to say the least, especially since it’s one of the main reasons why people hire a professional in the first place.

In the end, we found a few options that provided us with decent, error-free resumes and one clearly produced the best results, so they earned our top spot. Here’s why we selected Resume Writing Group as our choice for the best resume writers:

• Their resume was error-free.
• The writer didn’t just rehash the basic information, there was an obvious strategy regarding how items were worded and organized.
• The writer actually contacted us to ask for additional information and we appreciated this high level of customer service. (By the way, Resume Writing Group was the only company that took this extra step.)
• The resume was edited by the writer and an additional person, a professional resume editor.
• Resume Writing Group offered competitive rates. Their rates for entry-level resumes are some of the best you will find.
• Their work was guaranteed.

We truly believe that Resume Writer Group will provide you with the best resume writers, but if you do decide to use another service, we highly recommend that you use the advice listed above.

Professional Resume Writer Reviews: Which Service Is Best?

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

If you need a resume, our professional writers’ reviews can help you determine which company provides the highest quality resume. After all, there are hundreds of resume services out there, and it’s tricky to know which one will truly provide you with the best product.

That’s why Top 5 Resume Writers is here. We’ve done the heavy lifting for you, sifted through the mire and found the best resume companies out there.


Our Selection Process


In order to ensure that our professional resume writer reviews were as accurate as possible, our team created a “mystery shopper,” and we provided the same information to each resume company and ordered one of their standard professional resumes. We sent resumes to an assortment of resume companies, and then sat back and waited for the results.


Our Resume Review Criteria


1. Is It Error-Free?
Obviously, the first factor we considered was accuracy. Many hiring managers say that they’ll toss a resume with just one careless error on it, so a single spelling mistake can kill your chances of gaining an interview. Sadly, many of the resumes we bought contained multiple errors.

2. Is It Well-Organized?
Surprisingly, we paid for some very poorly designed resumes. Some featured a different typeface for each header, or they listed items chronologically in one section and in reverse chronological order in the next section. Some listed too much information and ran onto a second page, which typically isn’t a good idea.

A hiring manager wants to be able to scan each section quickly, so you need to label each section clearly and keep the style consistent throughout the resume. Otherwise, it’s just hard to read, and if the hiring manager becomes confused by your resume’s organization, they’ll just toss it in the reject pile.

A few tried to charm us with clever designs and fun typefaces. In some cases, the design was confusing and in other cases, the design was great, but the content was horrible, so it didn’t really matter how carefully each font was selected if there were grammar and spelling errors in each section.

3. Does It Contain “The Right Stuff?”
In general, a resume should never run longer than a single page. For very high-level executives, a second page might be needed, but for most people, a one-page resume is ideal.

This means that for your resume, professional writers need to know which items to include and which to omit. For instance, some of them added the line, “references available upon request.” This should never appear on your resume. It takes up valuable space, and obviously you’ll be expected to do so. Don’t state the obvious.

Some of the writers would include skills or certifications that were not needed for the jobs their clients sought. Or, perhaps they included skills that everyone has such as using Microsoft Word or Google Docs. You should never list skills that pretty much all people possess.

Some spent too much time crafting a career objective and wasting five or six lines of type discussing what the job applicant wanted rather than focusing on the skills the job applicant possesses and how these skills would benefit a company.

Hiring managers understand that you have objectives and that those objectives are important to you. However, hiring managers are far more concerned with fulfilling the needs of the company than with your personal goals, so it’s not awesome if a resume writer provides you with a massive career objective section.

4. Is It Dynamic & Quantifiable?
Hiring managers need to understand your skills and accomplishments quickly, but it’s important to provide truly quantifiable examples of your work experience.

For instance, perhaps you managed a sales team successfully. A hiring manager will want to know the size of the team and whether or not you met and exceeded goals. Rather than stating you, “were responsible for managing the company sales team,” or even that you, “managed the company sales staff,” you could transform this to read – “Managed 10-person sales team, met or exceeded sales goals in 2017, 2018 and 2019.”

This doesn’t take up a ton of space, but it conveys your abilities to the hiring manager. It allows them to see how many people you managed, as well as your success at leading this team.

During our review of professional resume writers, we found that many services just relisted the information we gave them, basically using the exact verbiage we gave to them. A great resume writer will take the information you have provided and ensure that it is beautifully written and that your qualifications are clear.


How Much Should You Pay For Resume Services?


While you might be out there searching the web for affordable resume writers or even “cheap” resume writers, we didn’t really factor cost into our decision.

There are a few resume companies out there that promise a great resume for just $49 or even $39 dollars, but we haven’t included any of these services on our shortlist. Typically, a quality professional resume will cost between $90 and $250, depending on your level of work experience.

An entry-level job hunter with no professional experience might only pay $90 to $100 for a resume, while a professional executive with more than 20 years of experience might have to spend double that amount.

In general, a cheap resume probably won’t be worth the paper it’s printed on. A resume is an investment in your future, and this is an area where you don’t want to cut costs. Still, you also want to ensure that you are getting your money’s worth, which is why we encourage you to select one of our top picks.

