Your CV is usually the first opportunity you get to sell yourself to potential employers and the quality of your CV will be the deciding factor in you being invited in for an interview, or not. Writing the perfect CV that sets you aside from the competition is tough. The way we apply for jobs has changed considerably within the last 15 years, moving almost exclusively online, not to mention the COVID-19 pandemic which has increased the number of applicants, and therefore competition, tenfold. From designing the right format and layout to utilising the best language to sell your skills and experiences effectively, if CV writing isn’t something you do often, it can pose a significant challenge.
These challenges are why an increasing number of jobseekers are opting to use CV writing services to enjoy the benefits a professionally written CV brings. However, as with any industry, product or service there are multiple of options available, all claiming they can write the very best CV possible, and prices can vary widely, as does the quality of the service, so how do you know which one to choose?
Hiring the correct CV service for your specific needs is a big decision to make. A perfectly written CV and cover letter, optimised for the application could secure your next big career move, while the wrong choice could put your entire job search in jeopardy, so it’s not a decision that should be taken lightly.
Firstly, why utilise a CV writing service?
Before looking at what you should consider when hiring a CV writer, it’s important to understand the direct benefits to your job application process when engaging a professional CV writing company. There’s absolutely no doubt about it, when it comes to making your next career move, your CV is the most important tool at your disposal.
It’s the document that gives the recruiting manager their first impression of you, and first impressions are everything as they say, so you need to ensure you are presenting yourself THE candidate who is going to solve the current problem within their business (this is why they are recruiting). A good professional CV writer will ensure that your CV is written in a compelling style and as a bare minimum, completely free from simple errors that non-professionals make.
A CV writing service should guarantee that your documents are formatted and designed to current standards, which are changing more often than you’d think. When it comes to their CV, many job seekers simply edit their existing CV and update their employment experience over the years. The result is a significantly outdated, somewhat irrelevant read, usually with the employment experience presented like a running daily to-do list. In the current job market, this isn’t going to offer any advantage over other candidates and a numbers game begins, usually applying for dozens or even hundreds of jobs before being selected for interview.
Here’s where a professional CV writer steps in. They can objectively look at your previous experience and highlight what is relevant and what to omit. They will focus on your key skills, your relevant experience and critically, your achievements.
Leaving the achievements out is the most common mistake candidates make when writing their own CV. It’s your achievements that set you aside from every other candidate in the market, and it’s crucially important that these are displayed within your CV. Companies are seeking to employ achievers, not doers.
So, what should you look for in a professional CV service?
There are many benefits to a professionally written CV, so it is essential that you find the right partner for you to ensure you maximise these benefits. There are also different factors that combine to make the perfect CV, so you want to ensure you are getting the best value from your CV writer.
When choosing a CV service, the main points you should consider are:
The company’s reputation
This is one of the most important things to consider when looking for a CV writing service to work with. Your CV is one of the most important documents you will ever own, it’s the document that directs your whole career, and therefore your finances and ultimately your life, so naturally, you should want to work with the best CV service that your budget allows. It’s not a place I would suggest scrimping on. With this in mind, please take the time to research the CV writing companies you are considering and read the reviews and testimonials from previous clients. Ensure the reviews are genuine, review sites like Google and Trustpilot filter out fake reviews so this can be an excellent indicator of client satisfaction rates. As a rule of thumb, if the review score is lower than 4.5, ask yourself what’s going wrong with 1/10 clients and can you take the chance that you will be in that 10%? On the other hand, a ‘perfect 5’ usually indicates fake reviews – be wary! Things that seem too good to be true usually are.
CV People hold a review score of 4.9/5 which can be verified on Trustpilot, our feedback and testimonials are gauged from over 24,000 clients since 2011.
Their marketing
Don’t base your decision solely on reputation alone. You should also consider how the CV service are marketing themselves to you as a client. This is an excellent indicator of their attention to detail and sales skillset (incredibly important when writing a CV). If they cannot effectively sell their own services and brand to you, how will they be able to create you a bespoke CV which in turn sells you as a candidate to hiring managers? See the link?
