7 Ways to Improve Your Resume and Land More Interviews in 2025

If your resume isn't landing interviews, the problem might not be your experience or qualifications, but the way you present them. Many resumes fail simply because they're too vague, cluttered, or not specifically tailored to the job ad.

Employers often struggle to quickly identify a candidate’s key strengths and relevant experience at first glance. The good news is, you can change that.

By strategically improving your resume, you'll clearly communicate your strong skills, stand out to hiring managers, and significantly boost your chances of securing interviews.

This guide shares seven practical and proven ways to improve your resume effectively, starting today.

Upload your resume to see if it’s formatted correctly for ATS and ready to reach recruiters.

Strategy 1: Make the top section impossible to ignore

If the header of your resume looks outdated, cluttered, or unprofessional, recruiters won’t read the rest. This section needs to be clean, clear, and designed to make your contact information easy to find.

Start with your name

From your personal details, your name should be the most visible text on the page. Use a bold, professional font—think header, not footnote. This is your personal brand, so make sure it stands out.

Streamline your contact details

Keep this section simple and professional by following these rules:

• Address: City and state only—no need for your full street address.
• Email: Use a professional email address, ideally some version of your name. Avoid quirky or outdated emails like ilovecats123@yahoo.com.
• LinkedIn: Add your profile link, but first customize the URL (e.g., linkedin.com/in/johnsmith). Long, messy links make your resume look unfinished.

With these quick updates, the top of your resume will look polished and professional, giving recruiters a reason to keep reading.

Our resume builder automatically reviews your contact details, suggests improvements, and helps you easily optimize this crucial section.

This resume was improved using our app:

Strategy 2: Add a concise, impactful job title or objective

A common mistake many applicants make is leaving recruiters unsure about the specific role they're targeting. Explicitly stating your intended position (if it’s your actual position) at the top of your resume immediately signals to recruiters that you have a focused career direction, setting you apart from applicants with vague or generic resumes.

Avoid generic objective statements

Broad, traditional resume objectives like, "Seeking a challenging role where I can utilize my skills to grow within a forward-thinking company," are ineffective because they lack specificity and fail to convey clear career goals.

Clearly state the role you're targeting

Use a direct and precise job title line to explicitly indicate the exact position you're targeting.

For example:

This explicit approach instantly aligns your resume with your desired role, quickly grabbing recruiters' attention and increasing your chances of passing applicant tracking systems (ATS).

Clarify your goal when changing careers

If you're transitioning into a new industry or career path, include a concise and targeted objective statement. Keep it brief and direct, such as:

This targeted method communicates your career shift clearly, helping recruiters quickly identify your potential fit for the role.

Strategy 3: Replace a generic skills list with a strong professional summary

Many resumes rely on a simple list of hard skills without context, leaving recruiters unsure of the candidate’s true abilities. Recruiters prefer seeing how candidates have applied theirsoft skillsto deliver tangible results, rather than reading through generic buzzwords.

Why a skills list alone isn't effective

A standalone skills section that simply notes down your abilities as bullets, like the list below, doesn’t communicate enough about your real capabilities or accomplishments:

• Communication
• Teamwork
• Problem-solving
• Adaptability
• Creativity
• Time management

These generic terms could describe anyone and don’t distinguish your unique qualifications. However, they're expected of you, so if you decide to list them, you could exemplify them in your summary or experience sections, to give context to your abilities.

Here is an example:

Keep in mind you can keep your hard skills in a separate section.

With this approach, recruiters can quickly see your skills in action, clearly demonstrating your value as a candidate.

How to write a strong professional summary

While including a separate skills or core competencies section remains valuable, your resume should also feature a concise, achievement-oriented professional summary.

Your professional summary should be around three to five sentences, providing context and measurable results that highlight tangible business impacts such as revenue growth, cost savings, or improved efficiencies.

It's important to note that relying solely on your professional summary for critical keywords might cause ATS to miss some qualifications—such as listing "leading" instead of "leadership." That's why including a separate, keyword-rich skills section remains important.

Quantifying your achievements with concrete numbers grabs recruiters' attention, immediately demonstrates your value, and enhances your resume’s credibility—include numbers wherever possible.

Strategy 4: Tailor your resume to each job posting

One of the most critical steps in creating an effective resume is tailoring it specifically to each job posting. Many myths surround ATS. However, some claims are backed up by research. Approximately 79% of resumes are rejected by ATSs simply because they don’t adequately match the job description.

Don’t let that discourage you, here’s what you can do:

How to effectively customize your resume

Follow these guidelines to tailor your resume well and ensure alignment with job descriptions:

1. Match job titles and keywords from the job posting exactly. Employers prefer familiar terms aligned with their role requirements.
2. Replace generic skills with precise terms employers use. For instance, use "Agile Project Management" rather than just "Project Management," if that’s what the job ad says.
3. Customize your bullet points to emphasize your most relevant experience and achievements directly related to the specific job.

Strategically tailoring your resume for each job significantly boosts your chances of passing ATS screenings and capturing hiring managers' attention.

Strategy 5: Showcase quantifiable achievements with strong bullet points

Powerful bullet points clearly demonstrate your value by emphasizing specific, measurable results you've achieved in previous roles. Metrics and concrete outcomes make your accomplishments tangible and memorable.

How to write powerful bullet points

To create bullet points that stand out to recruiters, follow these guidelines:

Examples of strong bullet points

Here are examples that show what difference quantifiable details make:

Now that your resume content clearly showcases your achievements, let's make sure the presentation reflects your professionalism.

Strategy 6. Keep your resume clean and professional

Professional formatting is crucial for making your resume easy to read and successfully presenting your strengths. A clean, organized resume highlights your most important qualifications clearly and ensures your key information is easily accessible.

Thoughtful formatting conveys professionalism and creates a strong, positive first impression.

Best formatting practices:

• Length: Keep your resume to one page if you're an entry-level or a mid-career candidate. Experienced professionals can use up to two pages.
• Font choices matter: Stick with professional, easy-to-read fonts like Rubik, Arial, or Calibri at a 10-12 pt font size.
• Margins: Maintain consistent margins between 0.5 and 1 inch to ensure readability and a clean appearance.
• File format:Save your resume as a PDF to maintain consistent formatting unless the job posting specifically requests a Word document.

With your resume professionally formatted, it's time to give it a final polish and guarantee it's free from mistakes.

Strategy 7. Proofread and get expert feedback

Even a single spelling or grammatical mistake can significantly reduce your chances—Nearly 80% of recruiters will reject a resume with typos or grammar mistakes. Carefully proofreading your resume and seeking external feedback are essential final steps before applying.

Best practices for an error-free resume:

• Use grammar-checking tools to catch grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors. You can try ours for free.
• Read your resume aloud to spot awkward phrasing and improve readability.
• Seek expert feedback, either from a professional resume reviewer or by using an AI-powered resume analysis tool.

A quick, expert review can instantly pinpoint areas for improvement, ensuring your resume makes a polished, professional impression.

Conclusion

Improving your resume doesn't have to be complicated—it's achievable with careful attention to detail and a strategic approach. Clearly define your desired role, quantify your achievements, tailor your resume for each application, and maintain professional formatting.

Implementing these practical steps will help you effectively communicate your value, boosting your ability to secure more interviews and land your desired job.

Upload your resume now to receive a free ATS compatibility check and actionable suggestions to further enhance your resume today.