Now that you understand how we select our top picks, you can bypass that search for professional resume writer reviews, and head straight to one of our top picks. Resume Writing Group, our #1 choice, even backs up their work with a unique guarantee. If you use their resume and follow their advice, but aren’t hired in 45 days or less, they’ll refund the cost of your resume and give you an additional $100.

Top Resume Reviews & 5 Pro Tips From Recruiters

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

It’s a truth universally acknowledged that a great resume can open doors, and whether you’re an entry-level grad fresh from college or a seasoned veteran in your industry or somewhere in between, we can help by providing you with our top resume reviews.

We firmly believe that you should always have an updated copy of your resume on hand, at all times. Why? You never know when an opportunity will present itself, and if a recruiter calls or a contact mentions they’ve heard about a new job opportunity, you need to be ready to make a move as quickly as possible.


How Do You Find The Best Resume Writers?


You don’t have to. We’ve done all the work for you. There are hundreds of resume writing services out there, so it can be tough to decide which service is the best. They all seem to promise the world, so we decided to see which services could truly deliver on that promise.

We invented a “mystery shopper,” and hired dozens of resume writing companies to create a resume for that mystery person. The results were pretty surprising. One of the main reasons to hire a professional to create your resume is to ensure that your resume is free from careless errors, such as spelling mistakes.

In our top resume reviews, you’ll find the five companies that we feel provided us with the best work. Unfortunately, even one of these sites sent us back a resume with errors! Sadly, this wasn’t uncommon. More than half of the resume sites we reviewed gave us resumes with errors.

Within our top resume reviews, only the top three really provided the quality workmanship that you would expect from a professional resume writer. All three of these services charged about the same amount for their services, give or take a dollar, so it just makes sense to select our top pick – Resume Writing Group.

Resume Writing Group’s resume surpassed the quality of our #2 pick – The Resume Writing Experts, and the #2 pick is owned by the same parent company that owns us. The Resume Writing Experts resume was high quality, but it lacked that special something extra we found with Resume Writing Group.

Resume Writing Group’s resume was, first of all, error-free, which is always crucial. This well-organized resume also featured an eye-catching, clean design. While these are important factors, the factors that truly set Resume Writing Group apart from the competition were the dynamic content and the quality customer service.

The writer at Resume Writing Group didn’t just take our initial information and create the resume, this writer took the time to contact us and ask more questions to fully understand our qualifications as well as learning more about the types of jobs for which the mystery client would be applying. In the end, this extra contact provided us with a much higher quality resume than we received from any other company.


Do You Really Need A Professional Resume Writer?


Now that we’ve told you that many of these so-called professional resume writing companies provided us with error-filled resumes, you might feel like just writing your resume yourself. But that can be a huge mistake.

Hiring managers spend less than one minute reading each resume they receive. This means your resume must stand out from the pack. It needs to be eye-catching and dynamic and easy to read.

Creating a resume that truly expresses and quantifies your abilities is not easy, but great professional resume writers understand how to accomplish this feat. Plus, if you use one of our top picks, you won’t have to worry about spelling, grammar and style errors.

Once you’ve acquired a fantastic, dynamic, amazing new resume, that’s just one step in the process, albeit an important step. Don’t forget to consider the following:


5 Job-Hunting Tips From Top Recruiters

1. Promote Your Brand
You might be thinking, “what? I don’t have a product.” YOU are the product, and that product needs some fantastic packaging.

These days everything is about marketing. If you aren’t on LinkedIn, sign up and keep your profile updated. If you don’t have a website, create one and start a blog. Ensure that all of your social media posts present a professional, thoughtful image to the world and eliminate anything that might cost you a job.

2. Network With Everyone
While LinkedIn is a powerful networking tool, it’s by no means the only way to network. Every contact you make can be valuable, from the random person you meet at a party to the people in your workout classes.

Just because someone might not be in your industry, it doesn’t mean that they don’t have valuable connections. Make a great impression and they’ll remember you. That guy you chatted with a kid’s birthday party might have an uncle who needs a person just like you at their company.

Additionally, think about what you have to offer. It’s a two-way street. If you’re chatting with an executive and they mention that they need a great mechanic or an amazing dentist, and you happen to know one, provide that information. People remember people that helped them, it’s that simple.

Of course, it also doesn’t hurt to join a few industry-related groups. You can network here, and gain some professional development, which can give you an edge in the job search.

3. Practice Your Interview Skills
While a great resume can open a door, a bad interview can close it. Interviews are crucial, and if you make a bad impression, it truly does not matter how qualified you might be.

Sit with a trusted ally and practice your interview skills. Practice answers to typical questions and be prepared to show examples of your skills. If a hiring manager asks you about one of your strengths and you mention leadership skills, be prepared to tell a short story that demonstrates your ability to lead.

If a hiring manager asks about your weakness, don’t state something trite like, “I just work too hard.” Tell them a legitimate weakness you have faced and describe the concrete steps you took to overcome this weakness.

