By Sunny Simon
While working with a millennial this week on her job search, I suggested she create a video resume. Not familiar with it? A quick Google will land you the pros and cons, but let me provide some compelling reasons Millennials should consider creating one.
If you are fresh out of college looking for your first opportunity, there is good news. It is no secret the job market is the best it’s been in many years. Great! According to Zip Recruiter, the most popular job titles are: entry-level sales and marketing, customer service representative, account manager and marketing assistant. But bear in mind, you are swimming in a pool among other grads competing for these entry level jobs. This begs the question, what can you do to stand out from the competition?
My standard answer to that query is, leave no stone unturned. Load up your toolbox with a well written resume, a rated LinkedIn profile (shoot for an all-star rating) with a professional headshot (please no selfies of you wearing a baseball cap backward or showing five inches of cleavage) an interesting elevator speech for all the networking events you should be attending and yes, a video link to your digital debut.
Clearly, a video resume is not a replacement for your traditional resume, but it does provide the opportunity to get up close and personal with a recruiter. Done correctly your digital resume shows your audience the professionalism, enthusiasm and presentation skills you possess. Strong word of caution here, keep it short! No more than 60 to 90 seconds.
The folks at www.sparkhire.com, a website where you can create your video, claim your 60 second digital resume gives you a better chance of getting noticed by employers. I agree. It shows you’ve gone the extra-mile to present your qualifications.
Getting back to my young client, her goal is to obtain a position in the animation field. I suggested she shoot her resume in front of one of the story boards she designed. Seems to me, creatives are a natural for this type of extra credit work.
Whether you are looking for your first big break, or a C-level position, here is a fun fact to consider. According to an annual survey created by Vault, a career publisher, “89% of employers revealed they would watch a video resume if it were submitted.” So what have you got to lose job seekers? I say, give it a go! Star in your video resume and beat the competition. Sunny Simon is the owner of Raise the Bar High Life and Career Coaching. More about Sunny at www.raisethebarhigh.com