Examine how they communicate with you and scrutinise their branding. If their communication leaves you feeling like they don’t give 100% effort, or their branding looks dated, then these can be clear warning signs that your CV won’t be written with the care and attention it requires. Keep a close eye on their attention to detail. Your CV must position you above the competition, and compelling writing requires a keen eye, minor mistakes in this day and age will result in recruiters forming a poor opinion of your CV and this WILL cost you interviews.
Pricing
Prices for a professionally written CV can vary drastically. There are CV writers to suit every budget, and typically they fall into three categories:
Sub £100
These budget-friendly options will just focus on making your existing CV more compelling and tidying up any grammatical errors. This basic level of service will not focus on your personal branding or position. They would usually lack any kind of client consultation and work via email. This level of service is usually outsourced to non-English speaking countries then proofread and mistakes corrected before being forwarded on to you. They usually don’t allow for revisions or refunds if the quality of work is poor. More often than not, these services provide zero value and you’d be better joining our CV workshop and writing your CV yourself. You can even ask us for a free CV review, and we’ll tell you where to improve it!
£100 - £300
This middle tier of pricing will see your CV written by recruitment consultants or professionals with similar experience. They will typically help you tailor your profile to ensure you are selling yourself more effectively to potential recruiters. The document should be free from spelling and grammatical mistakes and you should expect a brief consultation towards the top end of this price point. If your existing CV is dated and poorly written, you should expect to see an improvement.
£300 - £750+
This is where CV People sit in the market. Our elite CV writing service aligns you with our extensively trained, hand selected, top-tier CV writers. They not only write your CV, but essentially build a powerful marketing brand for you. Our career experts will work with you to develop the perfect job application strategy, giving you the very best chance of securing your dream role. Expect a full in-depth consultation call to discuss every detail of your career; only local Aussie experts working on your project; a full 100% satisfaction guarantee with unlimited revisions of your CV; a two-business day turnaround on your first drafts, and of course, an assigned elite CV writer with significant experience in your profession.
Experience
Regardless of your industry, you should work with CV writers who understand the world in which you operate. Certain jobs and industries utilise specific language, jargon or skillsets, so it is vital that whichever CV writing service you opt for, they understand the requirements of a top-tier CV within your own profession.
While a CV service might have fantastic reviews from accountants, they might have never written a CV for an executive. Of course, for a one man band and small CV companies, it’s not feasible to hire CV writers who have experience in every industry, and this could be the factor that catches you out and results in a CV that doesn’t quite cut it.
CV People have 4 dedicated teams. These teams solely work with graduates, professionals, managers and executives. This ensures our staff are qualified to work with clients at your career level, it’s what they do all day every day. We don’t believe in a jack of all trades CV writer and neither should you. We’ve written CVs for over 10k clients since 2011, in over 60 different industries. There’s quite literally no job we don’t have experience in. Okay, astronaut!
What are their guarantees?
While no CV writing service can guarantee you a job, there are just too many variables, you should double-check what the CV writing service offers you as part of the package. For example, CV People guarantee that you will be invited to more interviews within 90 days of having your CV professionally written. If you don’t, we’ll re-write it free of charge!
Looking to take your CV to the next level?
At CV People, we know just how important it is to approach potential employers with a first-class CV in the current job market.
As the UK’s premier CV writing service, our highly experienced team have worked across a broad spectrum of industries, and on average, we dedicate between 10 - 20 hours work to each project. Perfection takes time and we strive to achieve that with every client we work with. On average, our clients secure 4x more interviews, negotiate a 24% higher starting salary and make their next career move twice as fast.
Our expert CV writers will conduct a full and thorough consultation call to understand your skills, experience and achievements, then we’ll discuss your future ambitions and aspirations, alongside conducting in-depth research on your target positions. With this information in our war chest, we’ll begin drafting a bespoke, ATS optimised CV that will dominate ATS algorithms and get you in front of the hiring manager.
The key to a professionally written CV is in the detail, which is why our quality control team proofread and double-check your entire CV before sending it to you for review. Your satisfaction is our only priority, which is why we offer unlimited revisions, working with you until you have the perfect CV guaranteed to secure you more interviews.
At CV People, we don’t follow a simple checklist or work from templates; all of our CVs are written bespoke to each client. We are incredibly proud of our success and the success of our clients within the last ten years, so if you want to find out how we can help you, browse our CV services or send in your CV for a free review!