For instance, you might state that one of your greatest weaknesses was public speaking, so you took some classes to improve your speaking skills and then volunteered to lead a workshop or talk at a business event. This shows hiring managers that you have a capacity for self-reflection and enough motivation to improve yourself when needed.

4. Select Companies Carefully
Don’t simply send hundreds of resumes to hundreds of random companies. Research each place where you apply. Learn about the company culture, some of the key players and the goals of the company.

Not only will this knowledge help you find companies that are a solid match for your skills and goals, possessing some knowledge about the company will help you answer interview questions more thoughtfully.

Think about factors such as the number of employees and the location of the company. Some people thrive in a huge company, while others prefer a smaller company with fewer employees. If a company is located fairly far away, you’ll need to think about the commute length or the impact of a possible relocation.

5. Don’t Forget To Be Thankful
It might seem like a small thing, but a handwritten thank-you note can be powerful. After the interview, sit down and compose a thoughtful thank-you note and put it in the mail that day.

This note should include the usual line, “if you have any further questions; don’t hesitate to contact me.” But add something personal about your interview experience. Rather than just stating that you enjoyed meeting the hiring manager, you might state, “I enjoyed meeting you today and was so impressed with the company’s philanthropic goals and its wellness initiatives.” This shows that you were paying attention during the interview and that you aren’t just sending out cookie-cutter notes to everyone.

Write this note using professional-looking stationary, and if your handwriting isn’t exactly stellar, consider having a friend with better penmanship write it down for you. Most importantly, proof the thank-you note to ensure there aren’t any careless errors.

If you are really stumped, consider hiring a resume writer to create a basic thank-you note and then just personalize it for each interview. Most resume writing services, including our top pick, Resume Writing Group, offer this service.

Ready to get started? In addition to looking through our top resume reviews, consider taking advantage of some of the other services that our top picks provide. These professional resume writers also can help with cover letter writing, thank-you notes, LinkedIn profile writing and much more.

Affordable Resume Writing Services: How To Pick The Best

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

Have you been searching for affordable resume writing services and pondering whether hiring a pro is your best option?

Your resume provides hiring managers with a first impression of you, which is why it’s crucial that this document be flawless and dynamic. Using a professional writer definitely can be a smart choice, as long as you use our tips to select the best resume company.

1. Look At Quality First & Cost Later
The quality of a resume is far more important than simply finding affordable resume writing services and settling for a $39 resume. In fact, it’s been our experience that a cheap resume typically is worth less than what you paid for it.

We’ve seen samples from services that charged only $5.99 or $16.99 or even $49 for a resume, and the results were pretty much what you’d expect. We found spelling and grammar errors, the resumes were poorly organized and they weren’t particularly well-written. These so-called affordable resume writing services definitely weren’t worth the money we paid.

The most important factor when purchasing a resume isn’t the cost, but the quality of the product. Take a look at some of the sample resumes on each company’s website. If these look solid, this may be a great company. If they don’t have any samples and will not provide you with samples upon request, this is a huge red flag and indicates that they don’t really have a lot of faith in their ability to produce a stellar resume.

2. Understand What Affordable Truly Means
Did you know that top professional writers, in general, can earn as much as 15 cents per word (or more) for their writing? That might sound like small potatoes, but it quickly adds up. If your resume contains just 500 words, this is a total cost of $75. Additionally, a great resume writer also will edit their work carefully and spend some time on the format and design so that it looks polished and professional.

Any service that charges less than about $75 for an entry-level resume probably isn’t delivering the quality you truly need to stand out from all of the other applicants competing for a job position.

Typically, you should expect to pay around $90 for an entry-level resume and more than $100 for a professional resume. Resumes for higher level executives and managers often cost $200 or more. Spending $90 might sound like a lot to a recent college graduate, but if you end up with an amazing job, this is well worth the cost.

3. Select Professionals, Not Freelancers
There are tons of freelancers out there, and some of them probably can write a decent resume for you. However, using a professional service that hires full-time resume writers usually is a better option. A full-time resume writer has more experience and has experience writing resumes for many different industries.

Additionally, you also will find that a professional resume writing company also probably belongs to groups such as the National Resume Writers Association (NRWA) or the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches (PARWCC). Joining these organizations signal that a resume company strives for a high level of professionalism, and these groups also offer conferences and workshops so that writers can continue their education and learn about new trends in resume writing. Our top pick belongs to both organizations and has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

4. Take A Look At Our Reviews
We’ve reviewed resumes from many of the top affordable resume writing services on the internet, and found that many affordable resume writing services simply weren’t worth the savings. Unfortunately, we also found that some of the higher priced services didn’t provide you with a great result, either.

So, what’s a person to do? We can help. At Top 5 Resume Writers, we’ve reviewed tons of resumes and selected the Top 5 resume writing services. As far as affordable resume writing services go, our top pick, Resume Writing Group, actually charged a few dollars less than some of the others in the Top 5.

