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"The amount of time a recruiter spends looking at your resume is roughly six seconds \u2014 the length of a Vine video. \nFor people who are unemployed or underemployed, figuring out how to stand out in the job search is crucial. Despite discovering job openings that fit your experience, you send your resume out to the ether \u2014 and feel you're continuously overlooked in favor of someone with equal qualifications. Many job seekers have taken to desperate measures. \nSEE ALSO: Vine Resume May Be the World's First\n\"Visual design is a great way to differentiate yourself from other job candidates,\" says Dodd Caldwell, cofounder of Loft Resumes. \"Design in general is increasingly important in the business world.\"\nCompanies are always looking for candidates who will go the extra mile, and your resume is literally your first point of contact \u2014 your first chance to put yourself in the \"yes\" bucket. And what recruiters are looking for can mostly be narrowed down to science, as TheLadders found last year in an eye-tracking study on resumes.\nRecruiters spent 80% of their time looking at six data points: \n\nName\nCurrent title and company\nPrevious title and company\nCurrent start and end dates\nPrevious start and end dates\nEducation\n\nThe key is to keep these important data points clear. Loft Resumes recommends a hierarchy that presents information in a way that is easy to find and digest. Its service relies on graphic design principles, and clients can select from various formats or color palettes, but no two resumes will be exactly the same. \nWhile presenting information visually is a plus, especially in a time when Pinterest, Instagram and other visual experiences are winning our time and attention \u2014 it's still not a good idea to put a photo on your resume (unless your industry requires it). Research from TheLadders on online profiles found the human eye is naturally drawn to photos, in this case the profile photo, which prevented recruiters from looking at more relevant data such as experience. \nWhile a resume from Loft Resumes is not cheap ($99), it is an investment. The price includes two rounds of revisions. Additional revisions later \u2014 perhaps after you've acquired additional skills or experience \u2014 are only $5. \nHave you tried using a service for professionally designed resumes? Did it make a difference in your job search? Let us know in the comments. \nHere are some examples of resume makeovers by Loft Resumes:\n\n\nMashable Job Board Listings\nThe Mashable Job Board connects job seekers across the U.S. with unique career opportunities in the digital space. While we publish a wide range of job listings, we have selected a few job opportunities from the past two weeks to help get you started. Happy hunting!\n\nSenior Account Executive/Account Supervisor at Zeno Group in Santa Monica, CA\nSenior Community Manager at Carrot Creative in New York, NY\nDigital Media Project Manager at Thomas Publishing Company LLC in New York, NY\n\n\n\nImages courtesy of Loft Resumes, lead image via iStock, RussellCreative"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/03/02/resume-design/>