8 Ways to Freshen Your Resume

You can't look for a job the same way you did 10 years ago, and you can't use the same resume, either.

When it comes to resumes, recruiters today are more interested in seeing what you accomplished in previous jobs than in your title or responsibilities, especially if you can show how you helped a previous employer increase sales or cut expenses. It's also important to include the right language because more recruiters use software that sifts through resumes for specific words and phrases that match the descriptions of the skills and experience needed in positions they're filling.

Gone are the days of starting a resume with a single line stating your career objective, says Rich DeMatteo, a human resources and staffing industry professional who runs the Corn on the Job career blog and hosts the weekly JobHuntChat on Twitter. Instead, starting your resume with a bullet list of your greatest achievements will "help push your resume to the top of the pile," he says.

If you're hunting for work or just want to update your resume, here are suggestions from DeMatteo and others for taking this job seeker's staple from faded to fresh:

1. Know what's hot. Before you do anything, research what industries, jobs and skills within a particular job are hot so when you compile your resume, you can play up skills and experience that dovetail with those trends.

2. Use keywords. More recruiters and hiring managers are using applicant-tracking software to sort through electronic resumes or LinkedIn profiles to pick out potential new hires. Including specific keywords associated with the job you're going for will improve your chances of having your resume appear at the top of recruiters' search results, DeMatteo says. According to job board Indeed.com, in 2010 some of the most popular resume keywords were technology-related, including "HTML5," "mobile apps" and "Android"; see the complete list here.

3. Stick to highlights. A resume doesn't need to list every detail of every job you've ever held. Pare information down to the main points, but be prepared to provide additional details in a telephone or in-person interview. And remember to focus on accomplishments rather than responsibilities. "Unless you can prove that you have had an impact on the organizations you have supported, your phone may never ring," says employment consultant Barbara Stefani in this post on the AOL Jobs blog.

4. Pay attention to design. Format your resume with the reader in mind. Include a good amount of white space, with borders and space between sections. Don't cram so much on the page there's nothing on it but type. "If the resume is easy on the recruiter's eyes, reading through your experience will be effortless," DeMatteo says.

5. Post it on job boards, and then forget about it. Upload your resume to major job boards such as Indeed, Monster Worldwide, CareerBuilder, and SimplyHired.com, as well as to specialty boards in your industry or for people over 40. Then leave it be. Instead of babysitting job boards, you're better off spending your time networking and building connections, DeMatteo says.

6. Use LinkedIn. According to DeMatteo, four out of five corporate recruiters look on LinkedIn for prospective job candidates before they look anywhere, so it behooves you to have a profile on the business network. Make sure your resume matches your LinkedIn profile, and include a link to your profile in the contact information on your resume. If you have a LinkedIn profile but no resume, you can use the company's new Resume Builder feature to instantly create one in your choice of pre-set templates.

7. Go where the companies are. It's great to use Facebook, Twitter or your personal blog to promote your resume and job search, but only if the companies you want to work for are as social-media-savvy as you are. In this post, DeMatteo recounts the story of a Philadelphia sales and marketing manager who got hired by Krispy Kreme after the donut company saw the Facebook page and Twitter account he created to get their attention. But "not all companies pay attention to social media yet," DeMatteo says. "If they aren't on social media, find out where they spend their time. Do they attend career fairs? If so, call before attending to introduce yourself. You'll make a bigger impact if they expect to see you there."

8. Sneak in a cover letter. Some recruiters hate cover letters, but you need one in case someone asks for it. Limit it to three or four paragraphs: Introduce yourself, explain how you heard about the position, and state why you'd be successful. If you're e-mailing a company about an opening, copy and paste your cover letter into the body of the e-mail. "It's a trick that many candidates have used to fool me into reading their cover letter," DeMatteo says.

Keep reading: Mobile Apps for Job Hunters, Launching Your Green Job Search, How to Botox Your Resume

Resources: SecondAct's Career Guide