More important than saving a couple of dollars was the fact that their resume was top-notch, error-free and dynamic. If you want a job-winning resume, we highly recommend their services. They also offer additional services, such as cover letter writing, and these letters can be tough to create, so it’s wise to hire a pro to write yours or at least edit what you have written.

While finding affordable resume writing services might be important to your bank account, Resume Writing Guild offers a solid guarantee. If you use their resume and follow their advice, but aren’t hired in 45 days or less, they will refund the cost of your resume. From this perspective, you really have nothing to lose, and their stellar resume will help you stand out from the competition, which can lead you to a great new job.

Resume Writing Group: 5 Reasons Why It Tops Our List

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

At Top 5 Resume Writers, our goal is to sift through the myriad of resume writing companies on the internet and find the best options. We’ve picked Resume Writing Group as our top resume company, and here’s a look at how we chose this company and why we believe they offer consumers the best value.

Our Resume Review Process
To select the top resume services, we studied resumes from many top resume writing sites. In addition to Resume Writing Group, we looked at Resumes Planet, Resume My Career, Top Resume and many more.

Obviously, we couldn’t identify ourselves as a resume review website, so we went incognito and simply ordered a resume for a “mystery shopper.” We provided each company with the same information about this mystery person and then sat back and waited for the results, which were quite surprising. Resume Writing Group was the clear winner, and this is why:

1. Resume Writing Group Produced An Error-Free Resume
We studied resumes from dozens of sites and were shocked to see that several of these companies, not just one or two, sent us back resumes with careless errors. Typically, avoiding errors is one of the main reasons why people spend money on professional resume writing services in the first place so it was a bit disappointing to see blatant spelling and grammar errors on a so-called professionally written resume.

Our Resume Writing Group resume was flawless, and, according to their website, each resume is edited by the writer and a second professional resume editor. Resume Writing Group wasn’t the only company that produced an error-free resume, but this definitely set them apart from the companies that did produce resumes with typos and errors such as mixing up words like “there” and “their.”

2. Resume Writing Group Had Great Customer Service
Of all the many resume sites we reviewed, the writers from Resume Writing Group were the only ones that took the time to make contact with us and ask further questions. They didn’t simply take all of our information at face value, rather they wanted to dig a little deeper and gain a greater understanding our mystery shopper’s qualifications and career goals. This really set them apart as a resume writing service that truly cared about getting results for their client.

3. Resume Writing Group Quantified Skills
When writing a resume, it’s crucial that you provide a hiring manager with clear examples of your skills. Simply stating that you were a manager or suggesting that you are a good leader is vague and not enough.

Resume Writing Group didn’t just list a bunch of skills; they included examples to quantify those skills. For instance, they would simply state that a person managed a company’s sales team. Instead, they would write, “Managed 25-person sales team & attained a 30% increase in sales revenue each year.” This helps the hiring manager understand how many people you can manage and that your management skills yield results.

4. Resume Writing Group Used Dynamic Language & Keywords
The Resume Writing Group didn’t use passive language such as “was tasked with” or “was an integral part of a sales team.” They used dynamic active words such as managed, spearheaded, created, developed, collaborated and designed.

As the only company that took the time to contact us, they also took a look at some of the job postings where are mystery client planned to apply. This gave them a solid idea of the types of keywords that hiring managers and applicant-tracking software would need to see in order to move the client toward the interview stage.

5. An Easy-To-Read Design
While you’ve probably seen some funky and cool resume designs on places such as Pinterest, a basic simple design typically is your best option in most cases. This is especially true if you are submitting a resume electronically that will be scanned by applicant-tracking software.

A unique design with odd margins and graphic elements cannot be read easily by a software program, so it’s always best to save your hip design for the resume you hand in to someone personally. Resume Writing Group’s design was straightforward and well-organized and, if you wanted to, you could always play around with a fun design but still use the great content they provide.

While we found several good resume writing companies, Resume Writing Group truly stood out from the pack and we are confident recommend their services. They also provide additional services, such as cover letter writing and LinkedIn profile writing, which can be a huge help as you start marketing yourself for a great new job.

Beyond Resume Companies: 7 Facts You Need To Know

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

While resume companies can provide you with a great resume, cover letter and other career-related documents, there’s more to the job hunt than simply handing in a fantastic resume. Your job-hunting arsenal needs a solid resume, but you also need to consider the following:

1. Not Every Job Opening Is A Match
Too often, people apply to dozens and dozens of companies without really doing any research about each company. It’s crucial that you find a work environment that suits your needs and personality, and a workplace where you can excel. Research the company culture, as well as the company mission to see if this seems like a place where you will be a good fit.

2. Consider The Work Location
Realtors say it all the time – location, location, location. If you are applying for jobs in other cities or perhaps in your area, but with a long commute, this has to be considered. Do you want to spend two or more hours per day driving back and forth? Do you want to relocate? Can you afford to relocate?

In some cases, a job opportunity is simply too good to pass up, but the workplace location should be something that you think about before making your decision. This is especially important if you have a spouse or partner and children that will be affected by the new job. Relocating can be exciting and open up new opportunities for everyone, but it’s still a big endeavor, so don’t dismiss the location of a workplace as unimportant.

