The Best Resume Tips and Tricks to Help You Land a Job

Your resume is the first touchpoint with potential employers. In only one page, you need to showcase relevant skills, the most impressive accomplishments, and a strong work history. If you are wondering how to make your resume stand out in 2025, you're in the right place.

In this guide, we will recommend modern resume tips and tricks to help you stand out in the competitive job market. From presenting your accomplishments and effectively tailoring your application to the job description to formatting and keywording advice - keep reading for the best resume tips 2025 and get ready to land more job interviews!

What Makes a Resume Truly Effective in 2025

Resume writing trends and best practices evolve every year. As a job-seeker, you want to keep up with these trends to show the employer your industry awareness and submit a modern-looking resume.

Here's what makes a strong resume, according to recruiters:

Applicant tracking system (ATS) compliance.

In most cases, your resume will be scanned by ATS, or resume robots, before the human recruiter sees it. To pass these filters, you should add relevant keywords. Read the job posting and incorporate soft and technical skills, achievements, and credentials mentioned there. For more guidance on ATS resume tips and formatting, read our guide to ATS resume writing.

Skimmability and easy reading.

Writing a resume overloaded with text is not the best idea in 2025. Your resume should be visually structured, well-formatted, and skimmable to attract the recruiter's attention.

Format your job duties and relevant achievements in bullet points, not paragraphs. Leave plenty of white space between sections and set 1'' margins to make it visually appealing and comfortable for a resume reader.

Resume tailoring.

One of the key resume writing tips is personalization. Sending 10 customized resumes is more effective than sending the same resume to 100 open jobs.

Tailor your job responsibilities, achievements, and all the relevant skills for the target job description. You needn't rewrite it completely every time, but be sure to adjust the resume content to showcase relevant qualifications. It will bring better results in the hiring process as your application will look more relevant to recruiters.

Numbers and results.

All hiring managers look at your achievements in the first place. Job duties of two Digital marketers are quite similar, so relevant achievements make all the difference.

To stand out to prospective employers, include at least two achievements for each job. Quantify achievements with numbers or percentages to show your impact in each specific position. Here are the examples:

Bad: Answered phone calls from customers.

Good: Handled 30+ customer calls per day with a 95% resolution rate.

Strong resume summary statement.

The first lines in your resume often determine whether the reader will pay enough attention to the rest of resume content. Think of it as an elevator pitch - a strong summary can attract attention to your qualifications faster.

Create a focused resume summary that showcases your professional value, concrete examples of achievements, and focuses on employers' needs.

A track record of promotions.

For an experienced professional, it's essential to showcase vertical growth, promotions, and growth in responsibility. If you worked your way up with the same employer, won an award or were recognized for superior performance, this should absolutely be mentioned on a resume. Create a separate section for your accomplishments if you're a top performing professional to make sure your contribution isn't left unnoticed.

Resume Tips and Tricks for Catchy and Professional Formatting

Resume formatting and structure is what employers notice first in your resume. If your resume is effectively structured with all sections in place and has a catchy layout, you get a higher chance of an interview.

Here are our top resume formatting tips to create an interview-worthy resume in 2025.

Double-check contact information.

Check every word and digit in your phone number, email, and address. A misspelled phone number can lead to missed opportunities, as the recruiter simply won't be able to contact you!

Use effective resume structure.

Choose the resume format that works best for your goals and career background. We recommend using a combination resume, as it works great for students, experienced professionals, and people changing careers.

In this resume, you create a concise Summary section, and a list of skills. After that, include your job in reverse chronological order. This format is preferred by most employers.

If you're a student with limited work experience, describe your relevant coursework, volunteer work, and community service experience in detail. Employers don't expect rich experience from students. However, they want to see that you're proactive and hard-working.

Pick a correct resume file name.

Change the resume file name to âFirstname_Lastname_Resume.docxâ. It makes your application easily searchable on the hiring manager's computer. If you give your document a meaningless name such as âresumeâ or âDocument 1â, it will easily get tossed in a hiring manager's folder with hundreds of other files.

