Professional CV writing services

Spoonman

Spoonman

Spoonman

Associate
Joined
7 Nov 2004
Posts
168
Location
Manchester
Has anyone paid out for a professional CV writing service? I sent my CV off for a free review yesterday and they told me that it wasn't 'achievement' based enough, i.e. I had fallen in to the common trap of merely 'listing' job responsibilities and not concentrating on what I have achieved in each position. So it wasn't acting as a sales brochure.

Apart from 'increased sales three-fold' in my previous job I'm finding it difficult to think of anything I've ever really achieved in some of the other jobs I've had, they've not all been that that great and I can dress them up to an extent but anything more seems to be pushing it a bit. Or perhaps I just need to look at things in a different way.

Now, the 'HR Professional' on the other end of the line gave me some good advice but also mentioned their professional CV writing service, costing £140 which consists of a 30 minute telephone interview and them writing the CV for you. Now, part of me thinks it's a little expensive but may be worth it, taking in to account their statistics of of "91% of people get interviews", etc etc. On the other hand, part of me thinks that she is also trying to sell me something and that a lot of positions are application form based anyway, so it may not necessarily be of any help.

I've had a quick look around and the price seems to vary - this site for example offers the service from £32.50 to £54.50 depending on level of experience.

I think my CV is OK, I've taken in to account a lot of feedback from quite a few people now (including a friend that works in recruitment), it's a lot better than it used to be, but I don't think it's really doing its job.

Any opinions?
 
Spoonman said:
Apart from 'increased sales three-fold' in my previous job I'm finding it difficult to think of anything I've ever really achieved in some of the other jobs I've had, they've not all been that that great and I can dress them up to an extent but anything more seems to be pushing it a bit. Or perhaps I just need to look at things in a different way.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean but you need to think about the kind of questions that come up in interviews / application forms and think about ways in which you can show achievements, not just concrete goals you have hit but also some of the more touchy-feely stuff:

-Have you ever been in a position of responsibility? If so, mention a piece of work which you successfully pushed through to a conclusion
-Have you ever been responsible for work allocations/supervision of others? If so, mention how you helped to develop the team and helped them to achieve XYZ. Heck, even if you weren't in charge, team achievements shouldn't be overlooked.
-Have you ever received any formalised feedback/recognition as part of your work? (Employee of the month, work published in an internal/external communication, praise received from clients/customers etc).
-If you've ever been promoted in the past, don't just look at it in terms of the pure facts (job X from date1 to date2, job Y from date2 to date3) - use this as an opportunity to show how you were able to develop and take on more responsibility within the company. You have the concrete evidence to back it up!

Obviously for many people some of this may be better saved until the interview (to avoid putting too much detail in the CV), but from your post I'm guessing there is room to expand your CV a little
 
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