3. Consider Your Skills
In some cases, you may not really have the skills needed for a job, and in other cases, you might be a bit too qualified. If you don’t have the skills, you will need to work twice as hard to get up to speed, and if you aren’t willing to do that, perhaps you should apply for jobs for which you are better qualified.

If you are over-qualified, you may end up feeling bored and restless at the new job, so keep that in mind before you make a change. Obviously, sometimes we have to just take a job because there are bills to pay and obligations to meet, but if you have the option of waiting for a better opportunity, it might be worth it to stay in your current job until you find something that’s an excellent fit or you attain more skills.

4. Write Up Some Goals
Before you start hunting for jobs, create a list of personal and professional goals. Consider what type of job you want to have, as well as the salary and benefits. Write down your goals for the next five years, and try to find job listings that seem to lead you to these goals. Of course, your goals can always be altered as time goes by, but it’s never a bad idea to think about what you want to achieve in the future.

5. Dress For Success
Resume companies know that a fantastic resume is the first impression you make with hiring managers, but the second impression, at the interview, can be just as important. Proper business attire and a neat, tidy look are crucial when setting the tone at an interview.

Even if you will be working in a fairly casual environment, wear business-suitable clothing, get a haircut and look as presentable as possible. Once you become part of the team, you can dress like the co-workers, but you want hiring managers to know that you are taking this opportunity seriously, so invest in a few business outfits.

6. Practice For Interviews
Of course the resume and business attire will only get you so far. If you aren’t adept at answer interview questions, this definitely can blow your chances of getting hired. Obviously, we aren’t all amazing interviewees, and it’s easy to get nervous in an interview situation, so practice your answers to common interview questions again and again so that you will feel more comfortable when you are actually sitting in front of a hiring manger.

7. Don’t Forget The Follow Up
You always should express your gratitude for an interview, both at the end of the interview and after you leave. A handwritten thank-you note is the best option, as this truly provides a thoughtful follow-up, but a thank-you email also is an option. Be sure to express your thanks, as well as your willingness to answer further questions or clarify anything that was said in the interview.

While the resume isn’t everything, a solid resume can lead you to the interview stage, and creating your own resume can be tricky. We highly recommend that you use the services of resume companies, as these firms know how to create resumes that truly attract the attention of hiring managers.

There are plenty of resume companies out there, so how do you select the best one? At Top 5 Resume Writers we have studied resumes from many resume companies and created a short list of top candidates. Our favorite pick, Resume Writing Group produced a dynamic, error-free resume and provided the best customer service. We highly recommend that you use their services for resumes, cover letters and other related items.

5 Questions To Ask A Resume Company

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

If you’ve googled the word “resume,” it probably became quickly apparent that finding a professional resume company isn’t difficult. There are many companies out there, but while they can provide you with a resume, can they provide you with a document that truly attracts the attention of hiring managers? Before you select a service, ask a few important questions.

1. Do You Employ Full-Time Writers?
Too often, a resume company might rely on part-time stringers to create resumes for their clients. If you are going to be paying $100 or more for a resume, you should expect high quality services, but with part-timers you don’t really know if they have extensive resume writing experience.

Whether you send out an email and ask this question or look around the resume company’s website, you should be able to find out something about the writers. A great resume company might even put up bios for their writers, so that you can really learn about the people working on your resume project. If you don’t see any information about the writing staff, this probably isn’t the best resume company for you.

2. Can You Provide Samples Of Your Work?
Aside from reading reviews, taking a look at actual work samples can be a way to ensure that you’ve picked a solid resume company. If the company doesn’t post samples on their website, definitely ask for some. If they refuse, then you have your answer – this isn’t a top-quality resume writing service.

3. How Long Does The Process Take?
Typically when a resume company promises you the moon, such as same-day or overnight services or very low pricing, you should be wary. A good resume company should take between two to four days to create your resume and charge about $100 or more for the service, depending on the complexity of the resume.

For instance, an entry-level resume might only take two days or three at most, while writing a resume for someone applying for a high-level executive position might take a bit longer. Of course, many resume companies do offer rush services for an additional fee, so if you truly need a resume in 24 hours or less, this can be accomplished.

As a side note, entry-level resumes typically cost $80 to $90 from reputable companies, while professional resumes tend to be a bit more than $100 and executive resumes can go as high as $200 or more. Be wary of the $40 resume, as it may not provide the quality you need to attract the attention of hiring managers.

4. Will My Resume Be Edited?
We truly believe that every professionally written resume should be reviewed by more than one person before it is submitted to the client. While the resume writer will edit their work, try to find a resume company that ensures that a second professional editor will be looking over the document.

Even the best writer can make a mistake now and then, and having another set of eyes look over your resume can ensure that your resume is error-free. However, it is still a good idea for you, as the job hunter, to review the contact information on your resume. A resume writer won’t really know if your phone number or email address is correct, so double-check this information yourself.

