7 Ways to Boost Your Job Application

When you’re looking for a new job, it can be difficult to stand out, especially if you’re looking for something in a very competitive industry.

So what can you do? How can you give yourself the edge over people just as qualified as you?

Here are some ideas that might work.

1. Create a portfolio

Don’t just say you’re brilliant; show employers how brilliant you are.

A well-prepared and relevant portfolio really is the best way to showcase your skills and how they can be applied to the actual job.

Cherry-pick some of the best work that you have done and try (if you can) to show off a broad range of skills.

So, for example, if you were a copywriter, you could include whitepapers, website copy, articles, and blogs etc. to show your full professional range of talents.

2. Include testimonials

Including (real) testimonials is definitely pretty unique.

These could be pulled from your LinkedIn profile, or you could ask a previous Manager for a few lines or some of your previous clients. It’s up to you.

Just make sure you get permission and that they would be willing to confirm the testimonial! Just in case your potential employer rings to check it out.

Include this kind of thing on your CV or in a separate document and it could well boost you to the top of the pile.

If you have the same skills as another candidate, but have included a testimonial from the VP of an organization saying how amazing you are, who are they more likely to remember? You.

3. Do some work

If you have the time, you could actually do an example piece of work for the company, as if you’d already got the job, to show how you’d work in real-life.

So for example, if you’re going to be involved in design, you could complete a design project for them (perhaps you could create a logo or something similar).

This one will take some work, so I’d only recommend doing this if you really (really) want to work for a company and/or you know that it’s competitive to get in there.

Showing how your skills could be utilised in a new company is probably the single best thing you can do to boost your chances of being hired.

It can be disheartening to put in several hours of work without pay, but if you have the required skills, then it’s a way to set yourself apart from your less-serious competition.

4. Be more human

Yes, you have to be professional on a job application, however, regurgitating corporate buzzwords verbatim like a robot in a suit is not going to make you very memorable.

You can bang on and on and on about “synergy” and “driving growth” and “brand recognition” till the cows come home, but just remember that everyone else will too.

Include the things that you need to include, but give your CV a little personality where you can.

5. Tailor your application and CV

It gets said a lot, but that’s because it’s true! Tailoring your application and/or CV to the job you’re applying for is crucial.

An all-encompassing CV is often too detailed with information that isn’t relevant, making it overly lengthy and likely to be ignored or skimmed through.

Do the hiring managers at the construction company really need to know about those 6 months you spent as a Barista in the ‘90s? Use your common sense and keep things relevant.

6. Research the company beforehand

If you can show in your application that you already know about the company, its history, and its ethos, then you’re a step ahead of many other people.

Subtly dropping in some content that shows you have researched the company makes you seem enthusiastic and well-prepared too.

Many people will use similar cover letters and content when applying to a range of jobs, sort of “blanket applying” if you will.

Tailoring your content to show that you are aware of the company’s history (i.e. showing that you aren’t copying and pasting a template) shows initiative and authenticity.

7. Cut the fluff

Fluff is something that you definitely want to avoid on a job application, as you’ll quickly lose the interest of your potential employers.

This means that you should keep your content concise and to-the-point, avoiding unnecessary or overly-long sentences.

And keep everything relevant!!!

Summary

So there we have it. Some of the best ways you can boost your job application to make it stand out.

Let’s recap:

1. Create a portfolio.
2. Include testimonials.
3. Do some work.
4. Be more human.
5. Tailor your application and CV
6. Research the company beforehand.
7. Cut the fluff.

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