For one recruitment consultancy, it was the slow transformation of the normal post into a rainbow of colourful envelopes that made them realise job hunters are trying harder to be noticed.
These efforts might not be in the same league as the now-famous "Jobless Paddy", who spent his life savings on a billboard appealing for a job. But increasing numbers of candidates are dressing up their applications with expensive headed paper, fancy envelopes and glittery stationery, says managing director of recruitment consultancy FreshMinds Talent James Callander.
Whether it motivates a recruiter to delve into your application before everybody else's, well, I'm not sure. It seems to me that whether you get the job or not ultimately comes down to what's inside the beautifully-adorned envelope - even if it is really rather fabulous looking - so you might as well put in the effort there first. Unless, perhaps, you're going for a job with a stationery firm...
Still, there's no harm in dabbling with some design features in your CV itself, says our job goddess and applications expert Clare Whitmell. By doing so, you can draw attention to your strongest selling points, says Clare. She suggests using subtle colour in section dividers or borders to create a unifying theme and experimenting with tables to list core skills and strengths.
So, what else does it take to design a CV which'll stand out in the right places? How do you communicate your best bits while still getting across all the key information? Answering these questions and more, a panel of experts will be online Monday 22 August. Join them for tips about writing the perfect CV and covering letter from 1pm.
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Our panel:
Beverley Grant is an International Coach Federation-accredited coach who specialises in helping people excel at work and find job security via her own company Realms Of Possibility, and as a senior associate for leading career management companies.
Elizabeth Bacchus is a career coach, change management consultant and founder of The Successful CV Company - a CV and cover letters provider.
Clare Whitmell is a qualified business communication trainer who specialises in writing and presentation skills coaching. She also blogs CV writing and job hunting tips on JobMarketSuccess.com.
Michael Buchan is content and solutions director for MyWorkSearch - a resource website for job seekers. After spending more than 20 years in the HR industry, Michael is responsible for all of the career development and webinars content on MyWorkSearch.co.uk, covering all aspects of job hunting.
Jodie Finn is national accounts manager at Venn Group, a specialist temporary recruitment consultancy. Jodie has more than 10 years experience within the recruitment industry, working across the public, private and financial services sectors.
Keeran Gunnoo is the hiring solutions product consultant at LinkedIn. Keeran educates clients on how to utilise social media to find passive talent.
Hannah Morton-Hedges has 10 years experience as a careers adviser and now runs her own consultancy, Momentum Careers Advice. She also has experience as an in-house recruiter for major blue-chip companies, recruiting from graduate to senior executive level.
Rowena Simpson is business development manager for RenewablesCareers.com, a global online job board for the green energy sector. Rowena writes careers advice blogs for this website and OilCareers.com, a global online job board for the oil and gas industry.
Ashley Hever is European talent acquisition manager for Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Ashley is responsible for all aspects of HR activity, from graduate recruitment strategy through retention and talent planning across Europe.
Scot Smith is a tutor at employment and skills organisation Working Links, specialising in helping unemployed people upskill to find employment.
Accounts director Daniel Kirkpatrick has worked at north-west based JAM Recruitment for eight years, primarily placing candidates in engineering and supply chain roles.