5. Do You Offer A Guarantee?
If a company doesn’t stand by their work, this is a pretty good indication that their work might not be good enough to stand behind. Ask the resume company if they have a written guarantee, and then study that written guarantee to make sure you understand all of the fine print.

At Top 5 Resume Writers, we have studied many a resume company, and compiled a short list of our favorites. Our top two picks, Resume Writing Group and the Resume Writing Experts, produced an error-free and dynamic resume that outshined the competition.

Resume Writing Group, our top-rated resume company particularly stood out, offering fantastic writing services as well as strong customer service and a solid guarantee. We highly recommend that you opt for one of our top two picks for all of your resume-related writing needs, including resumes, cover letters, LinkedIn bios and more.

22 Resume Writing Service Tips That Actually Work

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Whether you are fresh out of college, looking for a career change, taking it to the next level or simply searching for a better fit, finding a great job can be tricky. To simplify the process, we’ve compiled a list of handy tips that will help lead you to a fantastic new work experience.

Goal-Setting

1. Set Immediate & Long-Term Goals
Obviously one of your immediate goals is to find employment, but what do you hope to achieve in six months? One year? Five years? Setting career and personal goals can be a great way to get focused before you begin a job search and a great way to find job options that truly fit your needs and goals.

2. Identify What You Want
Think about the type of work environment you want. Some people thrive in big corporation, while others prefer working at a smaller company. Some people thrive in a high-stakes, fast-paced environment, while others prefer a more laid-back setting. If you’ll be spending 40+ hours each week on the job, it’s crucial that you try to find an environment that fits your personality as much as possible.

3. Identify Special Needs
Some companies are more flexible than others. For instance, some companies allow you to stagger your hours, coming in from 7 to 3 instead of the traditional 9 to 5. Some companies allow you to work from home some or part of the time. Other companies might be open to job-sharing or working part time provided you meet set goals. If you need a level of flexibility beyond the traditional 9 to 5 workweek, it’s important to be clear about that, both to yourself as well as potential employers.

4. Research Companies
It’s not smart to simply send out resumes to dozens of companies without taking a look at the company mission and culture. Before you send a resume out, learn a little bit about the company needs and what they do and what they expect from employees. This helps you select companies that are a better fit for your skills and personality, as well as helping you answer and ask questions more thoughtfully during the interview process.

Learn To Network

5. Build Up Your Contacts
There are many available jobs out there, but they aren’t always posted online. Sometimes companies prefer to use recruiters to search for suitable applicants, and sometimes companies are just in the beginning stages of hiring and have yet to post, but truly do need a solid new employee.

If you have an extensive network of business contacts, this can make it easier to discover jobs that might not be posted. For instance, you might be talking about your job hunt with one contact who knows someone who is searching for a new employee. Your contact might be able to provide you with the name of the hiring manager or even contact their friend and recommend you for a position. The larger your circle of contacts, the easier it can be to find an amazing new job.

6. Set Up A LinkedIn Account
LinkedIn is a free service, and hiring managers and recruiters use it every day to find job candidates. If you aren’t using it at all or failing to use it to your advantage, you may be missing out on many opportunities. Resume writings services companies sometimes offer LinkedIn profile writing, and we highly recommend that you opt for this service to ensure that your LinkedIn profile looks dynamic and professional.

7. Get Your Group On
Join business or social groups can be a great way to build up your contact list. There are meetups for people from all sorts of industries, where you can get together and be social and make contacts. A word of caution – don’t be pushy in these situations. The building of contacts is a side benefit of meetups, and not usually the focus. The focus tends to be on gaining knowledge and sharing knowledge. Be sure that you bring something to the table when you join these groups.

The Social Media Dilemma

8. Be Mindful
If you think employers don’t stalk you on social media, you are quite mistaken. These days, almost all employers will Google your name and check out sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get a sense of your personality. If your profile is filled with profanity, inappropriate pictures and other red flags, this absolutely can cost you a job. This might seem unfair, but employers aren’t just hiring you for your skills. They also need a person that will mesh well with other employees.

Likewise if your posts are indiscreet, this can be a huge turnoff to potential employers. Social media is not the place to air your dirty laundry about your family and other personal relationships. If your posts are whiny and constantly negative, this also is a bad sign. This type of personality can truly bring down the morale of an office, so if you keep it public, keep it fairly positive.

9. Tighten Security
One of the easiest ways to avoid social media issues is to simply tighten up your security settings so that very few people can see your posts. If your posts are not the problem, but some of your friends are, tighten settings so that people cannot tag you or post on your wall without your permission. If a hiring manager sees that you have tight security settings, this sends a signal that you are discreet and responsible about the image you present to the world.

10. Use Social Media To Your Advantage
Of course, social media isn’t just a tool for evil; it also can be a great resource. Your social media posts can showcase your positive aspects, such as your positive approach to life or perhaps your commitment to volunteerism. You also can use social media to link back to your blog and spread industry knowledge or share something helpful. Hiring managers can be swayed into calling you in for an interview if you have a great social media presence just as they can be dissuaded if your presence is negative.

