5 Ways to Stand Out in a Crowded Job Market

It’s the end of an era for the ‘Candidate’s Market’ when it comes to job searching in a post-pandemic workforce. With the Australian unemployment rate tipping 6.2% last month, the applicant market has now become a Hiring Manager’s game – and the race is tighter than ever.

Not only are jobseekers learning to navigate an overcrowded, hyper-competitive job market, but the landscape of available roles, their variety, scope and remuneration has also changed dramatically.

There is no cheat sheet or creative gimmick to landing your dream job offer in the current climate. Simply ‘ticking boxes’ is no longer enough to get you ahead of the pack. The two things you need now more than ever are information and connections – and knowing how to use them.

Whether it’s on paper or in the interview, you need to come out of the gates showing a potential employer who you are, what you bring to the role and most importantly – what differentiates you from the rest. But this is easier said than done.

Take a look at our top five tips to stand out and turn heads in an oversaturated candidate market.

1. KEEP IT SIMPLE

• When it comes to your resume – honesty is the best policy. Make sure that your LinkedIn profile matches up with the exact dates, job titles and company names on your CV (eg. if a business has since re-branded, include their former name). Inconsistencies in your career timeline are an automatic red flag that will see you rejected in the infancy of the hiring process.

• Simplicity is key – summarise your experience in a short, snappy personal statement at the top of your CV. Sum up yourself, your ideal role and what you are aiming for in your career right now. Think of this paragraph as the ‘back cover blurb’ of your work history.

• The two most recent jobs on your resume are the most important to nail. Make sure you have a recognisable job title for each role by researching the most common title used for the position. Your past employers may have used their own terminology that won’t translate in wider world.

• List your set of achievements separately underneath each of your roles and responsibilities, such as projects you’ve worked on, their size and scale. Include any key awards, sales results or customer retention statistics that will set you apart from your competition at a glance.  

• Highlight your leadership skills by including any management positions you have held, or alternatively a project where you’ve taken the lead and delegated a team. Leadership skills are not inherent – but they can be identified in almost any role if you scrape beneath the surface.

2. BUILD A NETWORK

• Reach out to a specialist Recruiter in the industry (aka – P3 Recruitment!) to scope out what roles are currently available and any potential opportunities that are coming up in the pipeline. The vast majority of jobs are filled well before they make it to the market.

• Build out your LinkedIn connections with business owners and industry contacts to show potential employers that you are well-networked in your field. Be proactive and stay in-tune with the industry to keep your name top of mind.

• Research companies that you really want to work for and let your Recruiter know who to reach out to on your behalf. Get them to set up a 10-minute phone call with the Hiring Manager or Department Manager of each office so that you can sell yourself in and get a chance to create your own opportunity.

• Stay active – share industry-specific content across your social media channels to back up your digital resume. Comment on other thought-leader’s content and keep abreast of key market trends that could become a talking point come interview time.  

3. ​MAKE IT PERSONAL

• Don’t just blanket your CV out and see what sticks. Spend time reviewing each role you’re applying to and change up your resume to highlight key skills or attributes that the Hiring Manager is looking for. Target roles you can really sell yourself into and don’t expect people to read between the lines when it comes to deciphering your background.

• Create a ‘Master Resume’ that lists every possible skill, responsibility and achievement for each of your previous roles so that you can tailor your choices to a particular position. Pick out key duties and keywords that meet the advertised job brief to create a unique, targeted resume for every application.

• Find your USP – and flaunt it. Show what you bring to the role, what makes you the best fit and how your achievements and results can back up your ‘unique selling point’. This could be a transferrable skill, a large project you led or a tertiary qualification that puts you a cut above the rest.  

4. GET ON TOP OF TECH

• As the candidate pool grows – so too does the automation of the hiring process. Be prepared to answer more pre-screening questions when applying to a role and don’t let a simple mistake disqualify you. Expect autoreply rejections and delays in the shortlisting process and be patient with Hiring Managers who are swamped with applicants.

• Use keywords to your advantage – scan through job ads for the role you’re seeking and note down any common terminology, duties or experience listed to add into your CV. When you apply to a role and your details enter an Applicant Tracking System (ATS), you will shoot straight to the top of keyword searches with a profile that makes the match for you.

• Treat video interviews like any other face to face meeting. Dress the part in corporate attire, be mindful of your video background and do a lighting/sound test well before the real thing. Make sure you sit at a table with correct posture and use a laptop rather than phone to master that ‘professional’ video angle.

• Clean up your ‘digital footprint’. Step into the shoes of a potential employer and do a quick Google of yourself – you may be surprised at what you find! Trim the fat on ancient social media posts and make sure all your personal accounts are set to Private. Pick a professional, headshot-level profile picture to make a strong first impression with your boss-to-be.

5. NAIL THE INTERVIEW

• Have clear examples locked and loaded to pull out during your interview. Explain your skills rather than just saying you have them and pinpoint how you used them in your past roles. This could include implementing a new system, running weekly meetings or driving team results. Turn your bullet points into action points – then relate them back to the role you’re interviewing for.

• Ask direct questions to show that you’ve done your homework. Demonstrate your interest in the role and knowledge of the company by asking the Hiring Manager what skills and attributes their most successful employees possess. Ask what a typical day looks like, what the biggest challenges of the role are and how they think you match up with the position. This will paint a clear picture on where you stand and leave your interviewer with a lasting impression.

• Proper preparation prevents sub-par performance. After your phone screen, jump online and do your research on the company, their staff and the role itself before your interview. Plan out 4-5 key talking points and prepare some scenario and behavioural-based examples to back up your resume and smash through the 3^rd-degree.

• Conduct a mock interview with a friend or record your answers to hear how you come across, your pace and your clarity. Striking a balance between rehearsed and ‘off the cuff’ can turn an interview into a job offer.

The job-hunting process can be a gruelling gauntlet to run – even without the added pressure of a global pandemic. Now is not the time to adopt a ‘one size fits all’ approach to your job search. It’s a time to sharpen your skillset, sow seeds and uncover opportunities that won’t come knocking.

What will separate the ‘good’ from the ‘great’ in a heavily congested candidate market isn’t what you have to offer – it’s what you make of it.

Image Credit: SEEK