A new year, for some the perfect time to find a new job. But in times of economic crisis, applicants have to pull out all the stops to stand out. A visual resume is a way to clearly differentiate yourself and gain an advantage.
For a visual resume , there are online tools available such as Vizualize.me , Resumup and Re.vu . The big list to data advantage of such tools is that they are easy to create: import your Linkedin profile and you are done. Your resume is shown in a visual way instead of the boring list with only words. The biggest disadvantage of these tools is that they are still lists. A story is missing, which makes every visual resume made with these tools look the same.
If you want to tell a unique visual story, you will have to put something together yourself. Presentation software such as Powerpoint and Slideshare are excellent tools to tell a visual story. In this article I will show you how to create a visual resume in Powerpoint. You can later upload this Powerpoint file to Slideshare. Then you send your visual resume around, share it via social media and include it in your Linkedin profile.
Visual storytelling: what do you want to say?
Before you start creating your visual resume, you need to figure out what you want to tell. So focus on your story first and leave the software alone. After you have formulated your story, you can think about how visuals can enhance your story. Finally, you put everything together in Powerpoint.
Step 1: Developing your core message
Picture core messageThe first thing you need to think about is what message you want to communicate. Or put differently, what exactly do you want people to remember after reading your visual resume? Try to summarize your resume (your story) in just one sentence. This one sentence is the core message. The core message should be formulated as one sentence, describe you and be distinctive.
If you have already optimized your Linkedin profile, you can use your LinkedIn headline, for example, provided that it meets these three criteria. Your core message is the peg on which you hang the rest of your visual resume. Therefore, try out different sentences and be critical of each sentence.