Enter The Resume

11. Resume Writing Services Can Help
We’ve made it to Tip 11 without even mentioning your resume, because you need to think about 1-10 before you even make it to the resume stage. Once you get there, it can be smart to hire a professional service to create this document as this can ensure that your resume is error-free, correctly formatted and with grab the eye of a hiring manager.

12. Hiring A Pro Is Not Enough
Hiring a professional is important, but in many cases, you will need to make adjustments to some of the resumes that you send out. For instance, you might want to omit a skill or add a skill depending on the job posting. You will need to update your cover letter and customize it to include the name of the hiring manager, and possibly change a few lines here and there to better fit the job posting.

13. Keep Things Consistent
If you decide not to use resume writing services and create your own resume, be sure that you keep the style and format consistent throughout your resume. Use the same fonts and typefaces for each section and list your work experience and education in reverse chronological order. Your resume should be crisp, clean and easy-to-read, and, typically, one page in length.

14. Consider Applicant-Tracking Software
These days, it can be smart to have two resumes although the actual content will be about the same. While a hiring manger appreciate a bit of artistry in the style of your resume, applicant-tracking software only understands very basic formatting and language. If you have a clever design, save this as the resume you present directly to a hiring manager.

If you email or upload a resume, this need to feature a plain design and include specific keywords, typically words you’ll find in the job description. This includes skills and certifications you need, as well as work experiences and educational levels. Software does not understand words such as “guru” or “expert.” Do not call yourself an IT guru if a job posting says “IT Manager.” The software is designed only to search for words such as “IT” and “Manager,” not something clever or quirky.

Before The Interview

15. Update Your Look
These days, many offices have a laid-back vibe, at least as far as apparel goes. That said, this vibe does not extend to the interview process. Even if the hiring manager is wearing jeans and a t-shirt, you should still be dressed in business apparel. Get your hair trimmed and wear freshly-pressed clothing. This simply shows that you take yourself and the interview seriously, and that you want to make a good first impression.

16. Set Your Alarm
A single spelling error on a resume can kill your chances of gaining an interview. Likewise, showing up late to interview also can kill your chances of attaining a job. It’s best to get there super early and perhaps wait in a nearby coffee shop than to be even two minutes late. Show up five minutes early in professional attire and bring along a briefcase with a pad of paper, a pen and copies of your resume.

17. Practice Your Interview Skills
Ask a friend or family member to act as the hiring manager and have them ask you some typical interview questions. If you have some problem areas, perhaps you were fired from your last position, you should devote extra time to explaining these issues in the most positive way possible.

18. Write Some Questions
Hiring managers like it when you show some interest and ask some questions. Research the company so that you can ask thoughtful questions. You can ask about expectations and responsibilities, but the first interview is not the time to ask about salary and benefits, that comes later down the line.

During The Interview

19. Turn Off Your Phone
Don’t leave it on vibrate. Don’t just silence it. Turn it off or leave it in your car. Enough said.

20. Listen & Take Notes
When the hiring manager speaks, be sure to listen. Sometimes we get nervous and just work in auto mode and don’t really interact. If you ask a question, listen to the answer and take some notes so that you can ask follow up questions or just gain a deeper understanding about the job position at hand.

21. Make Eye Contact & Sit Up
Sit up straight and look the hiring manager in the eyes from time to time. You don’t want to simply stare at them the whole time, but you also don’t want to stare at the floor or your notepad. This can be a great aspect to practice when you are going through general interview practice sessions with a friend or family member.

After The Interview

22. Send A Thank-You Note
As you leave an interview, it’s obvious that you will want to thank the hiring manager for their time. However, it’s smart to follow up with a thoughtful email or handwritten note, again expressing your thanks and reminding them that you are happy to answer further questions at any time.

Resume Services: When Do You Need Professional Help?

Blog, Resume Writing Tips

Resume writing is a bit of an art form, and we’ve said this before. Experienced resume writers understand how to organize and display your skills to their best advantage, providing hiring managers with clear evidence of your proficiency. While anyone can benefit from using a professional resume service, there are a few types of people that tend to benefit the most, including the following.

1. Changing Careers? Use A Resume Service
Sometimes we start out our professional careers in a field that doesn’t quite fit our personality and passions, and we decide to make a change. If you are changing fields, this can be an exciting endeavor, but it also makes resume writing a bit more difficult.

When changing careers, you need to be able to show that you can handle the requirements of this new job, and you need to be able to show how the skills you used in your previous career benefit your new employer.

For instance, perhaps you were a customer service specialist in your previous career, and you’ve taken the plunge, gone back to school and are ready for a new and rewarding career as a nurse. While you didn’t spend your days administering care to patients, chances are you did acquire some skills that good nurses need as well as good office managers.

For instance, in customer service, you learn how to listen to the concerns of customers and respond in such a way that calms and placates these customers. Strong communication skills are essential for nurses, so your experience in this area can be a huge bonus.

