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Application documents in the 21^st century

The paper resume has been given an upgrade. Recruiters are looking at the way you present your resume and not just what’s in it. The digital resume is gaining currency among job seekers and recruiters are giving it a longer look, if only for the novelty of it. A digital resume is a resume that you have posted online, supported with, for instance, videos, infographics or other elements that are not limited to paper and ink.

Online: A digital resume can be a resume you’ve uploaded on LinkedIn, your website or a video that you have created on YouTube, or a power point presentation that you have put together. A lot of digital resumes are now created using apps or free resume-building websites that offer advanced services for a fee.

Colour psychology: In a digital resume, words are sparse and infographics are employed to tell your story. Infographic and multimedia resumes are the new rage now, with candidates in creative fields embracing it. They showcase your creative skills, personality and experience all in one go. While there are many recruiters who feel that such resumes should not be the primary one you use to reach out to employers, others encourage using it if it fits the job role you are applying for. If you are from a field that does not encourage such extreme creativity, just add some colour to your resume to liven it up. Colours play a big role in conveying the right message. For instance, food sites have red and white colours. Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook choose blue as their company colours. Choose pleasant colours to represent your resume.

Video resumes: Video resumes are becoming increasingly popular with jobseekers wanting to stand out from the crowd. Rather than replacing traditional paper resumes, videos enhance job applications by providing employers with more insight into what an individual has to offer. A traditional resume outlines your skills, qualifications and experience, whereas a video resume enables an employer to get a feel for your personality.

Whether you use a video resume or not depends on the sector, the role you’re applying for and you as a person. Video resumes are a great opportunity to show your presentation skills and they tend to be most appropriate when applying for creative or customer-facing roles in sales, media, or the service industry.
Video resumes come in many different formats which express individuality. There is no set rule for creating a video resume, whereas paper resumes tend to have a set format. However, there are some things that good video resumes have in common. For a start, they should be no longer than three minutes. You only have a few seconds to engage the viewer; then you have to keep them interested. Body language is also important. Maintain eye contact with the camera and don’t read a script off-screen. Finally, it’s important to dress as though you’re attending an interview.