Always send your resume as a DOCX or PDF file, as such files open correctly on any device.

Add a link to your LinkedIn profile

Add the link to your LinkedIn profile next to your contact information. It will give a recruiter more details about you, and a professional, polished profiles will benefit your job search. Don't link your personal profiles unless you're an SMM manager and you'd like to show off your skills. If you have a professional website or online portfolio, share a link to them in your contact information as well.

Create a dedicated Skills section.

A separate Skills section serves two purposes. Firstly, it can impress employers if your skills are highly relevant. Secondly, you can pack it with keywords and get a better ATS score.

Experts recommend that you add between 10 and 20 skills required for the position. Include both hard skills and soft skills, and divide them into categories if necessary (i.e. software skills, coding skills, foreign language proficiency). Don't forget to include the most important skills in a cover letter.

Create a skimmable resume.

Recruiters spend 7 seconds reviewing each resume, so skimmability is a must. Here are the resume layout best practices to showcase your qualifications quickly.

• Use clearly divided subheadings, bulleted lists and a plenty of white space.
• Set a 11-12 pts font and use shorter sentences to ease the reading
• Align the resume content to the left as this is how we naturally use text both on paper and the screen.
• Use no more than 350 words on each page so they can look through your resume easy.
• Keep your formatting ATS-friendly. Don't use tables, graphs, charts, columns, or images. This formatting might not open correctly in ATS software, thus getting your resume tossed.
• Or, use our free ATS-firendly resume template in Google Docs, insert your past experience and skills, and create an attractive, recruiter-friendly resume much faster.

What Not to Include in Your Resume in 2025

If you haven't updated the resume for 3+ years, it probably follows the outdated resume trends that can jeopardize your chances of landing the next job! Here's what to delete from your document to create a great resume that impresses recruiters.

Buzzwords and filler words.

If you still use words like highly experienced, visionary leader, go-getter, and proactive team player in your summary or bullet points, it's high time you removed them. Buzzwords to avoid in resume irritate hiring managers as they don't tell much about what actually makes you a good candidate.

The solution? If you really want to strengthen your writing, cross out these words and statements â you might be astounded how many of these your resume has. And then, give specific results of your work and accomplishments using dollars and percentages.

Old and irrelevant jobs.

A modern resume isn't the place to keep all the jobs you had since graduation, but rather a snapshot of your recent experience. if you have solid professional experience, exclude the jobs you had 15 years ago and earlier. Not only it will save your resume space (I bet it's a huge challenge to fit 20+ years of experience into 2 pages), but also will help you avoid the age discrimination.

Irrelevant or basic skills.

If you're applying for a job as a programmer, don't include your customer service or receptionist skills you've gained early in your career. Similarly, if you're an experienced professional, omit obvious skills such as MS Word or time management.

Personal information.

Unless you apply for a job in Europe or Asia where it's a norm, don't include any personal details, such as your photo, marital status, age, or ethnicity. Such information can be used to discriminate against you, so employers usually reject such applications to avoid discriminatory claims.

Focusing too much on education.

If you've graduated over 5 years ago, the only education details deserve being mentioned are your degree, major, university name and graduation year. Listing academic accomplishments, student communities, coursework and extracurricular activities is only acceptable for those recently out of college.

Grammar or spelling mistakes.

59% of recruiters toss resumes that has grammar or spelling issues. Edit and proofread the document several times, and have someone to review it for you as well.

Resume Summary, Keywords, and Action Verbs

Resume summary is the first thing that a potential employer sees, so make it count.

Tips to perfect your Summary statement

1. Make it 2-4 sentences long, depending on your experience and career level.
2. In the first sentence, add your target job title, how many years of experience you have, and 2-3 career highlights.
3. Next, include 1-2 measurable achievements, key skills, and credentials that can set you apart from the competition.
4. Be sure to adjust your summary to the position description to show how you can contribute to employer.

Need help writing a professional summary? Contact us on chat to discuss how we can improve your resume to make it more effective.

Resume summary examples

• Resourceful Software Developer with 5+ years of experience in front-end development using React and JavaScript. Adept at creating responsive interfaces and cooperating with designers to introduce innovative features. Increased user engagement by 22% by redesigning UI and reduced code duplication by 35%.

