Check Your E-Mail Address

No matter what type of job you are applying for, you want to make sure that your e-mail address is seen as professional. If your e-mail is cutechickybabe@gmail.com, change it.

Same goes for nicknames. Get yourself a Gmail or Yahoo account in your name and your postcode eg. JaneMays2200@gmail.com. Also, don't use your birth year. Employers can calculate! You don't want to give anything away.

Remember, your first impression has to be your best one.

Check Your Mobile / Phone Voice Message

You must put a phone contact number on your résumé so that the recruiter can call you for an interview. Chances are though, there will be some times when you won't be able to answer your phone and the recruiter will want to leave a message for you. Please check your current voice message and make sure it is professional, polite, clear and concise. Eg. “You have contacted Jacqui Smith. Unfortunately I am unable to take your call at the moment. Please leave your name, a short message and the time you called, and I shall return your call as soon as possible. Thank you and I look forward to talking with you soon.”

Ensure You Have a Digital Version of Your Resume

The majority of advertised jobs are now online and almost all of those require you to upload a copy of your résumé in Microsoft Word on to the advertiser’s site. If you choose to include any images in your résumé, please make sure that the overall file size is small enough to be uploaded. There is usually a 2MB limit. If you exceed this, your résumé will not upload.

Ensure Your Résumé is Professionally Presented

For every job that is advertised, there are hundreds of applicants and résumés. If your résumé is professionally presented, it will be considered and stay in the pile. If it is poorly presented in any way ie. poorly laid out, grammatical or spelling errors, too short or too long, or the unimaginable, handwritten, it will be quickly rejected, regardless of your experience. A well formatted, well presented, concise, information-filled résumé is worth the time and effort to create. You can research the Internet to find many examples of effective résumés.