Video Resume Tips

The modern market gets a bunch of additional jobs every year, creating new specialties and opportunities for job seekers. In the same time, it requires extra requirements and skills to be a lucky applicant and obtain a wanted job position. With the increases competitiveness in almost every sphere of people’s activity, there must be improved ways to get the desired job nowadays. A video resume is one of the top solutions for job seekers since it helps to impress your potential employer and reveal your best traits on camera. Many global companies have already included a video resume submitting into their application process, thus if you want to get a top job, you should know how to submit an effective video resume.

A Video Resume Description

A video resume or as it also called a video CV remains a list of personal achievements and employment history professionally turned into a short movie. Definitely, a traditional resume stays as much useful and needed as a few decades ago. Still, many modern job positions require the ability to provide a short film with listed personal achievements and working history in order to become a successful candidate. In addition, with a video resume, you can make a better impression and reach your potential employer. Many positions in a creative field and in IT sphere require an impressive video resume professionally filmed and presented. Besides, with a properly filmed video resume, you can make a great first impression and show that you fit the company’s culture and employees’ shared values perfectly.

Where to Use a Video Resume

When you want to submit a video resume, check first whether it can help your specific job application or not. Furthermore, check the company you are applying to, its corporal culture and expectations since some modern companies refer to video resume as a quite experimental type of CV. Besides, everything depends on the exact type of a job you are looking for within your application process. Surely, if you are applying to a company in a creative field or related to IT sphere, it is highly recommended to submit a video resume showing your impressive abilities to deal with the modern resume formats and the latest technologies. Therefore, conduct small research first to figure out whether a video resume will increase your chances to get a job or not. It will save a lot of your time and efforts.

How to Make a Video Resume

Making a video resume requires proper knowledge of the company and its expectations, together with the ability to film a short and informative video. In general, you must include your employment history and the most outstanding achievement into your short video resume to impress your potential employers. It would be also beneficial to learn how to express yourself freely on camera in order to make a great first impression.

Tips on How to Prepare a Video Resume

There are eight the most common tips to help you prepare a great video resume:

1. Prepare a script. Once drafting a script, you will get a well-optimized plan of your video clip, thus it will be easier to stay focused and confident within the filming process. It is great to prepare a unique script, avoiding cliché phrases like “willing to learn” or “team player”. Find your own words to describe your experience and personal achievements.
2. Think about your audience. Everyone, who needs to submit a video resume, must research company and its expectations in advance to know what exact information to provide in a video CV. You must remember who your audience is and what your audience expects. Moreover, in your video, you must demonstrate your importance for a company and team.
3. Make it short and concise. There is no need to create a long video. The modern employers are very busy people and have no time for long presentations. Make a video of 60 to 90 seconds long.
4. Show your strengths. You must select the best video format to highlight your strengths. Outline your personal achievements and the ability to work with modern formats and the latest technologies.
5. Prefer quality equipment. If you want to make a good first impression, use a good microphone and camera. Work with lights and select a quiet place for your film.
6. No need to hurry up. Try to avoid a typical desire to speed up, and always stay calm and confident. You can have as many takes as you need to provide a proper video.
7. Use relevant links. Check the information you include into your video resume, whether it is your portfolio or link on social media.
8. Stay yourself. You can prepare yourself to fit the company’s expectation, but it would be much better if you stay yourself.

Things to Avoid in a Video Resume

Together with a short list of important video resume characteristics, there is a list of things to avoid in your video CV.

1. Film in casual clothes. Since this is a video resume used for applying to a job, make sure to keep it official. You will not become a successful applicant once filming in a pajama.
2. Sound robotic. You can draft a script and learn it by heart, but when you simply list your achievements and experience in a robotic voice, you decrease your chances to get the desired job. You must keep the audience interested in what you are saying and act quite artistically.
3. Copy your resume. If you do not try to add some creative approach and simply copy your resume, it will not have a needed effect.
4. Acting childish. This is an official video, which requires a proper tone. Besides, it can be shared on the Internet, thus do not make anything you do not want other people to see.
5. Overstate your achievements. Always stay honest about your working experience, personal achievements, and skills.

Structure of a Video Resume

A video resume should not remain a simple copy of a traditional paper resume, but be more like a short job interview. Therefore, every element of a video resume matters. In order to impress the audience, the resume must have an attention-grabbing beginning, the main story told, and a call-to-action. Starting your video, make sure to be confident and calm. If you start sounding too robotic, you will lose a chance to make a good first impression. There is no need to speed up. It is better to be brief and specific, thus you will be able to tell your story in about 60 – 90 seconds, and deliver the main story easily. The call-to-action is an important element of a video resume since it motivates the viewer to hire you, no matter whether you prepare a video CV for an employer or a hire manager. Remember, that even with standard elements of a video resume, it is important to keep in your mind that every job position requires a separate resume. Put only relevant and interesting information into your script. Highlight your best skills and experience. For each job vacancy, outline the relevant experience and employment history.

Recommendations of Professional Writers

Qualified writers recommend staying professionals and dressing official as for an interview. Moreover, they advise never use slang, cliché phrases, and for sure, a curse language. It is also important to film in a quiet place and avoid any disturbing noises in the background. Use a drafted script to prepare your video resume and follow your plan. In the same time, never read a text from a script directly, but better learn it by heart. Stay concise and try to sound optimistic. Using visuals to highlight your achievements can be very beneficial for your video resume successfulness. When recalling the main thing that must be avoided, experts advise never mix professional and personal life. Besides, every applicant needs to provide both a traditional resume and a video CV. Not all modern employers require a video resume, but they all need a traditional one to include you into a list of potential candidates.

A video resume is a short list of personal achievements and employment history professionally turned into a movie. Nowadays, many job positions require the ability to provide a short film with listed personal achievements and working history. In order to impress the audience, a video resume must have an attention-grabbing beginning, the main story told, and a call-to-action. It would be very beneficial to learn how to express yourself freely on camera in order to assure an employer or HR manager that you are the best candidate for a job position. Many positions in a creative field and in IT sphere require an impressive video resume, thus figuring out how to make a proper video resume is crucial for modern applicants. Besides, with a properly filmed video resume, you can always make a great first impression and show that you fit the company’s culture and employees’ shared values perfectly.