Use resume keywords smart

In 2025, you need to use keywords strategically to make it through ATS filters. ATS software scans your resume for keywords to determine if you qualify. Make sure to incorporate keywords from the job description in your summary, Skills section, and experience naturally so that they work for resume robots and human reviewers.

Incorporate strong resume action verbs

Adding strong action verbs at the beginning of bullet points is one of the best resume writing tips. The words you use when describing your career history shape the perception of your abilities and contribution.

For instance, "Participated in the launch of company's marketing campaign" portrays you like a 'doer' while "Developed content plan for the company's marketing campaign" directly showcases your contribution. Don't be shy to use "Initiated", "Ensured" and "Directed" if this was exactly what you were doing; don't hide your impact under the generic "Responsible for".

Strong action words for your resume and cover letter

1. Directed
2. Achieved
3. Improved
4. Increased
5. Developed
6. Implemented
7. Executed
8. Analyzed
9. Resolved
10. Facilitated

Resume Tips for Specific Audiences

Resume Tips for Students

Students find the resume writing process especially frustrating and confusing. Here are some tips to help you out:

• List unpaid experience and projects. Volunteer work for a community center, pet projects in the university, or internships - list everything as real experience. Include your title, job duties, and what you've achieved.
• Make it one page. This is the ideal length for students.
• Use an objective instead of summary. Explain what type of role you're seeking and how you'd like to develop professionally.
• Emphasize educational experience. List academic achievements, coursework, and extracurriculars.

If you struggle to create a resume with no experience, you might benefit from hiring a resume writing expert. At Resumeperk.com, we provide personal resume help for students and graduates. Our consultant can create you a resume from scratch or correct the existing one. Contact our chat support for a 20% discount off your first order. Still want to write a resume by yourself? Then, consult our guide for writing entry-level resumes: https://resumeperk.com/blog/creating-a-resume-with-no-experience-step-by-step-guide.

Resume Tips for Career Changers

Reflecting a career change on your resume is challenging, as you need to sell yourself to the employer in a new field. Here's how to make your resume appealing even despite the lack of relevant experience.

• Explain the career change in a summary. Write the field you are transitioning to, and mention any experience/training in a new field. Make your career change clear for the employer right off the bat.
• Consider a functional format. Include a summary, a list of relevant skills and competencies, and then jobs in a reverse chronological order.
• Put your new experience first. If you completed online courses or worked on projects for free, put it near the top.

Resume Tips for Remote Jobs

Remote jobs are on the rise - approximately 35% of the US workforce now work from home. Here's how to tailor your resume to apply for remote positions:

• Emphasize remote experience. If you have worked remotely or had a hybrid schedule before, mention that near the job title to let the potential employers know.
• List remote-friendly skills. Skills like time management, remote communication, self-motivation, and adaptability are an asset for a resume for a remote job.
• Include the technology. Include remote collaboration tools (Zoom, Slack, MS Teams, Google Workspace, and else).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best format for a modern resume?

The best resume format in 2025 is typically the reverse chronological format. It highlights your most recent and relevant experience first and is ATS-friendly, making it easier for employers to assess your career progression.

How do I tailor my resume for a specific job?

To tailor your resume, carefully read the job posting, identify key qualifications and responsibilities, and align your resume content with those. Use job-specific keywords and examples of your achievements that match the role.

Should I include a resume summary or objective in 2025?

Yes, a resume summary is recommended. It gives a quick snapshot of your experience and skills relevant to the job. Objectives are less common unless you’re changing careers or entering the workforce for the first time.

What are some signs that my resume is outdated?

Common signs of an outdated resume include using old fonts or layouts, listing every job ever held, including references upon request, and failing to include quantifiable achievements. Make sure your resume meets current formatting and content standards.

How can I make my resume stand out to employers?

Use action verbs, quantify your results, incorporate relevant keywords, and design the layout for skimmability. Also, show your personality subtly by highlighting accomplishments and work culture fit.

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