A great resume service hires experienced writers that understand how to package the skills you gained in a previous career and repackage them so that a hiring manager gets a sense of how those skills will benefit them. Skills such as communication skills, organizational skills and management skills are needed for just about any job, and if you are strong in these areas, this will appeal to the hiring team or manager.

2. Mind The Gap
We find that many people use a resume service if their resume contains gaps in employment. Whether you spent a year traveling the globe or spent 10 years raising your children or perhaps spent several years caring for an ailing parent, heading back into the job market can be daunting, but a great resume can be a huge help.

For instance, spending time caring for children or family members might not seem to provide you with skills an employer would need, but that is definitely not the case. Communication skills, problem solving skills and patience are three skills you attain as a caregiver, and these will benefit any employer.

Our best advice for those with employment gaps is to keep your skills as current as possible. This might include taking a few classes online or attending a few seminars if you can, so that you can list these on a resume or discuss this during a job interview.

Using a resume service can be especially important for those with employment gaps, as these people have been out of the job-hunting loop for a while and what hiring managers wanted to see 10 or even five years ago, might be vastly different from what is expected now.

Additionally, most resume services also offer career coaching, which can help you learn how to best explain employment gaps and how to showcase how your skills truly will benefit an employer. If you also have other issues, such as being fired from your previous job or perhaps a stint in prison, career coaching can help you learn how to present this information in the best possible light during a job interview.

3. Transitioning From Military To Civilian
After spending many years serving your country as a member of the armed services, it might be time to retire and move on to a career in the private sector. The good news is that your military career provided you with a host of skills that any company would want, but it still can be a tough transition.

Using a resume service is a great way to ensure that hiring managers clearly understand how the skills you acquired during your military career will translate into your civilian career. Additionally, if you headed into the military after high school or college, it’s quite possible that this is your first experience with resume writing, so it just makes sense to have a professional complete this task.

It might also be a good idea to opt for career coaching services, which will help you nail those interviews. If you opt not to use career coaching, simply spend some time researching typical interview questions and practice answering these questions and you’ll feel more confident as you head into interviews.

4. Writing Is Not Your Forte
For some people, writing comes easily and naturally. For others, writing can be a huge chore. Improving your writing skills can be crucial for many jobs, fortunately improving your resume writing skills doesn’t have to be a crucial skills because there are so many resume services available to handle this task for you.

If you’ve been staring at your computer screen, unsure of how to get started with a resume, just contact a resume service. Perhaps you’ve written a ton but have no idea if what you’ve written is too much or if the content will appeal to hiring managers. Using a resume service alleviates this issue. Great resume writers know what hiring managers seek, and how to deliver results. If you aren’t super confident about your writing or editing skills, use a professional service instead.

Even great writers might benefit from a professional resume service. After all, while you might be a great blogger or an ace at creating fantastic brochure copy, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be a great resume writer. You might write too much or you might not use the dynamic keywords that appeal both to hiring managers and applicant-tracking software.

5. You’re Having Trouble
Have you written your own resume and cover letter, but just aren’t getting any results? It could be that these documents need a polish. Contact a resume service and have them review and update your resume. Perhaps they’ll identify the reason why your reason isn’t yielding interviews.

It might be as simple as spelling errors, which truly can kill your chances of being called in for a meeting. It also might be that the skills you list are too generic and don’t really apply to the job postings. It’s also possible that your resume is poorly organized and difficult for hiring managers to skim and quickly gain an understanding of your skills.

If you’ve been receiving calls after submitting your resume, but haven’t received any offers, a resume service may be able to help with this issue, as well. Career coaching services can help you identify your weak areas, as well as your strengths and help you nail the interview process.

In general, if you are going on interviews but aren’t seeing results; take a step back and look at yourself. Ensure that you are presenting a professional image and practice answering those tricky interview questions. You can even contact a hiring manager or two and ask them for some constructive criticism. It might sting a bit, but knowing what you are doing wrong can help you improve and get it right the next time.

Before You Contact A Resume Service . . .

Of course, a resume writer will need a bit of help from you in order to create an amazing resume or cover letter, so be prepared to provide the following:

1. Samples Of Jobs You Want
If you have a couple of current job postings that appeal to you, consider presenting these to your resume writer, so that they can get a solid idea of what those hiring managers want to see.

2. Describe Your Goals
If your resume writer has a good idea of what you truly want, career-wise, they will do a better job crafting your resume.

3. Gather Up The Goods
Your resume writer needs to know all about your educational experience, your skills, your work experience, volunteer experiences and so on. Don’t leave anything out. An experienced resume writer will know what to include and what to omit.

4. A Thought About Contact Information
You obviously want to provide contact information to you resume service, but be sure to triple-check this info. Even the greatest resume writer on earth won’t know if your phone number is correct or not, so it’s up to you to proof this info.

If you have been searching for a resume service, the team at Top 5 Resume Writers highly recommends that you select Resume Writing Group. They produced a dynamic, error-free resume and their team of professional resume writers can handle writing just about any type of resume you might need.