Everyone who has ever been on the job hunt knows one thing—making a resume is hard. You need to choose the right resume templates that you can customize and then condense your entire life into 1-2 pages.
You also need to come across as professional and qualified in those few pages. In other words, a resume needs to do a lot in very little space. So, how can you make a lasting impact on a potential employer or recruiter? By getting creative.
Creative resumes are the in-thing now, and one of the variations of a creative resume that is helping job seekers is the infographic resume.
We explain what an infographic resume is and why you need to make one.
What is an Infographic Resume?
Combining text and visuals has become par for the course for creative resumes. But infographic resumes take creative resumes to another level.
The infographic resume isn’t solely meant to stand out from the stack of resumes that land on recruiters’ desks—it is laid out to tell your story.
The infographic resume accomplishes this by combining a number of elements—including, but not limited to, text, images, charts, maps, and graphics.
With this type of resume, you can create a theme that highlights your qualifications and experiences and tells your story in a meaningful and easy-to-digest manner.
Do You Need an Infographic Resume?
We have already determined that making a resume is hard work. Between deciding on which resume format works best for you and making all your information fit it, designing a great resume takes time and effort.
Making an infographic resume isn’t going to be an easy task but the positive impact it will have on your career prospects cannot be denied.
Here, we look at the reasons why you need to make an infographic resume.
Easily readable: As most job seekers know, recruiters don’t have much time to read all the resumes that come to them. They want something that they can quickly glance through and make a decision on.
An infographic resume accomplishes this by being scannable—your information is neatly laid out in sections that can be absorbed in a glance.
Additionally, the inclusion of icons and graphics tell the reader more in seconds than blocks of text could, as you can see in the below example.
By choosing the right resume template for yourself, you can convey a great deal of information about yourself with an infographic resume.
Great for creative fields: A standard Word resume is bland and lacks personality. While they still have their place in some of the more technical fields, creative arenas require creative solutions.
If your area of expertise is in logo design or data visualization, or if you are sending a resume to freelance websites, a Word resume isn’t going to convey your creativity. You will have to write paragraphs of text to explain what you can do.
With an infographic resume, you can highlight your skills through visual elements. Not only does this make your resume stand out more, but it also displays your multi-faceted abilities.
Easily discoverable: In the current digital climate, you can’t assume that your resume will only be seen by employers when you send it to them. You need to make it easy for them to find you even when you aren’t looking.
An infographic resume can be uploaded to your LinkedIn profile, your blog, as well as the job websites where you have a profile.
When employers are looking for prospective candidates, they will see your attractive resume and be more tempted to contact you instead of job seekers with traditional resumes.
Points to Note
As you can see, there are a number of advantages to using infographic resumes in your job hunt. However, there are some key points you need to keep in mind when sending out these resumes.
Don’t ignore your wording: An infographic resume includes quite a few elements to make it attractive. But that doesn’t mean you ignore what you’re writing in it.
Your choice of wording is still your biggest selling point when it comes to infographic resumes. Be precise and clear about your qualifications and what you can bring to the company you are applying to.
You can see how the below candidate highlights her creativity through her words and design.
Optimize the infographic layout you have chosen—don’t fall back on the tried and tested bullet points and lists when writing about your previous jobs. Display your successes and show measurable proof of your actions.
Don’t replace the traditional resume with an infographic resume: I know this is the last thing you want to hear, but your infographic resume can’t replace a traditional resume; it is meant to complement it.
The reason for this is because most companies are now using Applicant Tracking Systems, many of which aren’t sophisticated enough to read visuals or text that isn’t in a particular order.
In all likelihood, you will need to send a more traditional resume to some companies if they need it. Extra work though it may be, it is best to keep both options open.
Don’t hide your resume: You’ve put in the work to make your infographic resume, so let everyone see it. As we said earlier, infographic resumes make you more discoverable, so share your resume when and where you can.
Publish the resume on your website and social media channels. Send it to friends and family to share with their contacts.
You can also print out your infographic resume and take it with you to networking events.
Even if you have had to send a traditional resume for a job, take updated copies of your infographic resume to interviews and give a copy to the person(s) interviewing you. It will make you more memorable than if you had walked in with a standard resume.
Match your business cards and cover letter with your resume: Your infographic resume can be the basis for creating your own personal brand.
Find a cover letter template that matches the resume and send them both as a visually pleasing and memorable combo.
Use the theme and aesthetic of the resume to create business cards that you can share at events and interviews with your resume.
By creating a cohesive brand with all your job search material, you make yourself far more noteworthy to recruiters and employers, which will increase your chances of a callback.
How to Make an Infographic Resume
Making an infographic resume from scratch, especially when you don’t have graphic design skills, is very hard. But there are template sites where you can choose a resume template that best suits you.
The great thing about using templates is that they are highly customizable. You can swap out text, change entire sections, change colors, and add elements.
With that said, here are a few key sections that should be included in your infographic resume:
- Headline
- Contact details
- Website/ portfolio
- Social Media links
- Education
- Skills
- Experience
Optional sections that you can include:
- Short bio
- References
- Interests and Hobbies
- Awards
Having determined the sections you want to include and chosen a template, here are the primary steps you need to follow when creating an infographic resume.
Choose your colors: Colors evoke emotions in those who view them. Choose your colors not because they will make your resume more noticeable, but because they convey your personality.
Avoid using too many colors—a maximum of three, but two of those colors should be highlight colors only. Use dark colors for text on a light background, and vice versa.
Don’t use bright colors too prominently—limit the use of such colors to the header and for icons. Keep the rest of the resume white, or a paler shade of your primary color.
Picking fonts: It is tempting to overuse fonts for every different element or section. But in actuality, too many fonts will make your resume unreadable.
Use a maximum of three fonts—one for the header, one for the sub-headings, and one for the body text.
By limiting your font use, you can make your resume look cohesive and legible.
Design elements: There are a number of elements you can use in your resume but you have to decide whether or not you need them.
Do you have concrete statistics to share? Incorporate charts in your resume, like in the example below.
Have a number of related skills that you want to convey? Use icons to display them in a quirky but coherent way.
Avoid crowding your resume with too many design elements. You need it to be scannable—including every single design element available to you will do the opposite of that.
Make a personal logo: This goes back to our discussion about personal branding. Creating a logo for your resume will make your resume stand out and cement you as a well-put-together candidate.
Making a logo doesn’t have to be difficult. You can look at these logo design tips for inspiration.
The key is keeping it simple—your initials in a shape or a simple graphic should be enough to distinguish you from your competitors.
In Conclusion: You Need an Infographic Resume and a Traditional One
An infographic resume cannot replace a traditional resume, but the two can work together to get you the job you are looking for.
While a traditional resume shares your professional story in a cut-and-dried manner, an infographic resume conveys your personality alongside your skills.
In the digital age when people, including recruiters, have little time to spend on the countless documents on their desk, an infographic resume not only acts as a tool to attract but is also easily scannable.
While creating an infographic resume from scratch is not for the faint of heart, by customizing resume templates, you can make a resume that shares your personality and displays your abilities in an easily-readable and memorable way.
Tip: When you’re applying for graphic design jobs, it’s always a good idea to write a customized cover letter to accompany your resume. Here’s how to write a cover letter for a graphic design job, with templates to help you get started.
Ronita Mohan is a content marketer at Venngage, the online infographic and design platform. Ronita writes about a number of subjects, including digital marketing, pop culture, workplace productivity, and diversity.
from Career Tool Belt https://www.careertoolbelt.com/why-you-need-an-infographic-resume/
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