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Hey Reader,
Wherever this email finds you – maybe in the office, maybe strolling through a vacation town in Europe, or working remotely from your childhood home – I’ve got a quick reminder for you:
Summer is the perfect time to update your resume and make sure it’s optimized for Customer Success roles when hiring picks back up in a couple of months.
But wait! Before you roll your eyes and think, “If I change my resume one more time I’m gonna puke!” 😅
Let me remind you: I’m not the person who will tell you to rewrite your resume every time you apply to a new role or follow outdated advice about keyword stuffing or trying to “game” the ATS.
That’s not how we do things around here.
My team and I have been collecting and analyzing data from 800+ of our 1:1 clients who’ve landed new CS roles in the past two years…
And the data tells us that you only need to optimize your resume once. Do it right, and you don’t have to keep messing with it. 👌
So today, I want to help you do just that.
Let’s talk about how to improve your bullet points so your resume actually reflects how valuable you are and helps you land multiple interviews every week once you start applying.
(Stick around to the end, too, because I’ve got some FREE resources to help you build your best-ever resume from start to finish.)
👉 Let’s start here:
1. Show impact, not just numbers
You can tie a number to almost anything – you just have to ask the right questions.
Let’s say you’re writing about a time you improved a process. You start with something like: “Improved the internal billing process to create efficiency.” But “create efficiency” is vague and doesn’t mean much.
Now ask yourself: what actually changed as a result of that process? Maybe there were fewer billing errors. Maybe your team solved payment issues faster. Maybe customers complained less. Maybe your coworkers saved time.
Once you’ve identified those things, dig into the numbers: How many people did the process change affect? How often did they do the task? How long did it take before? How long does it take now?
So instead of “Improved the billing process to create efficiency,” you can get: “Saved our team of 7 an average of 28 hours/month by revamping the internal billing process.”
Feels a little different, doesn’t it?
2. Don’t share numbers without benchmarks
Saying “Achieved 95% renewal rate” sounds nice, but is it impressive?
Without context, it’s hard to say. Is that number above average for your company or your industry?
That same bullet could be stronger with a quick addition: “Achieved 95% renewal rate (105% to-goal)”
Now you’re showing that you weren’t just hitting a number – you were exceeding expectations.
Benchmarking helps your results stand out and helps the hiring manager understand the value behind the metric.
3. Don’t forget to look at progress over time
Another simple way to show your impact is by highlighting how things have improved over time.
Let’s say you write: “Grew adoption in a key account to 100 active users.”
Not bad…but compare that to this: “Grew adoption in a key account to 100 active users (40% YoY increase).”
Same fact, but now you’ve got a measurable outcome. That’s what helps hiring managers notice you and makes them want to talk to you. And sometimes, that’s what makes the difference between getting ignored and getting hired.
So, Reader... how are you feeling? A little more confident about turning your resume into something that actually gets attention? 😉
If this helped you think differently about how to write a stronger resume, and you’re ready to do it once, do it well, and then move on to applying, go check out my free resume training here:
👉 Optimize your resume for Customer Success jobs
And while you’re at it, make sure to listen to this podcast episode where I break down what separates resumes that land $150k CS jobs from the ones that get skipped:
👉 The $150K Resume: What Sets Apart Top CS Earners
And hey, if you found all this helpful, share it with a friend who’s also job hunting!
To your success,
Carly
P.S. To thank you for sticking with me to the end, here’s where my pup and I are spending this summer:
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