Beer

Effective Resume Writing – How To Do It Right

I absolutely hate eating cheese.

That was the first impression I made on you. If you love cheese it was probably a bad one, but that’s how quickly a first impression can be made. It’s the same for online platforms, from dating websites, to, I don’t know… résumés!

Both are first points of contact, one between prospective employee and employer, the other between potential life partners. Both provide a snapshot of who you are, with the aim that the other party will want to strike up a conversation, a meeting, then a blissful partnership. In any case, it all comes down to the execution. Let’s look at our first hopeful unemployed/lonely heart.

Effective Resume Writing Pau Morgan

Pau, I feel like we have an instant connection. You’re bright, you’re beautiful, and your Spanish accent gives me shivers. This résumé is eye catching, and is smartly designed. This is like stumbling upon a foreign man on a dating site. There may be a language barrier, but his simple, no frills approach toward things makes you feel instantly at ease. Plus there’s no harm that he’s easy on the eyes.

Then there’s Alan Dickson. This résumé is full on, in your face, leaving very little to the imagination. Being this… upfront in a dating profile wouldn’t really bode well for your romantic future. Similarly, presenting this image of yourself won’t aid your chances of gaining employment.

Effective Resume Writing Alan Dickson

Instead, put your best self forward, and keep your private interests (taking photos of yourself flexing in the gym) to yourself. If I was an employee I’d laugh and keep the résumé, but I wouldn’t give Alan a call.

Though varying greatly in design and aesthetics, both résumés are similar in that they exist either on paper or digitally. Despite how interesting, creative or visually confronting they are (I’m looking at you Alan), they can still be added onto a pile with another résumé placed neatly on top.

That’s where Brennan Gleason comes in, a graphic designer hailing from Canada, who did something altogether different and displayed his résumé on the packaging of a four pack home brew, with extracts of his original work on each bottle.

Creativity is key when it comes to effective resume writing.

“I’ve always been inspired by those unconventional CVs and recently got into home brewing,” Mr Gleason said. “So I thought why not put the two together? Each bottle features a piece of work from my portfolio with a little bit of info on it. It also features a QR code linking to the project on my website.”

Brennan sent cases of beer as soon as he graduated from university, and unsurprisingly – got offered jobs soon after.

In dating this would be like organising a date and getting flowers, chocolate and wine as a reminder gift. But in an awesome, we’re going to be together forever way, not a creepy, how do you know where I live, back off psycho way. And I’m sure if Brennan was on a dating site, he wouldn’t stay single for long either.

What have I taken from exploring the wonderful world of résumés, and the sometimes not so wonderful, downright creepy world of online dating profiles? Creativity is key. And if you’re willing to woo your prospective employee/love interest with a four pack of home brew – well, that can only sweeten the deal.

Resum-Ale? I’ll drink to that.

– Steph

Winning The Ad Super Bowl

Sometimes when I’m lazing in front of the telly, I find myself oddly drawn to the strangest of ads… ads that have absolutely nothing to do with the product, but linger long after a supermarket promotes their latest specials or some chap explains how his painkillers actually target pain. This begs the question: “how relevant is relevance?” How important is it to make an ad that actually has something to do with the product? If Super Bowl XLVIII is anything to go by, it’s nowhere near as important as how your ad makes people feel.Puppy Love

The Super Bowl is the single most viewed event on the planet. Super Bowl XLVIII was viewed by hundreds of millions watching across the globe. That’s a goldmine for companies looking to get their brand out to the most massive of mass audiences. But with 30 seconds of airtime costing US$4 million, you almost have to sell a goldmine too. So what do these companies and their ad agencies come up with to get a return on their sizeable investment?

Forget sex sells. Cute sells.

USA Today’s Ad Meter – found that Budweiser’s Puppy Love ad was the consumer favourite. It’s the story of a puppy at a breeder’s farm who befriends a horse, to the point where the horses prevent that puppy’s adoption to keep the little Labrador with them. It’s beautifully shot, the animals are amazingly well trained, and it tells a heartwarming story with a happy ending – a tale of friendship that transcends species. It also has absolutely nothing to do with beer. But Budweiser doesn’t care.

They care that their story made hundreds of millions feel warm and fuzzy inside on that day, as well as millions more on YouTube (it has over 45 million views there). They care that their brand is associated with happiness, the importance of friendship and the joy that comes with being “best buds”. And they care that when people are browsing at the bottle shop, hundreds of millions will think of that ad with the cute puppies and horses, and make a beeline to a carton of Budweiser.

Next time you’re coming up with a campaign, think carefully not just about your product, but about the feelings you want your brand to be associated with. The pay off could be substantial!

– Magnus