Trying to land a job in 2025 can sometimes feel a lot like playing invisible. There are so many more requirements and so many more people trying to land the same position. 

Usually, when people send in their resumes, they can get chucked in with so many others who were also rejected by some pre-screening system. You don’t want that to be you.

If you are in that situation where you have sent out hundreds of applications and no one has responded, it could be frustrating. So, in this post, we are going to fix that by using SEO. 

Why Use SEO for Resumes?

There are many great perks that come from using SEO for resumes. These are just a few of them:

1. Get the odds in your favor. 80% of resumes don't make it past the first stage. Of this, only 25% will get past the applicant tracking system (ATS), and part of the reason why is the use of keywords. 
2. Speak the language of the ATS and stand out from the other applicants. Yep. SEO can help you create a resume that matches what the recruiters are looking for. By knowing this, you can gain an edge over others and pass the initial stages of the candidate selection more easily. 
3. More visibility. Just like with content and blogs, SEO can make your CV more visible. This is great if you're looking to score an interview. Thanks to these optimization tactics, your resume will be able to get in front of the hiring manager.
4. Get your resume higher up on the list. There will be other candidates who are just as qualified as you for the job. But you could ensure you are bumped higher on the hiring manager's list. 

This explains why a lot of professionals take a series of steps to build their portfolio and CV — some even publish articles in professional career blogs that accept guest posts. But we’ll talk more about this later.

5 Best Practices to Optimize Your Resume for SEO

Using SEO for a CV can give you a strong edge even if you have no experience. But we hear you wondering — how do you get in on the game? Here are some of our proven tactics that you can use without any background in search engine optimization: 

#1 Start With a Keyword-Optimized Resume

Most of the time, when a resume gets passed over (even though it has relevant information), it's because of keywords — a lack of them, to be precise. 

Many ATS use keywords to filter applications. That’s why you want to make sure your resume actually has a fighting chance, especially when you have gone through so much trouble to find the right job for yourself. So, this is what you can do:

1. Find the keywords relevant to your position:

Start by identifying the keywords from the job postings, your industry, and the company. For example, take a look at the job ad for the customer service representative below. What keywords does it have?

Even if you know nothing about SEO, you might read key phrases like “customer service skills,” “experience answering phones,” “data entry,” “computer skills,” “HVAC,” “A-TEMP Heating, Cooling, & Electrical,” and so on. These are basically keywords.

Source: Indeed

2. Add your key phrases to your CV strategically:

Use those keywords in relevant sections of your resume. So, if you're writing about your skills, then use the phrases that indicate the skills they need (“customer service skills” and “experience answering phones”).

It’s also often about the common sense. Based on the ad above, if you have experience in the HVAC field, it’s logical to mention it. But in addition to just logic, it’s also good for SEO because the pre-selection tool might filter out candidates with industry-relevant experience.

Just make sure that all your keywords are integrated naturally and not just sticking out like a sore thumb. 

#2 Create an Engaging Headline and Layout 

Say you've passed the ATS, and your file is now in front of a human. What’s next? Well, they say first impressions make a lasting impression, and that's also true for resumes. 

If your CV has a clean, eye-catching layout with clear headings, it could encourage the hiring manager to pay a bit more attention. Then, the next thing you know, they are reaching out to you for an interview. 

What can you do to improve your CV layout?

1. Make sure your headline is bold and clear. 
2. Keep your summary concise and add core keywords here.
3. Put your job titles in bold font. 
4. Make sure your CV format uses the standard headings for each section (experience, education, etc). 
5. Skip the fancy fonts and use simple ones like Arial, Calibri, etc.  
6. Use bullet points, if possible, to highlight your skills, languages, and so on.
7. Do everything you can to make your resume easily skimmable — don’t overuse random colors or add tons of fonts. Instead, keep it professional and clean.

You can see all these tips in action when you check out templates online. So, if you don’t know where to start, just choose a ready-made CV that makes sense for your job and niche.

Source: Canva

#3 Your Digital Presence Can Help or Hurt Your Chances

Many people think you only need to add your social media details when applying for SM management roles. But this is not always the case. Since social media is now the new “normal,” it’s not unusual for recruiters to check out your social media profiles (even if you don’t add them to your CV). 

Still, if you have any professional presence online, it’s a great idea to mention this. Many resumes add links to their LinkedIn, online portfolios, relevant industry articles, etc.  

LinkedIn is probably the most important social media you need when applying for a job. You'd be surprised how many recruiters check your LinkedIn profile before they decide to call you in for an interview. 

So, it’s good to pay that extra bit of attention to this social network. Just like your resume, you want to use niche-relevant keywords in your profile summary, bio, and descriptions of your previous work experience. This helps the managers to better understand your personality, brand, and industry knowledge. 

Plus, don’t forget about your portfolio if it applies to your job. For example, if you’re a graphic designer, adding a link to your Behance profile is a good idea. In the same way, if you are applying for the role of a content writer, you need to show works that demonstrate your capacity as a skilled author. 

But when providing posts for blogs, you don’t need to include links to everything you have ever written in your entire life. Only the relevant ones would do. 

If you’re applying to a SaaS company that works on a sales tool, add pieces relevant to sales/marketing/business. At the same time, when you want to score a wellness copywriter position, attach work samples that are related to yoga, mental health, etc.

#4 Use Action Verbs to Highlight Your Best Result

You've done a lot to optimize your resume at this point, but there's more you can do. It's important that you use action verbs when talking about your results; this will give your resume more impact. Plus, it will align better with the ATS algorithms this way. 

So, make sure you focus on what you’ve “achieved,” “improved,” “expanded,” “optimized,” etc. The idea is to show recruiters that you know what you’re doing and that your work actually brings tangible results.

But know what’s even better than just words? Raw hard data. When you can show, using proper metrics and numbers, how your efforts paid off, you gain credibility. After all, your resume is a place to show off a bit.

#5 Invest in Link building (If It Makes Sense for Your Industry)

You are probably wondering what link building has to do with optimizing a CV with SEO. Remember what we said earlier about other links that showcase your skills and earlier works?

Well, if you have a bunch of industry publications, you greatly increase your chances of being noticed. Personal brand is a real deal these days. So, if you’re working in a highly competitive industry where your visibility matters, posting some articles online might not be the worst idea.

The more eyes get to see you as a specialist and your portfolio, the higher your chances of landing sweeter opportunities. The reason is simple — building links globally translates into pretty strong social proof. This helps cement your rep as an industry expert. 

When you get to this level, often, you don’t even need to send out resumes anymore. Recruiters will come to you because of the strong brand you have.

But of course, all these backlinks and publications are unnecessary for many industries. So, this isn’t a tip for everyone. In some niches, it’s much more important to have a good reputation and word-of-mouth locally (plumber, electrician, etc.).

Conclusion

It’s no longer enough to just send off the traditional good old CV. Competition is tough out there, and you need all the leverage you can get. That’s why SEO is so important. It can give you a good edge out there. 

You can use the examples we have shown here to optimize your CV. But remember that there is no need to start off with the most complicated tactics, like link building. Even just working on your layout and summary — adding the right keywords could make a world of difference. As a result, you end up with a CV that is both appealing to recruiters and any pre-screening system.